1. Junior orientation Class of 2017
Presented by:
Guidance Department
Billings West High School

2. What’s next? Four-Year College? Two-Year College? Certificate Program?
An Apprenticeship?
The Military?
A Job?
Nothing?

3. Two-year colleges, community colleges, & vocational programs
Why?
Our Economy Is Changing
Job-Ready Skills
4-year Colleges Are Expensive
Completion Of General Credits
Who?
Hands-On Learners
Money-Conscious Families

4. Your “dream” school Big School vs. Small School?
Urban campus vs. Rural campus?
Program of Study?
Ocean or Mountains?
How far from home?
Cost?

5. Montana University Systems’ General Admission requirements
University of Montana
MSU-Bozeman
MSU-Northern
MSU-Billings
MSU-Western
Montana University Systems’ General Admission requirements
General (one of the following)
An ACT composite score of 22; OR
An SAT combined critical reading/mathematics/writing score of 1540; OR
A 2.5 cumulative GPA (on a 4 point scale); OR
A class rank in the upper half of the class; AND
A minimum math score of 22 (ACT) or 520 (SAT)
Montana Rigorous Core
4 years of English
4 years of math
4 years of lab science
3 years of social studies
2 years of foreign language OR computer science OR VPA OR CTE
Remedial Classes
Students not meeting minimum requirements will have to take remedial courses
Will be accepted to school on a provisional basis
Will have to pay for the classes but not get college credit for them

6. transcripts Official v. Unofficial Unweighted vs. Weighted GPA & Rank
Colleges want to see 7 Semesters of Grades
ACT & SAT Scores
Strength of Curriculum
End-of-the-Year Transcript

7. ACT & SAT tests ACTs SATs SAT II Subject Tests
You don’t need to take both!
The ACT is broken into 5 sections
A perfect score on the ACT is a 36
ACTs reward good science students
ACT math questions include trigonometry concepts
West High students do better than the average Montana & US student on the ACTs
Upcoming ACT dates:
April 9th
April 19th (all West High Juniors)
June 11th
A handful of school require the SAT test. Find out if yours is one of them!
The SAT is broken into three categories, but each category is broken into smaller tests
A perfect score on the SAT is 2400
The SATs reward good English students with a strong vocabulary
West High students do better than the average Montana & US student on the SATs
Upcoming SAT dates:
March 5th
May 7th
June 4th
Some colleges & universities require at least one SAT II test in addition to the SAT or ACT scores
You can choose academic tests that showcase your abilities in the subject
You may take up to three SAT II subject test per test session
You may not take the SAT and the SAT II subject tests on the same day
Upcoming SAT II Subject test dates:
March 5th
May 7th
June 4th

8. ACT & SAT Prep West High ACT Prep Course
Sycamore Learning Center ACT Prep
Huntington Learning Center & Sylvan Learning Center
ACT Online Prep

9. Letters of Recommendation
Teacher recommendations should come from junior or senior year teachers
Give your recommender plenty of time
Always provide your recommender with a resume
Ask someone who will portray you positively
Make sure you thank your recommender

10. Personal statements & essays
Required by more selective colleges and universities
Common App uses writing prompts for the essays
Essays allow you to distinguish yourself from other students
What would you bring to the university community that is unique
Emphasize something unique about yourself
Show strength or character by admitting shortcoming or weakness
Be honest and genuine
Your goal should be to make the reader smile!
Include enough details to convince the reader that it actually was important
If you cannot remember those details, it maybe wasn’t that important to you!

11. You want to play sports in college?
NCAA Division I
NCAA Division II
NAIA
Graduate from high school
Complete 16 Core Courses
English, math, science, social studies, foreign language
10 must be completed prior to the start of the student’s senior year
7 of the 10 must be in English, math or science
Earn a 2.3 GPA in core courses
Core GPA is calculated by using the best 16 core courses
Sliding Scale using core GPA and test scores
Send ACT or SAT scores directly from the testing company (9999)
Notify counselor after registering to send official transcript
Graduate high school
Complete 16 Core Courses
10 must be completed prior to the start of the student’s senior year
7 of the 10 must be in English, math or science
Earn a 2.0 GPA in core courses
ACT or SAT scores:
Combined 68 ACT (English, math, reading, science)
Combined 820 SAT (critical reading & math)
Send ACT or SAT scores directly from the testing company (9999)
Notify counselor after registering to send official transcript
Graduate high school
Meet two out of the following three requirements:
Achieve a minimum 18 on the ACT or 860 on the SAT (critical reading and math)
Achieve a minimum overall GPA of 2.0
Graduate in the top half of your class
Send ACT or SAT directly from the testing company (9876)
Notify counselor after registering to send official transcript

12. Things to think about Credit Recovery Options Correspondence Classes
Summer School
Credit Recovery at West High
Montana Digital Academy (MTDA)
Correspondence Classes
BYU, North Dakota State, MTDA
Must be finished by the end of first semester
University Connections
Applications in the Guidance Office
College Classes for elective credit only
Consider how it will show on transcript

13. A Junior student’s Summer to-do list
Volunteer
“Homework”
Work But Have Fun!
Many scholarships are based on volunteer hours
Volunteering is a way to distinguish yourself from your peers
United Way of Yellowstone County
Research different colleges
Visit college campuses of the schools that interest you
Read successful college essays
Study for your college admissions tests
Job Shadowing is very worthwhile!
University Connection Class look great on a transcript
Get your Senior pictures taken