1. College Application Process UW System Schools Private Schools Madison College

2. Applying ● Apply to colleges early in your senior year (September, October, November for priority admission; this will also make the financial aid application process smoother in winter.)

3. UW System Schools Go to the specific school’s website to locate its application, or you can apply to all UW schools at apply.wisconsin.edu. You need to fill out a separate application for each UW school you apply to (a drop-down menu is available so you only need to complete most information once).

4. Preparing to fill out the application ● Prepare the following: -List of extracurricular, community and/or volunteer activities -Honors/Awards Earned -Involvement in school organizations, religious and service organizations, family obligations -Employment *Be Specific with position held, hours spent, length of time involved

5. UW System Schools Essay The UW System application has two essays. The first one will be on all UW schools’ applications: -Briefly explain in 50-100 words which activity you were involved in was the most important to you. This is meant to be a short statement letting them know a little bit about what you’ve been involved with in high school and/or what you are passionate about.

6. There will be a second essay prompt that varies from school-to-school. One of the most common is: -Tell us about the particular life experiences, perspectives, talents, commitments and/or interests you will bring to our campus. How will you enrich our community?

7. Advice on Essays Be specific with answers. Use examples. Be brief (doesn’t need to be lengthy). Focus on what is unique about you. Describe how you will make an impact on the school’s campus. Talk about your character, defining life moments, hardships you’ve overcome and/or cultural awareness you have. Have someone proofread your essay/statement.

8. Things to do after applying Our school partners with www.parchment.com to send out electronic transcripts to the colleges you’ve applied to.www.parchment.com – Check your student email for an email from Ms. Micklos with a verification code to create an account with Parchment. If you don’t receive this email you can still create an account on your own. Give your school counselor copies of letters of recommendation to send to the schools (if needed). (Teachers can email them to us.) Some schools may provide a link for teachers to submit letters directly. Have ACT and/or SAT scores sent to the schools (check to see if “official” scores are needed).

9. Madison College (MATC) Go to their website – www.madisoncollege.edu click on “apply/register” Follow the instructions carefully. Go to www.parchment.com to arrange for your transcript to be sent.www.parchment.com A rep from MATC will be here in October to assist students in filling out applications. We will notify you when a date is scheduled.

10. Important things to consider for Madison College Is there a priority application deadline for the program I am applying for? Are there certain requirements to fulfill to get accepted into the program I want? Does my program require that ACT scores be submitted with my application? (Some health care programs do.)

11. Crucial Application Date! Many technical-degree programs at Madison College have waitlists. To ensure an early placement on a waitlist, students should apply by Thursday, October 15. Some high-demand programs (like Nursing) close their application window on that date.

12. Madison College does not require the ACT for admission, but they will use your ACT score for placement purposes. If your ACT score is low, it may be to your advantage to take MATC’s Compass Test. You can register for it online and take it anytime this school year (students often wait until spring), but check the requirements for your program. You may need to have testing completed by a certain date. Some of MATC’s health care programs require ACT scores for admission.

13. If you want to submit your ACT scores to MATC, they do require an official copy from the testing agency. If you didn’t have your scores sent there when you took the ACT, you’ll need to go online to www.actstudent.org and order a score report to be sent to MATC. www.actstudent.org

14. Information about the Compass test is available on MATC’s website. Use the A-Z index and click on “C,” then scroll down to “Compass Testing.”

15. Questions The counselors are happy to meet with you to help you out through this process.