College Information
Night
Erwin High School
September 16, 2014
Welcome!
• Counselor Introductions
– Ms. Shae Jones – Freshman Academy
– Mrs. Nicole Killeen – A-G
– Ms. Catherine House – H-O
– Mrs. Laura McCreary – P-Z
• Russ Harris – WCU/Project Discovery
• College Representatives: UNCA, WCU, Brevard, UNC-Charlotte,
Appalachian State University
What am I doing after high school?
• Job
• Military – contact a military recruiter, take the ASVAB
– Practice ASVAB available online
• Two year college
• Four year college
High School Timeline:
**Take the hardest classes that you will be successful in**
Junior Year
• Begin looking at your GPA and how it compares to colleges
• PSAT – October 14th – sign up ASAP, $14.00
– May be eligible for National Merit Scholarships
• Course Registration – don’t pick a slack senior year schedule
• ACT – Spring, send scores to potential schools
Summer Before Senior Year
• Job, internship, community service
• Visit colleges
Senior Year
• Fall: narrow college list: match, safety, reach
• SAT/ACT
• Deadlines: scholarships, recommendations
• November 10th-14th: College Application Week
• December 11: FAFSA night
• February: FAFSA application
• May 1st: College Decision Day
How do I get into college?
• What are colleges looking for
• SAT or ACT
• College Applications
– Deadlines, essays, and recommendations
• Match, Reach, and Safety Schools
• Scholarships & Financial Aid
– Where is this information?
Two Year College
• Placement Test: Accuplacer
• Comprehensive Articulation Agreement
• Cost:
– Average cost of tuition @ 4 year public college: $8, 655/year (not
including housing)
– Average cost of tuition @ 4 year private college: $21,706/year (not
including housing)
– Cost of tuition at AB-Tech: $2,344/year
What are colleges looking for?
• High School Achievement
• Test Scores – SAT or ACT
• Recommendations
• Essays
• Activities – extracurricular, community service
• Interview (if applicable)
SAT vs. ACT
• Scoring: Sections range 200-800,
highest score: 2400
• Scoring: 1-36, Composite score
• Stronger emphasis on vocabulary
• Questions tend to be more
straightforward
• No science section
• More advanced math concepts
• Broken up into more sections
• Optional writing section
• Required writing section
– TAKE IT!
Register at:
Register at:
www.sat.collegeboard.org
www.act.org
Finding the Right School
• Match: your academic record falls within that school’s range
• Reach: your academic record falls below that school’s range
• Safety: your academic record falls above that school’s range
• College Matching Programs: CFNC, Princeton Review
• What do you want to study?
• Visit the Campus
– Do you see yourself there?
College Applications
• Fee waivers – applications, SAT, ACT
• Early Decision vs. Early Action vs. Regular Application
• Recommendations:
– Ask Early!
– Provide resume
– Send thank you notes
• Essay: don’t skip “optional” essays
– PROOFREAD, PROOFREAD, HAVE AN ENGLISH TEACHER PROOFREAD
– Reflect on what you learned, don’t just recount
Paying for College
• Scholarships, Scholarships, Scholarships!
– Newsletter in the lobby
– Websites: cfnc, fastweb, and the schools you are applying to
– Merit-Based vs. Need-Based
• Work Study
• FAFSA:
– Information Night: December 11, 2014 @ Erwin High School
– Application opens in February
**selective service – males must register in order to receive federal aid**
www.sss.gov
– West Asheville Library – College Planning Workshop
September 25th at 6:00 – you must RSVP
College Redirection
• If you did not get into a school you applied to and you have an
updated CFNC account…
– Submit your name for College Redirection
– Colleges who still have spots for Fall 2015 admittance look at the pool of
students and may contact you to attend there.
– This process is open on CFNC April 1st through August 31st
Resources
• www.cfnc.org – NC school profiles, apply to NC schools
• www.fastweb.com - scholarships
• www.princetonreview.com – information, college profiles
• www.commonapp.org – apply to schools
• Erwin High School counseling Website – updated information
• www.collegeboard.org – SAT, college information
• Always check the schools you are applying to for additional
scholarship and financial aid information and opportunities
Upcoming Test Dates
SAT
ACT
• October 11th
• September 13th
• November 8th
• October 25th
• December 6th
• December 13th
*register at
www.collegeboard.org*
*register at www.act.org*
- look at registration deadlines -
- look at registration deadlines -