EDUCATIONAL
TALENT SEARCH
We s t e r n K e n t u c k y U n ive r s i t y
From the Director’s Desk
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
From the Director
1
FAFSA Workshops
1
Choosing a College
2
ACT Information
2
Test Again?
2
FAFSA Step by Step
3
Real Cost of College
4
Back to College?
4
Excursion Pics
4
Success is not final,
failure is not fatal:
it is the courage to
continue that
counts.
Winston Churchill
Strive not to be a
success, but rather
to be of value.
Albert Einstein
The time before the Holidays is always busy. For the ETS staff, it’s even busier as we
finalize our yearly progress report for the U.S. Department of Education. We thought
we share our (YOUR) success! ETS makes a tremendous difference in the live of the
students we serve.
99% of ETS students persisted on to the next grade level
100% of ETS seniors graduated last year
89% of ETS seniors graduated with a rigorous program of study (college prep)
80% of ETS seniors enrolled in postsecondary education (college, trade school, etc.)
We served 821 students from ten counties
If you know of students who would benefit from participating in our ETS program,
please let your Academic Coordinator know. We’re here to encourage, advise, and
guide you to a successful career through continued education.
Congratulations on another great year!
Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
ETS Academic Coordinators will be at the following schools to assist seniors and
their parents with filling out the FAFAS. Please see you school guidance office to
sign up for a time slot.
Allen County Scottsville High: Thursday, January 16 from 10-5:30 PM
Butler County High: Wednesday, January 15 from 8-3:00 PM
Cumberland County High: Monday, January 13 from 10-5:00 PM
Edmonson County High: Tuesday, January 14 from 12-6:00 PM
Hart County High: Thursday, January 9 from 9:30-? PM
Logan County High: Wednesday, January 8 from 9-4:00PM
Metcalfe County High: Wednesday, January 8 from 12-6:00 PM
Monroe County High: Tuesday, January 7 from 10-4:00 PM
Russellville High: Monday, January 6 from 9-5:00 PM
Educational Talent Search
Western Kentucky University
Mission Statement
1906 College Heights Blvd. #11098
Educational Talent Search at Western Kentucky University engages qualified youth in grades
eight through twelve in developmentally appropriate activities that will encourage persistence
in high school, enrollment in postsecondary education and a lifelong pursuit of learning in order to be productive citizens of a global society.
Bowling Green, KY 42101-1098
(270) 745-3757
www.wku.edu/ets
ETS Newsletter
December, 2013
Page 2
E duc a ti o na l T al e nt S e a r c h
Important Factors in Choosing a College
ACT: Should I Test Again?
In choosing a college, the first things you'll probably consider will be the type of
academic program and the availability of the major—or majors—you are most
interested in. Here are some other things to think about as you compare colleges.
How you rank these other factors will depend largely on your personal preferences and needs.
Many students test twice, once
as a junior and again as a senior.
You should definitely consider
retesting if you had any problems
during testing, such as misunderstanding the directions, running
out of time, or not feeling well.
You may also want to consider
retesting if you don't believe that
your scores accurately represent
your abilities, especially if you see
a discrepancy between your ACT
scores and your high school
grades, or if you have completed
coursework or an intensive review in the subject areas included
in the ACT since you tested. If
you test more than once, you
determine which set of scores
are sent to colleges or scholarship programs. Also remember,
the higher your ACT score, the
more KEYS money you’ll receive.
Location
 distance from home
Environment
 type of school (2-year or 4-year)
 school setting (urban, rural)
 location and size of nearest city
 co-ed, male, female
 religious affiliation
Size
 enrollment
 physical size of campus
Admission requirements
 deadline(s)
 test(s) required
 average test scores, GPA, rank
 special requirements
Academics
 majors offered
 special requirements
 accreditation
 student-faculty ratio
 typical class size
Financial aid
 deadline(s)
 required forms
 % of student population receiving aid
 scholarships
 part-time employment opportunities
Housing
 residence hall requirements
 availability
 types and sizes
 food plans
Facilities
 academic
 recreational
 other
How will you do on a retest?
Research shows that students
from the 2013 graduating class
who took the ACT more than
once:
Activities
 clubs, organizations
 sororities/fraternities
 athletics, intramurals
 other

Campus visits
 when to visit
 special opportunities

College expenses
 tuition, room and board
 estimated total budget
 application fee, deposits

57% increased their composite score on the retest
21% had no change in their
composite score on the retest
22% decreased their composite score on the retest
ACT Dates and Deadlines
Each ETS member is eligible for one ACT fee waiver. Ask your ETS counselor for more information.
Test Date
Registration Deadline
(Late Fee Required)
February 8, 2014
January 10, 2014
January 11–24, 2014
April 12, 2014
March 7, 2014
March 8–21, 2014
June 14, 2014
May 9, 2014
May 10–23, 2014
Page 3
E duc a ti o n a l T a l e n t S e a r ch
F i n a n c i a l A i d : A st e p b y s t e p g u i d e
Step 1: Gather Documents. As with most things in life, you can save yourself time and aggravation by preparing in advance to fill out the FAFSA. Here’s what you’ll need:
 Your driver’s license.
 Your social security number.
 Your W-2 forms and any other record of income for the prior year.
 If you are married, you will need you and your spouse’s Federal Income Tax Return for the prior year.
 If you are a dependent student, you will need your parents’ Federal Income Tax Return for the prior year.
 Records for any untaxed income from the prior year.
 Your current bank statement.
 Investment mortgage information, self-employed business forms, bonds or other investment records for
you, your spouse if you are married, and your parents if you are a dependent student.
 If you are not a U.S. citizen, you need to provide your alien registration or permanent resident card.
Step 2: Apply for a PIN. A PIN is a four-digit number that is assigned to you. Go to
www.pin.ed.gov to apply for a PIN. (It takes one to three days for the number to be
verified, but you can use that time to gather your documentation and begin filling out
the web worksheet. This number allows you to:
 Sign your FAFSA.
 See the results of the FAFSA on the website.
 Apply for financial aid in future years.
 Access other federal financial aid websites.
Deadline Alert
You can submit the FAFSA
starting on JANUARY 1st.
If you’re applying before you file
your taxes, you can use last
year’s tax information as an estimate for this year. Don’t delay
submit your FAFSA early.
Step 3: Complete the Web Worksheet. Filling out the FAFSA Worksheet makes it a breeze to fill in the information
online. In fact, you can pretty much just transfer the data from the worksheet to the online form.
Go to http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1112/pdf/fafsaws12c.pdf
Step 4: Fill Out the FAFSA Online. Go to www.fafsa.gov to fill out your form. The online format has calculators and
help tools to assist you along the way.
Step 5: Sign the Form Electronically with a PIN.
Step 6: Get Your Results. Once you get your confirmation page, you know that your form has been submitted, and you
just need to wait for the results. If you don’t want to wait, you can check the status of your application online. If you
signed the FAFSA with a PIN, you can check the status just one week after submitting it. If you printed, signed, and
mailed a hard copy of the signature form, you can check the status of your form two to three weeks after submitting the
form.
Step 6: Results. In about a month, you will get a paper copy of your Student Aid Report (SAR) or you will be e-mailed
one if you have included your email address. The SAR (along with your EFC – Expected Family Contribution) will be sent
to all the schools you indicated on the FAFSA. You can include more schools and get extra copies of your SAR online.
Step 7: Make Corrections. Once you get the results from the FAFSA, you can make corrections. You may want to correct information that was not accurate on the original form or make changes if you family situation changes.
Information taken from How to Pay for College: A Library How-To Handbook.
P ARENTS P AGE
Real Cost of College
Many people think college is much more expensive than it is.
Here are the average in-state costs per year for four types of
colleges in Kentucky (some costs were estimated because the
schools did not provide exact figures):
· Public universities: $19,635.
· Private nonprofit colleges and universities: $32,416.
· Public community and technical colleges: $14,185.
· Private for-profit colleges and universities: $26,908.
But paying for college is a lot like buying a car. The sticker price isn’t always what you end up paying. Most students receive scholarships and grants to help them pay for college, so the net price is often much less than the sticker price.
Let’s say that the college you’re interested in costs $25,000 per year. You qualify for a $4,000 Federal Pell Grant and
$4,000 in state grants, and you have $3,500 in scholarships. Your total aid in grants and scholarships is $11,500, so your
net price is $13,500. That’s how much you and your family will have to come up with.
All colleges that participate in federal financial aid programs must have what is called a net price calculator (NPC) on
their website. The NPC will give you an idea of your out-of-pocket costs for that school. Links to Kentucky schools’ NPCs
are below.
(from www.kheaa.com)
Budget Balancing Tools
Balancing a family budget is a difficult task, especially when needs are many and funds
are few. Be leery of websites that want you to “consolidate” your debts. While they
may contain some reasonable budgeting information, their bottom line is to make
money off of you. Check out some of these “legitimate” recommended websites below:
www.mint.com—A financial tool that pulls all your financial information into one place
to help you save, invest, and budget wisely.
youneedabudget.com—Free online classes and tools to help you set up a budget and
stick to it.
www.daveramsey.com—Contains tools to keep you on track to get out of debt and
A rainy day for the Freshmen Frenzy and Senior Flash Forward. Thanks to all who helped organize the event!