College Night
College is not a trophy.
Its a match.
General
Information
College vs. University
What is the difference?
 Universities typically have graduate
degree programs, whereas Colleges do
not
 Universities are generally larger and have
more research facilities/opportunities
 There are exceptions to this, i.e. Boston
College

Visiting Schools
Spring Break is a great time to visit collegesstudents will be on campus
 Get a feel for the campus
 If possible, sign up for a tour– let the school
know that you are there!
 “Demonstrated Interest” – schools keep track
of any visits, tours, communication, etc. that
you have with the school

Remember, this whole process
is about finding schools that
FIT your daughter
Testing- SAT
Comprised of a verbal, a math and a
writing section
 Most students take it 2-3 times
 Some students like to reserve the
October SAT test date in senior
year for one last try at the test
 Register for tests on
www.collegeboard.com

Testing - SAT



Most colleges will acknowledge the
student’s highest verbal score, highest
math score and highest writing score,
even if they were not taken on the
same test date
Students will be able to select which
scores they send to colleges by test
date for the SAT and by individual test
for the SAT Subject Tests
Scores from an entire test date will be
sent, NOT scores from individual
sections
Testing - SAT
 Example:
March, 2009
650 Math, 590 Critical Reading, 640 Writing
May, 2009
620 Math, 640 Critical Reading, 650 Writing
October, 2009
590 Math, 590 Critical Reading, 600 Writing
*About ½ of colleges take the writing score into
consideration
Testing - SAT
Some colleges will require that you
send ALL of your scores
 When you start to send your scores,
you will be able to see what each
college requires

 Sending
scores to colleges can
be done online at
www.collegeboard.com
Testing - ACT





English, Math, Reading, Science, Writing
Composite score of 1–36, based on
average of scores from 5 tests
No penalty for wrong answers
Considered a “curriculum-based” test,
rather than “critical thinking based” test
Tests are produced by two different
companies and are, therefore, given on
different days
Testing- SAT Subject Tests
Not all colleges require these tests, but
those that do normally require 2
 Research your prospective schools to see
what they require
 Test in areas in which you will do well
 English Literature, U.S. History, World
History, Math Level 1, Math Level 2,
Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Languages

Number / Type of Applications
4-7 applications is reasonable
 Applications should include at least one
reach school, one safety school, and two
target schools
 To determine safety, target and reach,
students should compare her grade point
average and SAT scores to the average
statistics in the college’s “Freshman Class
Profile” (information available on
Naviance)

Number / Type of Applications

www.connection.naviance.com/villawalsh
Type of Applications

Every college has it’s own criteria and
application requirements – BE SURE TO
FIND OUT EACH SCHOOL’S
REQUIREMENTS!

Different applications, supplements,
deadlines, testing requirements, financial
aid requirements, etc
Type of Applications

Regular Decision
◦ Generally due in January

Early Decision
◦ Generally due in November
◦ Binding
◦ May only apply to ONE

Early Action
◦ Generally due in November
◦ Non-binding
◦ Most allow more than one – check each schools rules

Rolling Admission
◦ First come, first served
◦ Apply Early!!
Types of Applications

Common Application vs. School-specific
Application
◦ Over 400 colleges and universities use the Common
App

Supplements to Common Application
Types of Applications
Large majority of students will complete
applications online (quicker, easier, most
colleges prefer it)
 About 95% of colleges accept the application
online
 About 80% of colleges will accept transcript
and recommendations online, through
Naviance
 The other 20% will need to be mailed via
USPS

Letters of Recommendation
Most colleges require 2 letters of
recommendations from teachers and 1 from a
guidance counselor
 Letters DO NOT have to be from teachers of
Junior year classes, but should be recent
 Make sure the teacher knows you and can
speak well about you

Financial Aid
 FAFSA
= Free Application for Federal
Student Aid
 CSS PROFILE = College Board aid
application for about 200 private colleges
 Both are used to determine financial aid, but
CSS PROFILE is generally used by private
schools to determine non-federal student aid
(institutional scholarships, grants, loans)
 Which forms you fill out will depend upon
what each of your colleges requires…so
research each school to find out!
Financial Aid
Family financial information is analyzed to
come up with the EFC = Expected Family
Contribution
 EFC based on:

◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
Parents Income
Parents Assets
Student Income
Student Assets
# of family members
# of children in college
Financial Aid – FAFSA vs. PROFILE
 Cost:
The FAFSA is free, the CSS PROFILE
will cost you an application fee and a fee for
each school to which it is sent.
 Deadlines: The FAFSA can be submitted
beginning on January 1 of your Senior year.
The CSS PROFILE can be submitted prior to
January 1.
 Both financial aid applications use
different needs analysis formulas. The
FAFSA uses a Federal Methodology, while the
CSS uses an Institutional Methodology.
VILLA SPECIFIC
INFO
Information Forms:
Activities Resume
 College Essay
 Brag Sheet


Parent Brag Sheet
HOW VILLA WORKS
At the beginning of Senior year, I will meet
with Seniors to discuss the application
process more in depth – how teacher
recommendations and transcripts are
handled
 Each student will get a folder with
instructions
 Majority of transcripts, teacher
recommendations, and counselor
recommendations are sent through
Naviance, where you can see what has been
sent

What should we do now?
Research and visit colleges
 Take SAT/ACT/Subject Tests
 Begin thinking about who you would like
to write your teacher letters of
recommendations
 Continue working hard without making
yourself crazy

THANK YOU!