Junior College Guidance Night October 18, 2010

1. Junior College Guidance NightOctober 18, 2010 Mr. Luke Sferra, High School Counselor (A-K) Mrs. Katie Dahm, High School Counselor (L-Z) Mrs. Ah Young Chi, College/Career Counselor Mr. Arun Ponnusamy, Open Road Education

2. Your resources for college planning • CCC website • CCC calendar on the web • MHS eNews mailing list to sign up • Naviance Family Connection • College and Career Center!

3. Postsecondary Options • 4-year college or university (Bachelor degree) • Public: UC or CSU • Private: over 70 in California • Out of State Public or Private: over 3,000 • 2-year college (Associate degree, career training or transfer) • Trade or technical school (varying degrees and certificates) • Military • Work • Gap year (concrete plan with a destination in mind for the 2nd year, usually)

4. So many different colleges & universities • Private vs. public • Research vs. liberal arts (university vs. college) • Size • Location • Selectivity • Specialty – academic, gender, culture, faith • What do you mean by “fit”?

5. University of California • 10 campuses but San Francisco is graduate only • Bachelor, Master, and Doctorate degrees • Research/theory based curriculums • Competitive admissions with many highly selective campuses • To be eligible: 3.0 GPA, A-G courses, SAT or ACT with Writing, personal statement, SAT Subject (for selected majors) • Not required: recommendation letters • Application filing period: Nov 1 – Nov 30 • www.universityofcalifornia.edu

6. California State University • 23 campuses • Bachelor and Master degrees • First institution of higher education established by the State of California, originally established to train teachers • To be eligible: 2.0 GPA, A-G courses, SAT or ACT (no Writing) • Not required: SAT Subjects, recommendation letters, essays • Application filing period: Oct 1 – Nov 30 • www.csumentor.edu or www.calstate.edu • Impacted campuses: Chico, East Bay, Fresno, Fullerton, Humboldt, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Northridge, Pomona, Sacramento, San Bernardino, SDSU, SFSU, San Jose State, Cal Poly SLO, San Marcos, Sonoma

7. Private and Out of State Schools • 75 private colleges and universities in California • 3,000+ colleges and universities in US (including public) • All vary in admission requirements and application deadlines • MUST BE ORGANIZED! • Application requirements: application usually with essays and activities, official transcript, official test scores, letters of recommendation, and sometimes interview • Almost 400 schools are part of the Common Application • Early Decision vs. Early Action vs. Restrictive Early Action • http://www.nacacnet.org/PublicationsResources/Marketplace/Documents/StudentsRtsNEW.pdf • National Commitment Deadline: MAY 1  student’s right

8. Community Colleges • 109 campuses in California • Associate degrees (many lead to careers) • Transfer to 4-year school (finish Bachelor degree) • To transfer to CSU or UC and some private schools, must complete 60 semester units (2 years) at CC • To transfer to most private schools, only need 30 semester units (1 year) at CC • Articulation agreements or TAG are available for most schools

9. College entrance requirements • Subject/A-G courses • Standardized tests • SAT or ACT • SAT Subjects • Extracurricular activities and/or job experience • Essay or personal statement • Interview and/or portfolio • Recommendation letters • = “holistic” review of application

10. What are colleges REALLY looking for? • Success in challenging curriculum • Have you taken advantage of the opportunities at your school? • This doesn’t mean taking EVERY Honors and AP courses that we offer at MHS • Meet other entrance requirements • Are you and the college a good match for each other?

11. Graduation Requirements

12. Subject requirements • English – 4 years • Social Science – 3 years • Mathematics – 3 years (4 years recommended) • Lab Science – 2 years (3-4 years recommended) • Foreign Language – 2 years of the same language (3-4 years recommended) • Visual & Performing Art – 1 year of same genre • UC/CSU minimum eligibility – 15 units • UC average for Fall 2010 class (enrolled) – 23.1 units

13. College admission testing • SAT or ACT (with Writing) required for most colleges • Which test is right for you? • SAT • 1/3 Math, 1/3 Reading, • 1/3 Writing • Maximum 2400 points • Guessing penalty • March 12 – recommended test date for Juniors • www.collegeboard.com • ACT w/ Writing • 1/5 Math, 1/5 Science, • 1/5 Writing, 2/5 Verbal • Maximum 36 points • NO guessing penalty • April 9 or June 11– recommended test date for Juniors • www.actstudent.org

14. College admission testing (cont) • Full length practice SAT and ACT offered at MHS • Use results to determine which test is for you • Use results to study for the real test • YES, you must prepare for the SAT and ACT! • Practice SAT • Saturday, November 20 • 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. • $20 per student • No pressure! • Practice ACT w/ Writing • Saturday, December 4 • 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. • $20 per student • No pressure!

15. College admission testing (cont) • SAT Subject exams • No longer required for UC eligibility (select majors will “highly recommend” it) • Required for several highly selective schools • Harvard, Georgetown, Brown, MIT, Yale, Princeton, etc • Stanford: “strongly recommended” • Best way to prepare: take an AP course and study • Recommended test date: May or June 2011 • AP tests are not required for admission • Some schools are testing “optional” – www.fairtest.org

16. Testing timeline

17. Extracurricular activities • In school: ASB, yearbook, journalism, sports, music, theater, art, clubs, etc • Community service • Work experience, paid or unpaid • Internships, paid or unpaid • Summer programs and activities • Helpful tips • quality over quantity; take leadership roles • start “resume” now • plan summer activities wisely; do SOMETHING • you don’t have to cure cancer to be admitted to college!

18. So what should I be doing NOW?~ STUDENT ~ • Do well in your classes - #1 goal • Your transcript (grades and coursework) is the most important factor in admission decisions • Nothing replaces the importance of your transcript • Make up all D and F grades • Junior Year “Prep for College” Calendar • Naviance Family Connection • Make sure your email address is correct/updated • Familiarize yourself with its features • Take personality and interest inventories • Input activities into resume

19. So what should we be doing NOW?~ PARENTS~ • Sign up for MHS eNews mailing list • Allow your student to take the lead • Offer positive support • Stay in touch with their progress • Remind your student of deadlines • Get familiar with Naviance Family Connection • Coffee with the Counselors • Attend Junior college advisement in Spring with your student

20. Upcoming events

21. Looking ahead to the Senior year… • College rep visits to MHS • College counselor visit to classrooms • More individual meetings with college counselor • Senior Parent College Night • College essay review sessions • College application workshops (lunch time) • Coffee with the Counselors for parents continues • Financial Aid Night

22. Working with an independent college counselor • It is okay to work with an independent college counselor if you feel you need the extra support • Vast majority of families do not need to hire an independent college counselor • Ideally, an independent consultant should be a member of IECA (Independent Educational Consultants Association) and/or NACAC (National Association for College Admission Counseling) • Refer to the following websites for information on who to hire: • http://www.iecaonline.com/parents.html • http://www.nacacnet.org/studentinfo/CollegePrep/ECCC/Pages/default.aspx

23. Questions? Mr. Luke Sferra, High School Counselor (A-K), lsferra@smmusd.org Mrs. Katie Dahm, High School Counselor (L-Z), kdahm@smmusd.org Mrs. Ah Young Chi, College/Career Counselor, achi@smmusd.org Mr. Arun Ponnusamy, Open Road Education, arun@thinkopenroad.com