Post Secondary Planning

“It is good to have an end to a journey; but it is the journey that matters in the end.” Ursula Le Guin

Consider the Options College Vocational/Trade School Employment

Military Careers www.goarmy.com www.navyjobs.com www.af.mil www.usmc.mil

Employment

Thinking about College?This is a BIG decision! Where to begin?

College Admission Tests College Search Process NAVIANCE Admission Standards/ Types of Colleges Components of College App. Financial Aid

Narrowing down… There are THOUSANDS of colleges out there… how do you choose?

College Visits/ Open Houses College Fairs College Representatives

Criteria to think about:Location (33 schools within 1 hour of UM)

SizeAcademic Majors/ProgramsExtra-curricular ActivitiesAdmission Requirements

Cost

A Major is a MAJOR Decision Don’t feel pressured to decide right now

Can wait to declare at the end of sophomore year Exceptions: Education, Nursing, Pre-Professional Programs

Complete Career Inventories & Surveys Research majors in areas of academic interests

Remember, change is a part of life 50% students switch majors and most people switch careers a few times in their lives!

Naviancehttp://connection.naviance.com/umhs

Juniors Super Match College

Search Upcoming College Visits College resources College maps Scattergrams Career interest profiler Scholarships Resume

Seniors Transcript Requests College Applications Recommendation

letter requests Application tracking –

reports colleges applied to and admission decisions

College Searching on Naviance Generate list of colleges by criteria (size, location, cost, major, etc.)

Compare colleges of interest based on academic criteria

Add selected schools to “Colleges I’m Thinking About” list

Find detailed information on each college

Scattergrams A graph of a particular college with actual

UM admissions data

GPA and SAT of UM students who were Accepted or Denied

Plots current student based on his/her GPA and SAT scores

Scattergram

1-3 Target SchoolsThose where student’s GPA and SAT are on par with most admits. 1-2 Reach Schools Those where your grades & test scores suggest less of a chance for admission At least 1 Safety SchoolOne where your student’s credentials are a bit

better than the average student admitted.

Arriving at a Tentative College List…

What are colleges looking for?

It depends on the college….

Academic Rigor (transcript) Standardized Test Scores: SAT / ACT GPA Class Rank Extra curricular-activities

Remember, it all counts!

SAT / ACT 3 hours, 45

minutes 10 sections: 3CR,

3M, 3W incl. essay, 1 experimental

Total score 600-2400 based on 3 scores of 200-800 for each subject

3 hours, 25 minutes 4 sections: English,

Math, Reading, Science, Writing optional

Composite score based upon average of scores from 4 tests

1-36

SAT Test Dates and Prep

March 8, 2014 @ UM May 3, 2014 @ UM June 7, 2014

Kaplan SAT practice test 2/1/14 Catalyst Boot Camp Weekend prior to

March test date Kaplan SAT Prep for May test date

SAT Subject Tests One hour long, content-based tests 5 subject areas: English, History, Math,

Science, Languages Opportunity to demonstrate knowledge

and showcase achievement in specific subject area.

Some colleges require or recommend them

Used as part of admission process or for placement/advisement in course selection.

College Athletics Students who want to play Division I or Division II sports must register with the NCAA Clearinghouse.

Register @ www.ncaaeligibilitycenter.netduring your junior year. You finish the process

after graduation.

Make contacts with coaches Complete prospective athlete form for each college of interest.

Types of Colleges 2 state systems in PA:14 State schools PASSHE(PA State System of Higher Education) Bloomsburg, Kutztown, Shippensburg, etc.

Approx. cost: $18,000 annually 2013/14 tuition- $8,758, room & board varies

4 State supported schoolsPenn State, Temple, Pitt, Lincoln

Approx. cost: tuition, room & board – $26,000 annually

Types (con.) Private Colleges and Universities

e.g. Arcadia, Penn, Widener…….

Out of State – “State schools”

Need to carefully look at the cost for non-residentsAdmission criteria can often be more competitive.Financial aid may not follow, i.e. state grants

Penn State University (University Park) Highly competitive - 25,772 admitted out of

47,552 applicants (54%)

Average GPA: 92%

SAT Average: 1630 - 1940 (CR,M,Wr)

Approx. Cost: $26,134(tuition/room & board)

4 years of Eng., 3 years of SS, Science, Math & 2 years of Language (MINIMUM)*addtl. reqs. for some programs

University of Pennsylvania Most competitive-3,935 admitted out of 31218

(12%)

GPA average: 96%

SAT average: 2020-2030 (CR/M/W)

Approx. cost: $55,934 (Tuition/Room & Board) 4 Years of English, Math, Science, SS, Language

(Honors/AP levels

West Chester University Competitive-7,161 admitted out of 14,356 (49%)

SAT average: 1470-1730 (CR/M/W)

GPA average: 90%

Approx. cost: $16,542

4 years English, 3-4 Math, 2 SS, 2-3 Science (lab), 2 Foreign Language

Internet Resources www.collegeboard.org (SAT) http://connection.naviance.com/umhs www.umtsd.org (Guidance Department) www.actstudent.org (ACT) www.fafsa.ed.gov (FAFSA) www.commonapp.org www.princetonreview.com www.kaplan.com www.PASSHE.edu