Rising Junior Parent Career & College Night

Searching for Your Next Path

Sherwood High School Student Services

•Ms. Erin Mazer Administrator•Ms. Raenell Rafferty School Counselor•Ms. Erin McKenna School Counselor

Agenda

Preparing for Life after High School

Post-Secondary Options What Colleges Look For Preparing for a Career & College – 11th Grade SAT/ACT College Visits Family Connections Events Calendar

Questions

Preparing for Life after High School…

Educational options after high school - should be based on career goals, abilities, interests, and the amount of schooling desired.

Post-Secondary Options

POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION• 4-year Colleges & Universities• 2 year Colleges & Community Colleges• Technical & Professional Schools & Colleges

MILITARY

WORKFORCE

APPRENTICESHIP & INTERNSHIPS• Carefully monitored work experiences with intentional

learning goals

What Colleges Look for in Prospective Students

Academic Record: Grades, GPA , WGPA

Strength of Schedule: Honors and AP level Courses

Admission Test Scores (SAT/ ACT)

Essay or Writing Sample

Counselor Recommendation

Teacher Recommendations

Extra Curricular Activities/ Community Service

* Listed by level of importance, based on 2008 admission data from www.ACT.org

Recommended College Prep Courses

English Four years of English

MathematicsThree years of mathematics, including rigorous courses in Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II* A fourth year is strongly recommended

Natural Sciences Three years of science, including rigorous courses in Biology, Chemistry, and Physics

Social Studies Three years of social studies

Additional Courses

Some colleges and universities require other classes as prerequisites for admission, such as two or more years of the same foreign language in high school or courses in the visual arts, music, theater, drama, dance, computer science, etc.*Specific high school course requirements vary from institution to

institution. Be sure to check with the schools you're interested in to see what they recommend or require.

Preparing for a Career & College

What can I do now? Keep up Grades

Plan your high school courses wisely Do your courses match your post-secondary goals? Are you signing up for advanced classes, honors sections, or

accelerated sequences? Are you choosing electives that really stretch your mind and promote

your interests? Adjust course selections from now until June

Review PSAT scores and look into My College QuickStart

Continue Extra-Curricular Activities

Use Family Connections

Become familiar with general college entrance requirements

Attend Sherwood College Fair: April 16

Preparing for a Career & College

11th grade – Fall/ Winter Register and take the PSAT in October

Research Potential Colleges/ Career Pathways October Counseling Lesson – Family

Connections College Search Make a list of colleges that meet your most

important criteria Speak to college representatives who visit the

Career Center

Continue Extra-Curricular Activities work toward leadership positions

Athletes register with the NCAA Clearinghouse Div. 1 or Div. 2 athletics in college

NCAA Eligibility

Sophomore Year Familiarize self with the NCAA Eligibility Standards

Junior Year - Fall With your coach: Write an introductory letter about you. E-mail to

colleges of your choice Follow Up phone call to colleges of your choice Take PSAT Visit Career Center during College Visits Register with the NCAA Clearinghouse’s Eligibility Center: Sherwood

Website; Career Center/ Code: 9999 Junior Year - Winter/Spring

Take SAT - request scores be sent to the NCAA Clearinghouse Eligibility Center

Meet with your counselor-send copy of your transcript to the eligibility center

www.eligibilitycenter.org

Preparing for a Career & College

11th grade – Spring 2013 Individual Junior Meetings w/Counselor

Registration for Senior Year Review Graduation Credits

Prepare and Register for College Admission Tests (SAT/ ACT)

Register for AP Exams Classroom Junior Meetings w/ Counselors

Preparing for Post-secondary Plans Review College Entrance Requirements

Visit Colleges – Take College Tours – Attend College Fairs

Begin writing college essays – work on writing skills

What’s the Difference?

SAT Scholastic Aptitude Test www.collegeboard.com

Designed to measure critical reading, writing, and mathematical reasoning skills

ACT American College Test www.act.org

Designed to measure achievement in the areas of English, mathematics, reading, and science

What’s the Difference?SAT

No science section

Math includes up to Algebra 2 Vocabulary emphasized

Non multiple-choice questions asked

Guessing penalty 

No English grammar

Math accounts for 50% of your score 

Questions go from easy to difficult

ACT Science reasoning section

Math includes up to trigonometry

Vocabulary less important

Entirely multiple-choice

No guessing penalty

English grammar tested

Math accounts for 25% of your score

Questions are mixed up

2013-2014 Test Dates

SAT October 5, 2013 November 2, 2013 December 7, 2013 January 25, 2014 March 8, 2014 May 3, 2014 June 7, 2014

ACT September 21,

2013 October 26, 2013 December 14,

2013 February 8, 2014 April 12, 2014 June 14, 2014

Tips for College Visits 3 Pre-Approved Excused Absences for College Visits/ year

Always call to schedule a visit. Don’t just show up on campus!

Schedule college visits during weekdays while classes are in session so you can see what the campus and classes are like.

Consider an overnight visit if the college allows it.

Schedule a meeting with an Admissions Officer if possible!

Have a prepared list of questions to ask both the admissions officer as well as the tour guide/students you meet on campus.

Eat in the Dining Hall.

Send a thank you note to the admissions office no more than 48 hours after your visit

Start thinking today…

Important to begin thinking about next steps in life…

Think about pathway NOW…don’t wait until your senior year to begin the process.

Keep track of the process – Build a resume, manage timelines and deadlines for making decisions about colleges and careers Request eDocuments (transcript, letters of

recommendation) during your senior year

Research colleges – Compare GPA, SAT scores, and other statistics to actual historical data from Sherwood for students who have applied and been admitted in the past

Sign up for college visits – Find out which colleges are visiting Sherwood and sign up to attend those sessions

Do What You Are® - Self Discovery Personality Type assessment.

Career Interest Profiler - a tool that can help you discover the types of work activities and careers that match your interests.

Family ConnectionsUse the Family Connections program to:

Family Connections

For your students… User name: Student’s e-mail Password: Student ID #

For your use… User Name: example Password: sherwood

Dates to remember…Sherwood HS College Fair – Tuesday, April 16th, 6:30pm-8:30pm

Montgomery County College Fair at the Montgomery County Fair Grounds Wednesday, April 17th (evening)

Sherwood High School Course selections sent home beginning of May

AP exams May 6th to 17th Final exams June 7th to 12th

Counselor meetings with juniors to begin College Search in the Fall

Rising Junior Career Lesson Searching for Your

Next Path

Questions???