November 2018
Monthly Newsletter
The weeks preceding the November early deadlines can be busy ones for seniors. Yet even in the seeming craziness sparked by those looming deadlines, there is an air of excitement in our offices. The fall is a special time for our seniors as they dream, make decisions, and their admission plans unfold. It is a time filled with opportunities for self-reflection, heightened engagement in the writing process, and the personal growth that emerges when taking full ownership of the process.
We love working with our seniors as they find the courage to embrace the unknown and accept an unpredictable college landscape. As students embrace the future and its possibilities, they discover that independence drives action. This is their process, and we are here to offer our support and guidance as they consider their college aspirations and future selves.
Now that the Nov. 1 deadline has passed, there has been a discernible shift in the admission landscape, and college and university admission offices now find themselves at the center of everyone's attention. Though for many students there are still essays to be written, applications to be completed, and deadlines to be met, the pace becomes more reasoned and balanced, and an air of calmer expectation settles on the high school side.
As we approach the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, we want to thank our students for the opportunity to work with them as they engage in their application process; their parents for trusting us to challenge their children to self-reflect, take responsibility for the process, and find their best selves; and our faculty for their dedication and selfless support on behalf of our students.
With warmest wishes for a much-deserved Thanksgiving Break,
The College Counseling Team
Seniors
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To-Do List
In the coming weeks, please don't overlook the following reminders:
- Seniors, be sure to read your email each day, as well as check the admissions portals at each school to which you've applied. Important communication is shared via those routes, whether from this office or from colleges.
- Keep your "Colleges I'm Applying To" list on Naviance updated, including your application plan (RD, EA, etc.) for each school.
- When you submit an application, be sure to indicate you have done so on Naviance. We track your college lists regularly to check on the status of your applications, so it is important to keep your Naviance account up-to-date.
- As you start to hear from schools, you will also need to add that information to Naviance.
Scholarship Search
If you have searched the web for available scholarships, you have likely visited Fastweb, a comprehensive database that includes 1.5 million scholarship listings. With so many listings, it can be overwhelming to navigate through the available scholarships in order to determine if any match your profile and meet your needs.
For a more focused search of possible scholarships, check out our listing on Naviance. Though our list is markedly smaller, the posted scholarships are worth exploring to see if one or more might be a good fit. Check back often as our list will keep growing as we learn about new scholarship opportunities.
Watch out for those Fast Apps!
We are approaching the season of the fast app, those tempting invitations to apply to a school you may or may not have heard of that suddenly arrive out of nowhere. These fast apps are designed to entice you to apply by making it exceptionally easy to do so. Often, there is no essay or application fee, along with the alluring promise of a quick decision. Proceed cautiously when you receive a fast app, and don't fall prey to that institution's marketing drive to increase application numbers. Do your research as you would for any school you are considering, and ask yourself if it is truly a school you would like to attend if offered admission. If you receive a fast app and have any questions, please come see us in the College Counseling Office.
Financial Aid
Parents, if applying for financial aid, now is the time to complete the FAFSA. Some schools also require the CSS Profile, so that should be completed as well. Requirements vary, so be sure to check each school's website and reach out directly to a school's financial aid office with any questions.
On the Horizon
All essays and supplements need to be completed by Monday, Dec. 10 to ensure you have plenty of time to submit all of your applications prior to the holiday break that starts after Lessons & Carols on Friday, Dec. 14. Our office will be closed during the break, so it is important to have everything taken care of and submitted by then; we want you to have a restful and restorative holiday season!
Juniors
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Our next meeting with juniors will take place on Tuesday, Dec. 4. In addition to a brief mindfulness exercise, the key points of our gathering will be to review the calendar for the upcoming months as it relates to testing, our Junior Parent and Student Night on Monday, Jan. 28, and scheduling meetings in the College Counseling Office. We strongly encourage juniors to schedule a brief meeting with their college counselor prior to the Thanksgiving Break or during the second week of Intensives; these meetings are introductory and serve as an initial touch-point for the upcoming process.
Suggested Reading
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In a blog post from this past summer, "The Power in the Process," Georgia Tech provides an informative overview of how students might want to approach their four-year high school progression."The Surprising Secrets of College Admissions" offers some insight into what colleges value in an applicant pool, but more importantly, it conveys important information about the often overlooked fact that there are so many wonderful options for students to consider when they begin searching for schools that will offer the learning community they seek.
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