COLLEGE INFO.
APPLYING TO COLLEGE
For those of you who like to be “early-birds” and want to know what lies ahead, here is a timeline for students planning to apply to four-year schools:
· August: This is the earliest that college applications for the Fall of 2010 will be available online.
· September: You will receive your weighted and unweighted grade point averages and your official class rank. · October/November: This is the earliest that college admissions officers will begin considering your applications for admissions. Some schools will not consider your application until January. (This is according to the 5 colleges most popular with our students.) You may wish to check with the admissions offices of the colleges to which you are applying for their specific timelines.
· December 1: We recommend that you have all your applications submitted by this date. Our students who have adhered to this deadline in the past have received full consideration for their applications. (The exception: U.S. Service Academies! University of Maryland at College Park does have a November 1 deadline for Part I of their application. Part I just includes personal information(Varlas 2009). ADMISSIONS TYPES
There are five different types of admission procedures to college. Not all colleges use all of these. Usually, colleges have either regular or rolling admissions. Some colleges will also offer early decision, while others offer early action. Some may offer neither. You can determine what type of admissions colleges offer by checking www.collegeboard.com, www.petersons.com, or the website of the specific college.
· Regular Admission – a student submits an application to an institution by a specified date and receives a decision within a reasonable and clearly stated period of time, but usually not later than April 15.
· Rolling Admission – a student submits an application to an institution during a specified period of time (usually a period of several months), and receives a decision in a timely manner (usually three to four weeks).
· Early Decision – a student makes a commitment to a first-choice institution where, if admitted, they definitely will enroll. The deadline for early decision applications is earlier than other types, and students receive their decision earlier also. Students may apply to other institutions, but may only have one early decision application pending at a time. Immediately upon acceptance of an offer of admission, a student must withdraw all other applications and make no subsequent applications. Early decision is good if you are absolutely sure you want to attend one specific school.
· Early Action – a student applies early to a school of preference and receives a decision earlier than the school’s regular response date. The student is not obligated to accept the institution’s offer of admission, and may apply to other schools without restriction.
· Wait List – Some colleges use this to make up for the students who decline their offer of admission. If you are wait-listed, you still might receive an offer of admission once the college has received answers from students who were accepted outright(Varlas 2009).
ADMISSIONS POLICIES
What are colleges looking for in a student? In general, colleges will first look at: the grades you earned, the difficulty of the classes you took, and your scores on entrance tests (SAT’s or ACT’s). They will also consider your activities, your application essay, and your letters of recommendation, but these items usually do not weigh as heavily as the first three. However, some colleges put a great deal of emphasis on your tests scores, while others want to see lots of honors and advanced placement courses. Some would rather see high grades in regular classes rather than C’s in honors. And some colleges base your acceptance on the field of study you have chosen. To find out more specifically what a college is looking for, you are strongly encouraged to talk to admissions officers at the colleges of your choice. Visit them if possible, or call them if you can’t arrange a visit. Admissions office phone numbers are listed on the college websites. Here are some possible questions you can ask:
- What is most important to you in an applicant?
- Do you have a minimum required GPA?
- Do you have a minimum required SAT or ACT score?
- Would you rather see AP and honors courses or high grades on a transcript?
- What are you looking for in a senior class schedule?
- Are there any courses that I haven’t yet taken that would help my chances of admission?
- I am interested in majoring in . Will that make my chances of admission more or less difficult?
- How important are my extracurricular activities?
APPLICATIONS
Although we still receive some paper applications from colleges, and you can download paper applications from most college websites, many colleges prefer that you apply online, and some colleges will only accept online applications. The most important tip for applications is: don’t miss the deadline!!! This is your opportunity to make a good first impression. Missing the application deadline will send the message that it is not important to you to be accepted to the college. With either paper or online applications, there will be a page that must be submitted to the Guidance Office for completion. This page may be called: Request for Academic Record, Secondary School Report, Secondary School Record, School Counselor Recommendation, etc.
Every application has a fee, so keep that in mind when you are deciding how many applications to submit. Here are some that I looked up (these were the 2009 fees):
Frostburg State University - $30
Morgan State University - $35
Salisbury & Towson Universities - $45
University of Maryland, College Park - $55
Harvard University (just for fun) - $65
University of Delaware - $70 (more than Harvard!)
If you talk with a college representative at the college, here at RSHS, or at a college fair, ask if they give out application fee waivers. Some will do it, just for the interest you have shown in their school.
APPLICATION ESSAYS
Not all applications require essays, but for those that do, this is an opportunity to grab the attention of admissions officers through your writing. Some schools will give you specific topics to address in your essay, while others will give you an open-ended topic or allow you to choose from a few topics. Some do’s and don’ts: Do work as hard on your essay as you would on an important graded writing assignment. Do have someone – your parent and/or possibly your English teacher – read over your essay to critique it. Do proofread, proofread, proofread! Spelling and grammar mistakes will not make a good first impression. Don’t write about the importance of a college education. Admissions officers tell us they don’t want to hear that! Don’t write about things that are covered elsewhere in your application. For example, don’t list your activities, grades, honors, etc. Do write about something that tells about you and your personality – something that makes you unique. Do be creative and original(Varlas 2009). THE ACADEMIC COMMON MARKET
The ACM allows Maryland residents to enroll in certain degree programs at participating out-of-state colleges for in-state tuition. It’s a good way to save money, if you meet the requirements. Applicants must have resided in Maryland for at least 12 months, and must be accepted to an approved program of study not offered at a Maryland public college or university. The ACM application is available at www.MDgo4it.org. At the same site, you will find a list of approved programs at participating colleges.
AWARD LETTERS
Once you have been accepted to a college and have filed the FAFSA, you will receive an Award Letter. This letter will detail for you the amount of scholarships, grants, loans, and/or work-study money you have been awarded by the college. We are required to report to the state the amount of scholarship money earned by our students. You may bring your award letter to the Guidance Office so that a copy can be made, or you may write the amount of scholarship money that you have been awarded on a slip of paper with your name and give that to either Mrs. Farmer or Mr. Gray.
If the college did not award you enough money to attend there, and you really want to go there, you may wish to visit the college financial aid office and speak directly with one of their officers. If there is a financial situation that has arisen that is not reflected on your income taxes, you can explain it to them, and you might be awarded additional aid. There is no guarantee on this, but it won’t hurt to try. Be sure to make an appointment before your visit to be assured you will be able to speak with someone who might be able to help you. For more information about Award Letters, see Understanding Your Financial Aid Award Letter, a FastWeb.com publication.
Stevenson University in Stevenson, Maryland is offering daily tours at 10:00am. Visit www.stevenson.edu for information
**New Information from the University of Maryland *NEW PRIORITY DEADLINE*: November 1, 2009. This deadline will replace
the previous priority deadline of December 1, and will enable us to
release admissions decisions by late January. Students should plan to
sit for the October administration of the SAT or ACT to ensure that
their scores will be received in time to meet the Priority deadline. The
January 20 regular deadline will remain unchanged to accommodate
students who are not prepared to apply by November 1.
*COMBINATION OF PART I and PART II*: The freshman application will no
longer be a two-part application. The entire application, along with
supporting documents, will be due by November 1 (or January 20 for the
regular deadline). We hope that by combining the application the process
will be more streamlined, and will reduce barriers to applying for more
diverse populations of students.
*ONLINE APPLICATION:* Last year, 96% of freshman applicants applied
online. As a result, we will no longer print paper copies of the
application. We encourage students to apply online as it is more
efficient for them, and also reduces the amount of paper used during the
process. We will, however, continue to make a PDF version of the
application available on our website for any student who prefers to
print, complete and mail it.
*NEW ESSAY AND SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS*: We have significantly enhanced
our essay questions to allow students greater creativity to express why
the University of Maryland is a great fit for them. Students will now be
required to complete two shorter essays. We have also changed our “niche
section” to a short answer section to gain a quick snapshot of students’
interests. We believe these changes will better inform our holistic
review process, and allow us to better match students with appropriate
living and learning programs.
The new application will be available in July 2009. You may visit our
web site now (www.admissions.umd.edu <http://www.admissions.umd.edu/>)
to see a preview of the new essay and short answer questions.
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RSHS CLASS OF 2010
Cecil County Public Schools
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