College Admission Updates

TESTING

Juniors investigate and plan your SAT test prep- national, local, community group prep classes, individual tutors, online tutoring.

Clear and concise SAT and ACT strategies from method test prep

SAT News: Beginning March 2009, students will be able to choose which test scores they wish a college to see.

If you choose to take the SAT more than 3-4 times and a college doesn’t abide by the new score choice policy, this may not be advantageous to you. To this date, colleges still have the power to decide on score choice or revealing all.

Be wary of this new policy of selective scores to colleges. Students spend more time on SAT prep [choosing to take them multiple times] rather than time on their courses. Students’ main focus should always be their course grades.

There are over 800 schools in the United States that deemphasize the use of standardized tests or have become test optional. Check www.fairtest.org. Please check with the school’s website or the admissions office to learn about school specific requirements.

www.compassprep.com  Schools that require or recommend SAT Subject tests can be found here.

COLLEGE SEARCH/PROGRAMS

www.anac.org is a website of the New American Colleges and Universities. This is a national consortium of 20 selective small to mid-size independent colleges and universities dedicated to the integration of liberal education, professional studies, and civic management.

www.artslynx.org offers a listing of colleges and universities with national and international programs in dance. This site is also linked to information in other arts departments, such as: film, music, theatre, visual arts, and art education.

www.nces.ed.gov On the Menu Bar, Click on School, College and Library Search. Click on College Navigation and you will be able to search for the school of your choice and their specific statistics associated with admissions, SAT’s, graduation rates, and financial offerings.

www.collegenews.org The latest news about the nation’s leading liberal arts colleges is available.

www.stateuniversity.com Interesting site with comprehensive profiles of all universities and colleges in the US with specific information about state universities. Top ranked schools are listed by state. They are also ranked by ACT scores, SAT scores, best campus security, and overall scores.

www.ucan-network.org is provided by the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.

SPECIFIC COLLEGES

Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, PA requires all students to live in college operated housing for four years.  F and M is ranked # 1 in the country for the accessibility of its professors according to Princeton Review’s “Best 351 Colleges.”  www.fandm.edu

Fully coeducational since 2003, Hood College in Frederick, MD charge children and grandchildren of alumnae the same tuition as was paid by their legacy person. www.hood.edu

Washington and Jefferson College in Washington, PA is located 30 miles southwest of Pittsburgh.  Historically, more than 80% of its students who apply to law or health related graduate programs are accepted.  www.washjeff.edu

Carleton College, located in Northfield, MN, is a premiere liberal arts school, enrolling more National Merit Scholars than any other small liberal arts college in the country.  Their men’s and women’s Ultimate Frisbee teams are powerhouses and consistently challenge for the sport’s national club championship.  www.carleton.edu

At Loyola University in New Orle hold doctoral or terminal degrees.  The university has restored the entire campus since Hurricane Katrina.  Loyola offers an extensive variety of degrees in its College of Music and Fine Arts.  www.loyno.edu

The University of Florida at Gainsville is our nation’s 4th largest university.  The campus extends over 2000 acres with more than 900 buildings.  The freshmen retention rate of 94% is also one of the highest in the country.  www.ufl.edu

Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana is a public, doctoral-granting research university.  The number of students on the West Lafayette campus numbers close to 40,000.  In 2006 the gender ratio was 58.7 % male to 41.3 % female.  They are a member of the Big Ten Conference.  www.purdue.edu

GENERAL

College reviews will now include a category for “green-rating” of a college. Colleges rated high with environmental consciousness are Arizona State, SUNY Southampton, SUNY Binghamton, Harvard, Yale, Emory, and Georgia Institute of Technology.

www.howstuffworks.com  Type in college admissions and also money and college. There will be a number of articles and information relating to these topics.

www.collegelife.about.com Great site about college life/ e.g. your first year, money and expenses, academic life

All students should carry a card in their wallet that indicates any medication currently taking, allergies to meds, foods, etc, selective vaccines and emergency contact numbers.

Be cautious downloading course papers or studying old tests online for current courses. Teachers add their names to a Post Your Test “don’t post-it” list. Some websites have copyrighted their papers and there are current lawsuits as well as students being denied entrance to schools because they have used these sites.

Clean and de-Tag your Facebook! An increasing amount of college admission officers as well as potential employers will open Facebook to check up on college applicants and employee candidates.

SCHOLARSHIPS

Scholarships are available through national and local programs and organizations. Check with your local library, bank, rotary club and any other fraternal or religious organizations in your community. Also inquire about scholarships through your parents’ place of business.

Some sites to check on the web are:
fastweb.com

freeeducationguide.com

collegeboard.com/scholarships

financialaidfunder.com/scholarships

campusexplorer.com

careersandcolleges.com

college-scholarships.com

scholarships.com

coca-colascholars.org

capitalonebank.com

nextSTEPmag.com/WinFreeTuition

ecampustours.com

SPORTS

www.uscho.com Interested in playing hockey in college – male or female

BOOKS

Queen Bee Moms and Kingpin Dads
Rosalind Wiseman

The Toughlove Prescription
Ron Zodkevitch, MD

College Unranked
LLoyd Thacker

Fat Envelope Frenzy
Joie Jager-Hyman

APPLICATIONS

www.universalcollegeapp.com online admissions application consortium

Seniors, be sure to send your mid-year grades to your college choices. Check with your guidance office as to your school’s process.

Reminder Harvard and Princeton no longer have an early admission program.

Although you may decide to use the common application, it is imperative that you check the individual colleges own application in case they ask a more specific question that may reveal more about you. This is especially true for highly competitive colleges.

If you are applying to State Universities, in light of the country’s economic situation, it would be beneficial to send your application materials in a timely manner [this is in no reference to Early Action].