Transcript Junior Presentation Guidance Department * Instruction

* Instruction - Involvement - Improvement *
~ A Student Focused Community ~
Now it is time to start seriously thinking about college admissions!
Start planning now!
Junior year is critical!
Not only should you continue to take challenging
courses, make good grades, and be involved
outside the classroom, but also this is the year to
attend college fairs, schedule campus tours,
begin your scholarship search, take the SAT
and/or ACT, and ultimately select the four to six
colleges that you will apply to next year.
~~We are all here to help you~~
~~STEP BY STEP~~
Fall

Study for and take the PSAT
 This will determine your eligibility for
National Merit Scholarships.
 This will also help identify areas that need
strengthening before the SATs in the Spring
Spend time searching for colleges in
NAVIANCE
 Get an idea of what you are looking for
in a college

How does the PSAT compare
to the SAT?
PSAT
-Taken Fall 10th and
11th grade
-no essay
SAT
-Taken Spring 11th
grade and Fall 12th
grade
-essay question
-2 hours, 10 minutes
-3 hours, 45 minutes
-usually does not
include Algebra II
-Algebra II questions
Winter

Review PSAT scores
 Determine your strengths and weaknesses
Make plans for improvement

○
prep
Plan your SAT taking schedule. Prep courses
usually coincide with test dates

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Register on collegeboard.com
Fee waivers may be available, ask your counselor if you
are eligible
Consider taking the ACT



Consider your needs and learning style
course, on-line course, private tutor,
www.ACT.org
Attend Junior Parent College and Financial Aid
Night
The SAT or ACT??
The choice is yours.

The ACT may be best if
 You are “book smart” and you don’t feel your
SAT scores reflect your academic ability
 The ACT is more straight forward and curriculum
focused than the SAT, so it can better reflect
past academic performance
 You have great verbal and reading
comprehension skills, you are a quick reader,
there are 3 sections involving reading
comprehension
 You feel as though you are better at “common
sense” English rather than formal grammar
The SAT or ACT??
The choice is yours.

The SAT may be best if:
 You did well on the PSAT
 You have a large vocabulary and excellent grammar,
useful in the essay and writing sections
 Reasoning is your strong suit, success is based
more on quick thinking than memorization of facts or
formulas
 You prefer tests that are fast paced. Even though
the SAT is actually 20 minutes longer than the ACT it
is broken up in a way where the pace feels faster
 You are better at writing essays that call for
recollection of specific facts and figures
Use your old friend

Career Planning
 Learning Style Inventory, Interest Inventory,
Personality Inventory, Resume Building

College Planning
 College Search, Application Process, College Major
Exploration, Scholarship/Financial Aid Resources

Success Planning
 Personalized Goals and Tasks, Journal Entries,
Student Planner

Goal: by now you should have at least 10
colleges in the colleges I’m thinking about tab.
Spring

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Make sure your resume is up to date on
NAVIANCE
Consider volunteer activities, especially for
the 100 hours for National Honors Society
Athletes: be mindful of NCAA Clearing
House
Course Selection Process for Senior Year
Complete the Pre-College Record with a
parent and return it to your counselor
ASAP
Pre-College Record
4 Key Players in your
College Decision Making
and Admissions Process
YOU!!!!!
 Parent
 Teacher
 Counselor

Colleges will want to see:
Grades from 9th, 10th, and 11th grade
 Rigor of courses
 Test scores, SAT/ACT
 Extra-curricular activities
 Recommendations (teachers and
guidance counselor)
 Essay

What do you want in a college?

Location – Many dream of going to school in Alaska
or even in a big city. Other students may want to stay
close to home or go somewhere warm. Location can
make a huge difference.

Size – Does a big school with more students or a
small school with fewer students feel like a good fit?

School type – Two-year college vs. four-year
college? Public vs. private? Coed vs. single sex?
Religious affiliation? Culturally diversity?

These are all decisions that you should consider.
Some choices could greatly alter your search list.
So many choices….

Activities – Study abroad? Greek life?
Marching Band? Co-ops?
 These are just some of the opportunities
available for college students (and there are
dozens of others)

Sports – For some athletes, playing a
sport in college can be a full time job and
means possible scholarship money.
 For others, the idea of being in a huge football
stadium cheering on the team is the motivation
for going to a larger school.
And more to think about…

Major offerings – Selecting a school with a
certain major may be the most important part
of the search. For others who are not sure or
do not have a clue, this might be one area to
leave off the search list, at least for now.

Selectivity – Some colleges admit less than
ten percent of the applicants while others
accept 100%. Knowing how difficult it is to get
in will also give an idea of how challenging it
will be as an enrolled student.
Responsible Choices
Remember that choosing a college is a
major decision and it is usually the first
big choice you will make in your life.
 Some of you will handle this process
easily and others will procrastinate to
the bitter end.
 Whatever your pace, make sure to take
the time to do your research and
investigate all of your options!

Clean up
your
social
media!
Make sure your
profile is PRIVATE
and don’t post
inappropriate content
or pictures!
Looking forward:
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Schedule Classes for Senior Year: Challenge
yourself!
Make sure your email and phones are updated for
NAVIANCE. Check you email every day.
Sign up for College visits in NAVIANCE
Over this summer you should be visiting colleges
and narrowing down your choices.
Start your essay: once you figure out what schools
you are applying to find out essay topics!
What teachers will you ask for recommendations?
HAVE APPLICATIONS READY BY
THANKSGIVING!!!!!