Transcript Fall College Information Night for Seniors and Parents Briar Woods High School Counseling Department.

Fall College Information Night for
Seniors and Parents
Briar Woods High
School Counseling
Department
Agenda

The college application “folder” and
Briar Woods High School application
procedures

Finding/selecting colleges to apply to is
NOT on this agenda – that was covered
at last year’s Junior night and will be
again on October 1, 2014
College Information Night
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This presentation is online
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BWHS Counseling >>> “Presentations”
Counselors will review material with seniors
next week: and follow with Senior Interviews
–
E-Index
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NACAC Guide
Transcript Release Form
Senior Information Packet
Additional forms & resources
The Application “Folder”
–The Seven Essentials
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Application
Essay
Student Resume
Secondary School Report
Test Scores
Transcript
Letter/s of Recommendation
The Application
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Applications are submitted online
Print and review before submitting it!
Seniors are responsible for completing and
submitting their own applications (not mom &
dad!)
Seniors should make copies of all
applications they submit
Many colleges use the “Common
Application”
The Application
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Seniors are responsible for being aware of
application deadlines (see NACAC Guide)
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Regular Admission – traditional deadline
Early Decision – binding
Early Action – non-binding
Rolling Admission – applications accepted based
on space availability until the institution is “full”
The Application
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Early Decision & Early Action
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Is it binding?
Dates?
Can I get out of it?
Is the competition tougher or easier?
If I am not accepted, will I be considered for
regular admissions?
Can I afford it without financial aid?
The Application “Folder”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Application
Essay
Student Resume
Secondary School Report
Test Scores
Transcript
Letter/s of Recommendation
The Essay
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Not all colleges require an essay
Essays are submitted online along with the
application
Seniors should make sure they are
understand the essay topic
Seniors are advised to print out and review
(with help!) their essays before sending them
The Essay
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English teachers are more than happy to
help students with essays; teachers
incorporate this into their curriculum
Seniors should save all essays because they
may be modified and reused – but be careful!
Essay resources – BWHS library, BWHS
Career Center, public library, book store,
internet resources
The Application “Folder”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Application
Essay
Student Resume
Secondary School Report
Test Scores
Transcript
Letter/s of Recommendation
Student Resume
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Many colleges accept student resumes
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Resumes can highlight your accomplishment
both in and outside of school
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Resumes can be submitted online along with
the application and essay
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An effective resume is EASY TO READ!
Student Resume
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Use resume templates and samples to
format your own
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Information on resumes must be 100%
accurate

Use email and social media appropriately
(if you wouldn’t put it on a resume…)
The Application “Folder”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Application
Essay
Student Resume
Secondary School Report
Test Scores
Transcript
Letter/s of Recommendation
Secondary School Report (SSR)
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Some colleges provide the student with a
Secondary School Report form for the
counselor to complete and send in
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We will automatically send a comprehensive
“universal” Secondary School Report for all
seniors with their transcripts. This is now
common practice
The Application “Folder”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Application
Essay
Student Resume
Secondary School Report
Test Scores
Transcript
Letter/s of Recommendation
Test Scores
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Seniors are responsible for having their test
scores sent to the colleges they are applying
to. LCPS does not send scores!
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Seniors can request that their scores be sent
when they take the tests; or they can have
their scores sent after the test date by
contacting the CollegeBoard ( for SAT) or
ACT
The Application “Folder”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Application
Essay
Student Resume
Secondary School Report
Test Scores
Transcript
Letter/s of Recommendation
The Transcript
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Seniors must submit a Transcript Release
Form signed by a parent. Forms can be
obtained in guidance and are online
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Seniors must submit the form in person to
the counselor, every time they apply to a
college
The Transcript
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We ask that seniors submit transcript requests a
minimum of two weeks before the college
application deadline (last year we sent over
9000 transcripts!)
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LCPS plans to use the Parchment transcript
exchange service to “send” transcripts (VADOE
sponsored)
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We track the process date and send date –
posted on Family Connection
The Transcript
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We include a school profile with transcript
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We send the SSR with each transcript
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We send the counselor letter of
recommendation with each transcript, if
needed – more on this in a moment
The Transcript
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Transcript requests must be made before
December 5th in order to be sent before
winter break
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All LCPS students are charged $3.00 per
transcript
The Transcript
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Please only request transcripts to be sent to
colleges you are actually applying to
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Mid-year and end-of-year transcripts are sent
automatically at no cost
The Application “Folder”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Application
Essay
Student Resume
Secondary School Report
Test Scores
Transcript
Letter/s of Recommendation
Letters of Recommendation
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Counselor Letter
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If a senior needs a letter of recommendation from
the counselor, he/she can request it when he/she
requests the transcript
Every senior will be provided with a Senior
Information Packet to be turned into the
counselor
The Senior Information Packet is posted online
and contains a parent “brag” section
The counselor will “send” the letter with the
transcript
Letters of Recommendation
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Teacher Letter:
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If a letter of recommendation is requested from a
teacher, the senior should make the request
directly to the teacher and provide the teacher
with an envelope addressed to the college
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Notable exceptions: JMU and UVA – the
counselor will collect these from the teacher
Letters of Recommendation
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Seniors should allow counselors and
teachers a minimum of two weeks to write a
letter
Please only request letters to be sent to
schools you are actually applying to
If you send more letters than the college
requests, you can’t control which ones they
choose to read
The Application “Folder” - Summary
1.
2.
3.
Senior submits application online to the college
Senior submits the essay online to the college (if there is one)
Senior may submit a resume online to the college
4.
Senior has test scores sent directly to the college by the
CollegeBoard (for SAT) or the ACT
5.
Senior meets with counselor directly to request a transcript by
submitting a Transcript Release Form
BWHS will automatically send a universal Secondary School
Report to the college with the transcript
Senior may request letter of recommendation (if needed) from
their counselor and/or teachers
6.
7.
Keeping Sane!!!
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Complete one college application “folder” at
a time
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Trying to work on several applications at
once = confusion for all!
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Use a checklist for each application
Keeping Sane!!!
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Complete applications one at a time
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One by Halloween
One by Thanksgiving
The rest by Winter Break
Pay attention to deadlines!
Interviews
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Some colleges interview applicants
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Process, procedures, and guidelines vary
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Resources can be found on the E-Index
Communication/Follow-Up
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Your senior will hear everything we talked
about tonight through classroom
presentations
Every senior will meet with his/her counselor
individually throughout the process
Please review the NACAC Guide – includes
rights and responsibilities in the college
admissions process. This is a fantastic
source of information!
Communication/Follow-Up
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Every senior will receive an e-index:
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Planning calendar
Student information packet
Sample resumes
Transcript release form
College visit worksheet
College application checklist
and more…
Communication/Follow-Up
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Students and parents can log onto Family
Connection to view transcript send dates
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We automatically send mid-year transcripts
to the colleges our students apply to (no
cost)
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Final transcripts are sent to the colleges our
students plan to attend (no cost)
Some Advice
HAVE
FUN!
Upcoming Dates
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Senior presentations – Next week
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Senior Interviews – Late September
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LCPS College Fair – September 28 at 4:00pm5:30pm & 6:30pm-8:00pm, RRHS

Junior College Information Night – October 1 at
7:00pm
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Financial Aid Night – November 19 at 7:00pm
HAVE A GREAT SENIOR YEAR!!