Decide if you are going to apply Early Decision or Early Action to any of your colleges
Sign up for a final SAT/ACT (if needed)
Thoughtfully complete two college application essays (part of your assigned work in English class)
Schedule a meeting with your counselor if you are unsure which colleges might be a good fit for you or are feeling lost in the process!
Familiarize yourself with the list of scholarship resources provided on Xello and on our scholarships and financial aid page.
Consider setting up a visit or interview with potential colleges if the opportunity is available
Build on and revise your activities list, resume, reference form, and college essays.
Mark down dates and times of college representative visits to Tesla STEM for institutions you will be applying to. Attend College Visits right at STEM! (September-November).

October

Finalize the list of colleges you will be applying to and update your College Selection spreadsheet (see Handbook, page 19) with application deadlines & important details and send to your counselor before your senior meeting.
If needed, send your official SAT /ACT test scores from College Board/ACT.org to any colleges that require it (this is not required if the college allows you to self-report)

The College Scholarship Service (CSS) Profile is required by some private colleges to be considered for institutional financial aid and scholarship opportunities. Visit PROFILE on College Board. Be sure to note your college’s CSS Profile deadline date- many are due before the FAFSA opens in December.

November

Keep Studying - your 1st semester senior grades will be requested by most colleges
Complete all university applications (most are due November - December) Community college applications can wait until April for this step!
Students should have completed their Senior Meeting with their counselor by the end of November. Schedule follow-up meetings as needed for extra help

December 2023: FAFSA opens

EVERYONE SHOULD COMPLETE A FAFSA

Did you know?
When you fill out the FAFSA form, you’re also automatically applying for funds from your state, and possibly from your school, in addition to federal student aid!

Did you know?
Some schools cannot consider you for scholarships (including academic scholarships) unless you’ve submitted a FAFSA form!

Don’t make assumptions about what you’ll get—fill out the application and find out!

Early action students : submit by 1st college app deadline

Regular DECISION students: Submit by colleges' set financial aid deadlin

Taming Admissions Anxiety

College Visits Schedule

College Visit FAQs

Q: If a college is visiting during a different lunch than mine, may I attend?

A: If you talk with your 4^th period teacher ahead of time and get permission, then yes. However, you are responsible for work missed and the same deadlines as other students. Most colleges offer virtual info sessions as well, and you can also get contact information/handouts/etc. from Ms. Touran if you can’t make it.

Q: May I bring my parents to a college visit?

A: Most colleges offer info sessions and visits (both in person and virtual) in which parents are most welcome! However, in-school visits are limited to students only.

Q: WHERE IS COLLEGE XYZ?? WILL THEY VISIT, TOO?

A: Colleges choose their own travel schedules and some colleges don’t travel at all! Check this calendar frequently for updates! Check your college-of-interest’s website under the “Visit” section to see their visit offerings.

Many colleges on our list as well as dozens more colleges from across the nation will be coming for the Seattle National College Fair October 6-7!

ROOM LOCATIONS

Before School:
Room 120 (BOYD)

Lunch Visits: Tables outside the cafeteria area (unless noted otherwise here)

After School:
Room 110 (Samad)

Virtual College Visits

College Virtual Tour Database
Includes links to virtual tours, Youtube channels, and more for over 900 colleges and universities!

YouVisit
Offers immersive, 360º tours for many colleges

eCampusTours
Virtual tours of over 1,300 campuses; plus career exploration!

NACAC Official Website
Find national college tours & resources for college preparation brought to you by the National Association of College Admissions Counselors

Still Searching for Colleges?

Senior Meetings

Senior Meeting Booking Instructions

Your Senior College Packet is required to be submitted to your counselor prior to requesting a counselor letter of recommendation, or by the end of November. If you are applying Early Decision or Early Action, your deadline will be sooner than this, depending on individual college application due dates.

I. MAKE A TIMELINE OF ALL YOUR APPLICATION DUE DATES

Count back 2 weeks from your earliest application due date that requires a counselor letter - that is the LAST day you may meet with your counselor for a letter of recommendation (add in additional time to account for holiday breaks!)
This is also the target date for you to have your application materials completed.

II. COLLECT required ITEMS FOR YOUR SENIOR COLLEGE PACKET

College Tracking Spreadsheet
Completed Resume
Completed Reference Form
Copy of one of your college essays (optional)
Any additional supplemental college material you would like counselor feedback on (optional)

**III. submit all ABOVE items to MICROSOFT FORMS via your Bookings confirmation**

IV. MEET WITH YOUR COUNSELOR

Once you have completed and the entire Senior College Packet items, you may make an appointment with your counselor to discuss your college application materials, your counselor recommendation letter (if needed) and ask clarifying questions prior to submitting your applications to colleges!

READY? BOOK HERE

Reference Form & Resumes

What is a Resume?

Brief, bulleted information on one page.
Highlights your broad experience and skills gained through your high school education, activities, and work experiences.
REQUIRED to graduate from high school

What is The Reference Form?

Written in spring of 11th grade before you request a letter of recommendation from a teacher and updated in the summer/fall of Senior Year with any new information.
Detailed, thoughtful reflections and information on key highlights of your high school experience.
A tool for you to convey depth and context to your recommenders!
REQUIRED for a letter of recommendation!

What is the Activities List?

Written in your SENIOR YEAR as part of your applications.
Think of this as a hybrid between the above two items. You will use both your resume and reference form to complete this application component.
REQUIRED by most colleges within the college application itself.

Reference Form - required for any letter of recommendation request

RESUMES

Resume Templates:

STEM Student FAQ's

FAQs

What is my class size?

Is ____ AP, Honors, Accelerated, or Regular?

How do I list a summer class? What about a credit I took in Middle School?

I earned language credits through district testing-how do I add those to my courses and grades section?

Should I fill out a FAFSA?

How do I access my unofficial transcript via Skyward?

New Panel

How many credits in a semester?
- 0.5/semester for full-year courses
- 0.25/semester for Orchestra/choir/leadership
What is our grading scale?
- EITHER A-F OR other- see school profile if you want to write in our custom scale.
In common app courses and grades, what should I put in the box "Final Grade"
Should I input my full course name or the abbreviated version on my transcript?
How do I categorize CTE Dual Credit or UW Dual Credit Courses?
- In Common App it is called "Dual Enrollment". And yes, put it in even if you didn't earn the college credit.

COMMON APP WALKTHROUGHS

Watch the CommonApp Tutorial videos:

The tabs you will use the most will be the “Common App” and “My Colleges” tabs

Common App (Your Profile) Tab Tips

Most questions can be answered by the tutorial video on each section, or the Right-hand tab “Help”
Dual-Credit courses should be listed as part of your high school coursework and in the “Colleges and Universities” section.
- https://appsupport.commonapp.org/applicantsupport/s/article/Where-should-I-list-a-course-that-offers-both-college-and-high-school-credit . In the “colleges/Universities” section of the “Education” tab”, you will be asked to indicate number of colleges, then list your college information and how many credits you will earn. You will click the “Dual enrollment w/ high school” box. (You will not have earned a degree, so leave that part blank)

REPORTING SUMMER COURSES

College Courses taken in summer – list in “Colleges/Univ” section, the list course name & grade in “Additional Comments” section.
HS Courses taken in summer – use the “Other Courses” section

Reporting Middle School Courses:

You should only report middle school courses that appear on a high school transcript. Otherwise, you should not report middle school courses.
To report a middle school course, use the 'Other Courses' section. For 'School Name,' choose the name of the high school that lists the course on the transcript. You do not need to add the middle school name.

What if I have failed or retaken a course?

You should list the course(s) exactly as they appear on your transcript. Do not remove failed courses or consolidate retaken courses with failed courses.

“Courses & Grades” section

This is where you list gr 9-11 courses. It may not be required by your colleges (this will fill in as needed based on what colleges you’ve listed on your My Colleges tab.

“Additional Comments” section

This is for a variety of things, such as explanation of current year online course, drop in grades during a particular time, more thorough explanation of a long-term activity that can not be explained in activities section.

· My Colleges tab tips (including recommenders)

Add Colleges via the “College Search” tab, then view in My Colleges tab
FERPA Release – click/accept this (need to do only once to apply to all colleges)
Invite Recommenders – here you list your teacher’s and counselor’s contact info. Counselors can not upload any info into your file unless you list them as Counselor. Counselors need to be added only once, but teachers need to be added once and then click to “assign” the teacher to each college app.
How do I assign recommenders?(commonapp.org)

UC/CalState Walkthroughs

UC APP GUIDES

First page of the PDF file: 2023-2024UCGuide

link to UC presentation on the freshman application

UC System Guide

Repeat Courses:
Unless you retook it within your High School, you must list BOTH courses & grades

Grades:
Do not use + or - Only list letter grades

Dual Enrollment:

College courses are college courses even if they are taught on the high school campus by an approved high school teacher.

Report under the appropriate college name on the application

Cannot be reported as high school coursework.

UC Academic History Walkthrough

How to Add a Summer Course (e.g. via BYU Independent Study, APEX, etc.) Start @ 2:04:

HINT: At the top of your transcript, there is a list of "high schools attended" where you can find the name of the high school, its city/state location, and dates attended.

HINT: If you can't find "BYU Independent Study High School, type out "BRIGHAM YOUNG" and it will pop up!

STEM Course List Guide (click directly on the image below to open the full version)

CALSTATE APP GUIDES

CalState Apply Help Center

First page of the PDF file: CalStateApplyfreshman-application-guide-23-24

Adding a Summer Grade

Grade levels for summer courses should be
reported as the grade you were going into
after that summer.

For example, if you took a summer class between 9th and 10th grade, the summer grade level should be set to 10th grade. Each summer you have attended should be entered individually by grade level. Once you’ve added a summer grade level, follow the same steps outlined above to "Add a course"

High School Coursework

You will report all A-G courses, including courses in addition to those used to satisfy subject requirements. Do not include Non A-G courses such as Health or Physical Education.
Dual enrollment – reporting college courses taken during high school. You do not report dual enrollment courses (college courses taken during high school) within this High School Coursework section. After you’ve completed your Colleges Attended, report any college courses you’ve taken on the College Coursework screen. Then, visit the A-G Matching screen after completing College Coursework to report how these may satisfy your A-G requirements, if applicable.

Financial Aid

Paying for College in Four Steps

How Financial Aid Works
Eligible Non-Citizen Info
Ineligible for FAFSA?You may qualify through the WAFSA!

Most people qualify for some type of financial aid, including low-interest federal student loans. Many factors besides income—such as your family size and your year in school—are considered to determine your aid package.

And more...

https://www.collegeessayguy.com/college-application-hub

Upcoming Nov. 15th- Financial Aid Community Workshop

Please join us for a deep dive into the college financial aid process, information about paying for college and FAFSA changes for 2024-2025.

DigiPen Institute of Technology, Office of Financial Aid invites you to a:

Financial Aid Community Workshop

All are welcome to attend! Students do not have to be planning to apply to DigiPen.

Students and families will receive information about:

How to apply for federal financial aid
What goes into a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
Financial aid eligibility
Different types of financial aid (gift aid vs. self-help aid)
Washington state financial aid
Applying for scholarships

This event will be focused on junior and senior high school students, but others are welcome as well to get a jump start on the process. There will be a live Q&A session during the workshop.

Wednesday, November 15
6:30 – 8:00 p.m.

Zoom Link

For questions about the event, please contact DigiPen’s Office of Financial Aid at faid@digipen.edu or 425-629-5002.

Senior College Application Hub