From Your Guidance and College Counseling Team
Thursday, December 17, 2015
Wednesday, December 16, 2015
2016 W.E.B. DuBois Scholars Institute at Princeton University. June 25 - July 20th, 2016. Four to Five weeks of rigorous instruction in university-level courses taught by university professors. Students entering 9th, 10th and 11th grades are welcome to apply. Applications are due Friday, February 19, 2016.
More information? Visit www.duboisscholars.org
The Elizabeth Ann Seton Center for Women's Studies at Seton Hall University is sponsoring its 20th annual high school essay contest. Open to all high school students. Applications details can be found with Mrs. Morissette. The deadline is January 18, 2016.
Topic: Write about a female role model, someone who has inspired and influences them. 500 - 750 words.
Saturday, December 12, 2015
Class of 2016, Happy (almost) New Year = Time for FAFSA!
The holidays are here! The first of the month is approaching which can mean a few things, a new year to celebrate, making (and breaking) those New Year’s Resolutions, and FAFSA time!
The 2015-2016 FAFSA, Free Application for Federal Student Aid, becomes available on January 1st, 2016. All seniors should be in the process of exploring, reviewing and completing his FAFSA. In order to begin your application in the New Year you must have a FSA ID - which you must apply for. You can apply today for this ID(which we recommend as it can take up to 2 week to receive your ID).
Each student and his parent need a ID. Apply for an ID at https://fsaid.ed.gov/npas/index.htm. Deadlines to complete the FAFAS vary by state, for New Jersey the deadline is June. However the sooner you complete the FAFSA, the sooner you can receive your maximum financial aid package from each college you have been accepted to.
There are many helpful resources to support the student and his family through this process – two of my favorites being http://studentaid.ed.gov/ and http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/index.htm. Be sure when filing your FAFSA to use the .gov website and not an imposture!
Happy Holidays and Happy Filings!
Mrs. Sarah Morissette, M. Ed.
Thursday, December 3, 2015
Junior Spotlight
Juniors, Your time is coming up as well - so let's take the spotlight off of the seniors for a moment and checkout the to-do list below. Are you on track?
December College Checklist for the class of 2017
By JEFFREY NEILL
With Thanksgiving behind us and our next vacation just weeks away, it is easy to let the college process slip our minds temporarily. However, there is plenty that can be done now, particularly planning. Taking advantage of these winter months can make an enormous difference come summer and next fall.
Be Committed to the Process
The college application process, from research through to submission, takes about 40 hours of work by the student. You do not need to wait until the summer or the fall of your senior year to do much of this work. Just 15 minutes per day — a study break, really — will have you through 40 hours by the middle of August, happy and satisfied with the knowledge that you are well-situated for the senior fall. Be diligent and committed, and the process will take care of itself.
Communicate With Your Parents
This is your process, but you should make sure that your parents are informed and contributing to your college search. Take time to talk with your parents about the ways in which you want to involve them. Have this conversation early and often, even weekly.
Set up a schedule for visits, even though you may not yet have a list. Follow up with your parents after meetings with your college or guidance counselor. Work to understand your family’s financial situation. Explore costs as well as financial aid and loans. These all are essential conversations; now is the time to set up a plan for how you will communicate.
Plan Your Summer Now
December is the ideal time to make plans for the summer so that you don’t scramble at the last minute to pull something together. Have you considered an academic program to pursue advanced work in a field of interest, to bolster or supplement shaky areas of your transcript, or to explore new disciplines not available during the regular academic year?
What about a job? Can you make and save money for college? Have you considered an internship? Community service or volunteer work? Travel? Are there sports or arts camps that would assist in your plans? Discuss with your parents and college or guidance counselor a plan for the summer. Be deliberate and intentional in your planning, and reserve some down time, too.
Research, Research, Research
Begin to construct that college list. There is no substitute for visiting a college for a tour and interview or information session, but there is much to be said about getting online and exploring. Individual college Web sites can be enormously helpful in providing a sense of what your experience could be. What courses could you take? What courses must you take? How difficult is it to double-major or to switch majors? If you are undecided on a major, how might the college’s curriculum assist you in selecting one? What drives social life? How many students live on campus? What are the application requirements? Are SAT Subject Tests required? Keep note of these items that you deem to be important. The more of this information you can obtain and process, the more informed your search will be.
Make a Standardized Testing and Test Prep Plan
Many juniors will receive PSAT results shortly. Take time to review them (and/or any other results that you have, including actual SAT and ACT results or any state exams) and put together a plan for future tests.
You should also carefully consider if and how you will go about preparing for those tests. Results from previous tests should figure prominently into any plan. To prepare, some students will opt to take courses or to work with tutors. You may also self-study by using free resources from the College Board or ACT Web sites. Regardless, now is the time to plan.
You should also carefully consider if and how you will go about preparing for those tests. Results from previous tests should figure prominently into any plan. To prepare, some students will opt to take courses or to work with tutors. You may also self-study by using free resources from the College Board or ACT Web sites. Regardless, now is the time to plan.
Be Genuine and Explore
This time of year, you will hear much about “what colleges want to see.” Of course, the danger here is in pursuing any end exclusively because colleges want to see it.
Be genuine. If you are going to commit your time to anything, be sure that you are doing so because it is of significance to you. Ultimately, this is what colleges want to see, and they are exceptionally talented at sniffing out students who do things exclusively because they are trying to impress.
Keep in mind that we are all lumps of clay, still being formed. Remain committed to those things that are important to you, exploring positions and experiences of leadership, but do not close the door on new opportunities that might help you learn more about that unknowable enigma: you.
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Monday, November 16, 2015
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
Monday, November 9, 2015
The Eugene McDermott Scholars Program
Established by Mrs. Eugene McDermott in support of her husband's dream, the McDermott Scholars Program provides select UT Dallas students with a rigorous and personalized education as well as intensive extracurricular activities.
visit for more information: http://www.utdallas.edu/mcdermott/
McDermott Application Process
Student Applicants – steps to get started
- Make sure you meet the minimum qualifications.
- Review and note important dates and deadlines.
- Begin the application process by setting up an online account here.
- Input three recommenders - include name, recommender type, and email address.
- After logging into the online application, the recommendation link can be found on the left-side navigation labeled “McDermott Scholars Recommendations.”
- Three online recommendations must be submitted including one counselor and two other recommenders. See below for more recommendation information.
- Mail your transcript only if your counselor is unable to upload one via their online recommendation; the transcript will need to be sent to the McDermott Scholars office. See below for more transcript information.
- Complete and submit all parts of the McDermott student application.
- We encourage you to submit your student application even if all recommendations and transcript are not yet processed.
- Complete the UT Dallas application process before Tuesday, January 5, 2016.
- Note: The McDermott Scholars Program application and UT Dallas’ Office of Admission and Enrollment do not share transcripts or other documents. Each application process is independent from the other.
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Weigh Passion, Practicality to Narrow Your
College Search
When choosing where you'll apply, it's
possible to find harmony between your head and your heart.
Humans love to view the world
in dichotomies, whether it's good vs. evil, head vs. heart or passion vs.
practicality. A dichotomy means "a division into two parts," and
it can be a powerful way to narrow a diverse set of possibilities down to
a choice between two options.
The passion vs. practicality
decision is especially evident in the college search. Students are often faced with
either going with their hearts and choosing the college and major that speak to
them, or making a calculation that will maximize earning power. But the
options don't have to be so stark.
When students are narrowing
their final list of potential schools, they should consider how each of those
schools appeals to both their passions and their practical side. If a certain
school appeals to one side more than the other, the student can delve deeper
into those factors when further researching the school. Ultimately, students
can make a more informed decision in the end if they equally weigh the two
sides of this dichotomy now, as they narrow the list of colleges where they'll
apply.
If a student neglects to
consider both passion and practicality fairly, the effects can be
disastrous. Consider my friend Henry, a passionate artist in high school who
pursued a degree in economics at a respectable business school within a large state university.
Henry, predictably, was bored
by the business school curriculum and graduated with a low-B average. He
struggled to secure a rewarding job and instead held several low-paying sales
positions while pursuing art on the side. Years later, Henry’s economics degree
helps him balance his checkbook, but little else.
The opposite side of the
debate is simple to recognize. Individuals who follow a passion
for arts could be saddled with $60,000 in student loan debt and a degree
in culinary arts or jewelry-making. Contrary to the advice of some, following
your passion does not always automatically result in a well-paying position
either.
When considering your ideal
college or university, include
options that excite you, such as schools with lively music scenes,
socially engaged student bodies or ones with study abroad programs in countries that interest you.
Productivity requires a passion for the work you do, and success in college
necessitates work.
Do not make the mistake of
believing that anything enjoyable is also impractical. There are legions of
artists who are fulfilled and financially secure as web designers or
marketing professionals, for instance.
Likewise, consider the
practical side of your college choices.
Write a list of limits based on your grades, financial situation and aspirations. Many schools offer generous
financial aid packages, and now most have electronic tools that can help predict your eligibility. Take, for
example, Baylor University's model.
Decide how much debt you are willing to amass and limit your choices accordingly. Including these factors does not mean you are shuttering your dreams. Rather, you are giving your dreams the chance to exist in reality after college.
Decide how much debt you are willing to amass and limit your choices accordingly. Including these factors does not mean you are shuttering your dreams. Rather, you are giving your dreams the chance to exist in reality after college.
Before you apply to
a long list of schools, check the criteria you have set against each institution
to see which fit, and which don't. The options that most closely fit all your
criteria – both the passion-based and the practical parts – should be the ones
to which you mostly strongly consider applying.
One excellent way to organize
your college search is to look for high-value bargains. For my undergraduate
education, I was accepted by a wide range of public and private schools. As
much as my heart led me to the cozy campus of the most expensive option, I
eventually settled on an honors program at an in-state university.
For the cost of in-state
tuition, I received the small class sizes of a private school, as well as
access to world-class student research opportunities that took me north of the
Arctic Circle and to the volcanic slopes of Mount St. Helens.
If I were advising my younger
self, I would have put affordability near the top of my list of criteria.
By the conclusion of my college search, when the realities of expenses had set
in, I had only one really affordable option on my list.
In other words, I had left
myself with no affordable plan B that met my other criteria. I was fortunate in
how the experience worked out, but I would advise students to have a short list
of schools that meet their practical needs – such as money or distance from
home – as well as the excellent schools that would require a miraculous
scholarship in order to become practical.
College, like life, is a
series of compromises. It may take some research to uncover the correct balance
of desire and practicality, but it is well worth the effort. Whatever you do,
do not allow yourself to narrow the world down to a simple choice between two
extremes.
Monday, November 2, 2015
New England Youth Leadership Conference
Upcoming Dates:
December 4-6
January 29-31
February 26-28
Conducted across the nation and sponsored by the Military Order of World Wars (MOWW), Youth Leadership Conferences (YLC) and the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) annually sanction the YLC curriculum. YLC classes are led by skilled instructors and supervised by well-qualified Team Leaders and Counselors. Classes are participatory. The New England Chapter of YLC is conducted at Norwich University, the nation’s first senior military college. During the weekend, participants are grouped into teams and involved in both classes and physical challenges, including:
- Intelligent Leadership
- Effective Communications
- Water Survival Skills
- Climbing Wall
- Leadership Reaction Course
- Our Constitution & The Bill of Rights
- The Citizen Soldier
- Free Enterprise & Personal Finance
- Cyber Security
- Honor & Ethics
http://bit.ly/NorwichYLCW
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