Applying to
College
Applications should be submitted to colleges between September
and January of your senior year. The school counseling
department will be happy to help you with your applications. Be
aware of deadline dates. They may vary. Make sure you ask for
letters of recommendation at least four weeks prior to your
application being due. Remember: If you miss a deadline you
don’t get a second chance!
Filling out
applications
Below are listed some of the basics of filling out your college
applications.
1. Pay attention to deadlines.
2. It may be a good idea to make a copy of the blank application
that you can use as a rough draft. Once you are certain that the
rough draft is accurate and it has been proofread, then you can
begin filling out your official application.
3. Don’t rush, read directions carefully, think through your
answers.
4. Do not use slang terms or nicknames anywhere on the
application.
5. Write a draft of your essay and ask an English teacher, your
school counselor, or another qualified person to proofread for
you.
6. The application should be completed and proofread before it
is submitted. Neatness and clarity are important. Whenever
possible applications should be typed or submitted
electronically, otherwise be sure to print neatly. Use only blue
or black ink.
7. Make copies, print out, or save to a disc everything you send
out to your colleges. Many times you can use the same essay for
more than one college application. Be sure to keep a copy.
8. Visit the school counseling office at least two weeks before
the deadline for the application. The application will require
an official high school transcript and will most likely have a
section for your school counselor to fill out. Be sure to give
enough time for these requests to be processed. Your school
counselor will need more notice if you are also asking for a
letter of recommendation.
9. Bring your applications and letters of recommendation to the
school counseling office and give them to the school counseling
assistant. Ask for your school transcript to be sent to your
selected school. Be aware of your deadlines. Try to have all
applications in two weeks before the deadline date.
10. Select references carefully. Ask teachers, your school
counselor, or a boss; someone you feel you have a good
relationship with and who can recommend you for acceptance. Be
sure to ask the reference first before you include their name on
your application.
11. Most colleges require a fee (between $35 and $50) for
applying. Paper clip a check or money order to your application.
Do not send cash.
12. Your school counselor must complete the school report. Be
sure to print your name at the top.
NOTE: Official transcripts and the school report must be mailed
directly from the school counseling office to the college.
College
Interviews
College admissions officers agree that, except when impossible, no
student should select a college without having spent some time on
campus. At many colleges and universities an interview is desirable
and sometimes required.
In arranging an interview, either call or write to the admissions
office and suggest a date several weeks in advance. Provide back-up
dates, if possible. Always contact the admissions office and tell
them of your planned arrival. Arrange your interview so you can also
have a campus tour, if one is available.
1. Prepare yourself by reading the college catalog ahead of time,
and jotting down questions you would like to ask the interviewer.
2. Be on time for your appointment.
3. Dress appropriately, but do not overdress.
4. Take along an unofficial transcript, which may be obtained from
the guidance office. Please give at least one-week’s notice for your
request to be processed.
5. Try to avoid asking questions that are clearly answered in the
catalog, however, always ask about anything that you would like
clarified.
6. Have your parents accompany you, if you like. Although they are
welcome, they should never be the center of attention. The college
is interested in you, and you are the one who must decide if you
would be happy there.
7. Be ready to talk about yourself: your interests, accomplishments,
goals, and your interest in the college. The interview is an
opportunity to make it known that there is a real person behind the
application.
8. Be yourself. Remember that college selection is a mutual process.
You and the college select each other. Find out if the college
offers what you are really looking for.
9. If you would like to, it is acceptable to ask if you can take
notes during the interview.
10. Take time a few days later to send a thank you note to the
interviewer.
Waiting
After your applications are sent
out you can relax. Well, sort of. While you wait you can continue to
look for scholarships and other sources of financial aid that will
help you finance your education next year.
Starting in mid-March you will start receiving replies from the
colleges. The thick envelopes usually are the acceptance letters,
but don’t give up hope until you read the letter. Besides acceptance
and rejection letters some schools will also place students on a
waiting list. If you are placed on a waiting list, the college will
update your status once they have received notification from the
students who they offered admission to.
By now you have probably ranked the schools that you applied to and
have picked your first and second choices. Even if you receive the
acceptance letters from those schools early, you may want to wait
until you have heard from all your schools. If you are accepted into
a college, you will soon be receiving an award letter detailing the
financial aid package that the college is able to offer you. This
package may make a difference in which school you decide to attend.
Carefully review the financial aid award letters you receive. Call
or write the financial aid office if you have any questions. What
you want to look at is not how much money is being offered, but how
much of your need will be covered. If all of your financial need is
not covered, be sure to ask what other programs are available. Also
ask how any outside aid, such as scholarships, might affect the
award package you have been offered. If these questions have not
been answered, do not commit yourself to attend that college. Call
the college’s admissions office and ask for an extension on the time
you have to declare that you will be attending that college.
Traditionally, May 1 is the day when you are asked to respond to the
offers of admission you have received. Make sure that you accept not
only the offer of admission, but also the offered financial aid
package. Once this decision has been made, and your acceptance
letter and deposit have been sent to the college of your choice,
notify the other colleges that you will not be attending. Your
regrets letter will mean an acceptance letter for a student on that
college’s waiting list, so send it out as soon as possible.
If you are placed on a waiting list and you intend to enroll in that
college if you are accepted, you may wish to contact the admissions
director by calling, e-mailing, or writing, and ask what you can do
to strengthen your application. If the other colleges that have
accepted you are asking for an answer, call the admissions office
and ask for an extension while you wait to hear from the schools
that have placed you on the waiting list.
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