Tip of the Week - April 23, 2012

Tips for students graduating in the year:

2008-2011: Keep your work with you throughout the day. Always having your materials with you will allow you to get some assignments completed when you find yourself with down time. Time spent between classes, on the bus, or waiting for an appointment can add up and keep you on top of your work.
 
2012: Keep your forward momentum. As you know,suffering grades can result your colleges questioning whether they should have accepted you and even rescinding your admission. But another reason to keep up the hard work is to maintain your momentum for the coming fall. College course work requires a lot of motivation and diligence, so keep yourself moving in the right direction.
 
2013: Understand your options for college admission. There are different types of admission offered at schools and the student can choose under which type to apply. Two types of ‚early admission are called‚ Early Decision and Early Action. Both of these can offer some advantages, but ED is a binding contract, under which you are agreeing to pull your other applications if admitted. (Therefore, you can only apply to one school under ED). EA is non-binding, and still admits you earlier in the year. We highly recommend avoiding ED when financial aid is a concern. The deadlines for both ED and EA are much earlier than regular deadlines, so be sure you track these.
 
2014 & Above: Get ahead on assignments that are due at the end of the semester. Getting a jump on any papers, projects or assignments that are due near the end of the semester will free your time up when you need to prepare for finals. This is a great way to manage the pressures that come with the conclusion of a term.

Sincerely, Your Friends at Ensphere College Planning Services

Tip of the Week - April 16, 2012

For students with the graduation year of:

2008 & 2009: Clean up your Facebook and Twitter accounts – even more.  Employers are now going so far as to ask job candidates for their Facebook passwords. This allows them to see information, even things that you have marked as private. Of course, it is up to the candidate to provide this information, but this shows how heavily employers are considering this.

2010 & 2011: Get ahead on assignments that are due at the end of the semester. Getting a jump on any papers, projects or assignments that are due near the end of the semester will free your time up when you need to prepare for finals. This is a great way to manage the pressures that come with the conclusion of a term.

2012: Know your payment options. Many institutions will offer payment plans, in which families can pay monthly rather than at the end of each semester. If this interests you, call or e-mail the financial aid office to see if this is an option. You may also be able to find information about this on the school’s financial aid webpage.

2013 & 2014: Cover your bases with your entrance exams. You will need to send your test scores to the schools through the test maker’s websites (www.act.org for ACT, andwww.collegeboard.org for SAT). Colleges must have received these via this method in order to complete your application. You do not need to do this immediately upon registration, but remember that it must be done.

2015 & Above: Choose electives wisely. The electives on your transcript are another way that colleges will learn about you. Selecting the electives that you will enjoy, and ones in which you will work hard will show in your grades and work very much in your favor. It is also an opportunity to discover new areas of study that you may like to explore further.

Sincerely,

Your Friends at Ensphere College Planning Services

Tip of the Week - April 9

For Students Graduating in the years:

2012: Search for more schools if you need to. There are still many four-year schools accepting applications. If you are receiving more admission rejections than you anticipated, you might consider applying to a few more institutions to keep your options open. Let us know if you need assistance finding these schools.

2013: Schedule a few “Junior Days”. Junior Days, or visitation programs at colleges specifically designed for high school juniors, can give you very valuable insight into what the campus has to offer in terms of academics, extracurricular involvement and support services. Schools really like to make this experience special and informative for their prospective juniors, so we recommend taking advantage of these!

2014 & Above: Plan to do something enriching this summer. Colleges considering students for admission will look into the leadership and enrichment programs in which students take part to make admission decisions. The more valuable extracurricular involvement you have, the better. Use some time this summer to add to your resume.

Sincerely, 

Your Friends at College Planning Network

Tip of the Week - April 2, 2012

Tips for Students who graduated in:

2008-2010: Talk with your advisor about possible careers for graduates with your specific major. Your academic advisor likely has counseled many students within your major and had helped them plan for a career considering various options. Be specific and ask what types of jobs these students are best suited for and the success rate that they have at being placed in these careers.  Make sure you are gathering ideas if you’re unsure about your path. This can be especially helpful for more all-encompassing majors, such as communications, health sciences, or psychology.

2011: Establish a major if you have not already. It is highly recommended that you establish a major by your sophomore year. This leaves you with just a few months to make a concrete decision. There are often procedures you need to go through to “apply” for a specific academic program so do your homework and make sure you have fulfilled all requirements.

2012: Decide which AP tests you will take. This is your opportunity to take AP tests for your Advanced Placement classes and open the possibility of obtaining college credit for your high school course work. There is a fee associated with AP test taking so be prepared for that. Keep in mind that this fee is likely going to be significantly less than what you would pay for the college credit. Stay on top of registration deadlines for these exams.

2013 & 2014: Use DISCOVER’s college search tool. On your DISCOVER page, access the tab that says “Schools’. Then, select “search by characteristics”. Here, you can input your personal preferences for schools and the site will generate a list of possible match schools for you. You can specify criteria such as location, majors offered, selectivity, student enrollment, sports offered, and more.

2015 & Above: Be discerning with what you hear about the college process. There seems to be a lot of rumors surrounding college admissions and the financial aid process. You may hear tidbits from friends and family who have been through it. It is important to understand that every college operates differently from others and that they have their own procedures. Use your best judgment when making decisions and remember that we are here if you have questions.  You may wish to join us for our Expert Session on the Financial Aid at colleges on Tuesday, April 10^th.  You will be receiving more information on this session shortly.

Sincerely, 

Your Friends at Ensphere College Planning Services