For Students with the graduation year of:
2008: Send a thank-you. As the excitement of graduation dies down, it is certainly in your best interest to send a simple thank-you note to professors or administrators with whom you have worked. In job searches or applications for graduate studies, you never know when you may need a reference. Additionally, it is the polite, courteous thing to do.
2009-2011: Thinking ahead can really pay off. In order to ensure a timely graduation, you will need to make sure you are meeting all pre-requisites for your required major classes; otherwise, you will not be allowed into your required courses! Check the pre-reqs for all of the courses you need. This information is usually available on your school’s website.
2012: Ensure you are choosing the right computer and software options for your campus. While this will vary quite a bit from school-to-school, some institutions will provide information on what computer programs are going to best work for your educational programming. If you do not receive information on this, you can contact the office of technology to see what preferred options are.
2013 & 2014: Campus visits in the summer are better than no visits at all. While we encourage you to schedule your visits during the academic year when classes will be in session, it can be hard to find time during those busy times of year. If your only option is to visit in the summer, you should certainly still plan to do so. Campus visits are among the most important things you can do through this process, and you can still get a feel for a campus during the summer, and make a wise decision as to whether a school is a fit for you.
2015 & Above: Consider Dual-Credit courses for the coming years. Dual-Credit courses are taught in high school at local colleges and through distance learning (online). These will meet high school and college requirements and provide credit for both high school and college. This is a wonderful way to earn credit early on, get a feel for college coursework and boost your college applications!
Sincerely,
Your Friends at Ensphere College Planning Services
Monday, May 21, 2012
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Tips of the Week - May 7, 2012
For students with the graduation year of:
2008: Confirm your references. Many job applications will ask for references. Be sure you are providing accurate phone numbers, e-mail addresses and contact information for your references. Also, it is very important that your references are expecting a call from potential employers. It does not look good if the employer calls your reference and he or she has not been informed that they were listed.
2009-2011: Confirm your financial aid for next year. If you’re still on campus, stop by the financial aid office and confirm that you are set to receive aid for next year. If you are not on campus any longer, a phone call or e-mail to the financial aid office will confirm that you are good to go.
2012: Be on the look out for important mailings and e-mails. Now that you have likely finalized your decision on where you will attend, now is more important than ever that you are receptive to the correspondences your school sends you. There may be important information on class registration, orientation or housing.
2014: Begin thinking about the PSAT. The Preliminary SAT test will be administered either on October 17th or October 20th, likely at your school. Contact your guidance counselor about getting registered for this. (If they tell you that your school is not offering it, check in with nearby schools). We recommend picking up a prep book for the PSAT to utilize this summer. The PSAT is also the “NMSQT” or National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, so it is in your best interest to prepare for the test to increase your likelihood of receiving a National Merit Scholarship.
2015 & Above: Make your summer extracurricular activities relevant to a field in which you might be interested. Thinking about a career in architecture? Look to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity. Interested in education? Find a summer camp that you can work or volunteer for. All activity is valuable, but relevant experience will make you an even better candidate for your potential major!
Sincerely,
Your Friends at Ensphere College Planning Services
For students with the graduation year of:
2008: Confirm your references. Many job applications will ask for references. Be sure you are providing accurate phone numbers, e-mail addresses and contact information for your references. Also, it is very important that your references are expecting a call from potential employers. It does not look good if the employer calls your reference and he or she has not been informed that they were listed.
2009-2011: Confirm your financial aid for next year. If you’re still on campus, stop by the financial aid office and confirm that you are set to receive aid for next year. If you are not on campus any longer, a phone call or e-mail to the financial aid office will confirm that you are good to go.
2012: Be on the look out for important mailings and e-mails. Now that you have likely finalized your decision on where you will attend, now is more important than ever that you are receptive to the correspondences your school sends you. There may be important information on class registration, orientation or housing.
2014: Begin thinking about the PSAT. The Preliminary SAT test will be administered either on October 17th or October 20th, likely at your school. Contact your guidance counselor about getting registered for this. (If they tell you that your school is not offering it, check in with nearby schools). We recommend picking up a prep book for the PSAT to utilize this summer. The PSAT is also the “NMSQT” or National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, so it is in your best interest to prepare for the test to increase your likelihood of receiving a National Merit Scholarship.
2015 & Above: Make your summer extracurricular activities relevant to a field in which you might be interested. Thinking about a career in architecture? Look to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity. Interested in education? Find a summer camp that you can work or volunteer for. All activity is valuable, but relevant experience will make you an even better candidate for your potential major!
Sincerely,
Your Friends at Ensphere College Planning Services
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Tip of the Week - April 30, 2012
For students with the graduation year of:
2008: Maintain patience in your job search. As you complete your final semester of college and you continue your job search, do not feel stressed or overwhelmed if you have not yet secured a position. Keep focused on your long-term goals, continue to network and be patient.
2009-2011: Look into taking a summer class at a local institution or online. First, confirm with your school that any credits you might take would transfer. If so, this can be a great way to ensure a timely graduation and make your next year’s schedule less jam-packed.
2012: Be smart in your selection. As May 1 quickly approaches, you will need to secure a spot at one of your schools. Be sure not to count on schools to which you have been placed on the wait list. You may not hear an answer from these schools until June or July, so you will need to secure a spot elsewhere before then.
2013: Get a jump on requesting recommendations. Most schools will require that you submit teacher recommendations as part of your application. At the beginning of senior year, your teachers will be receiving a lot of requests for recommendations. Let the teachers that you’re considering asking know before the end of this school year that you will be seeking a recommendation from them. This could put you at the top of their list of recommendations to write in the fall. Remember that your recommendations typically should come from teachers of core academics (math, science, English, social studies), and ideally they should be teachers that you’ve had in 10th grade and later.
2014 & Above: Create a log or journal of all of your extracurricular involvement. You don’t need to submit a resume or activity sheet to colleges for a few years yet, and by that time, it can be easy to forget what you’ve done. Logging your involvement, including details and accomplishments from each activity, will ensure that your resume is thorough and complete when the time comes.
Sincerely,
Your Friends at Ensphere College Planning Services
2008: Maintain patience in your job search. As you complete your final semester of college and you continue your job search, do not feel stressed or overwhelmed if you have not yet secured a position. Keep focused on your long-term goals, continue to network and be patient.
2009-2011: Look into taking a summer class at a local institution or online. First, confirm with your school that any credits you might take would transfer. If so, this can be a great way to ensure a timely graduation and make your next year’s schedule less jam-packed.
2012: Be smart in your selection. As May 1 quickly approaches, you will need to secure a spot at one of your schools. Be sure not to count on schools to which you have been placed on the wait list. You may not hear an answer from these schools until June or July, so you will need to secure a spot elsewhere before then.
2013: Get a jump on requesting recommendations. Most schools will require that you submit teacher recommendations as part of your application. At the beginning of senior year, your teachers will be receiving a lot of requests for recommendations. Let the teachers that you’re considering asking know before the end of this school year that you will be seeking a recommendation from them. This could put you at the top of their list of recommendations to write in the fall. Remember that your recommendations typically should come from teachers of core academics (math, science, English, social studies), and ideally they should be teachers that you’ve had in 10th grade and later.
2014 & Above: Create a log or journal of all of your extracurricular involvement. You don’t need to submit a resume or activity sheet to colleges for a few years yet, and by that time, it can be easy to forget what you’ve done. Logging your involvement, including details and accomplishments from each activity, will ensure that your resume is thorough and complete when the time comes.
Sincerely,
Your Friends at Ensphere College Planning Services
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
