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College Bound Timeline/Preparing for College Excellent MI College Guide at
www.michigancollegeguide.com Then click
"View 2010 Print Edition" ( I couldn't get the "autolink" feature to work to allow you
to log on to the site Copy and paste into your addressline or google this site)
Scroll to the bottom to review the steps to apply for college Freshman & Sophomore Year
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Explore your interests, hobbies & values (Open the Menu box to your left called Good Websites take some surveys)
- Get involved in your school & community to develop your skills & abilities
- Explore careers and college admission requirements
- Create a 4 year high school plan of classes
- Update your Educational Development Plan
- Go to www.fastweb.com to register on this free scholarship clearing house website There is
scholarship money for freshman. (Most times you will have to write an essay)
- Keep up your grades, your counselor has a tutoring list if you are falling behind.
- Learn about college degrees http://www.oaklandcc.edu/careerfocus/Spring2003/S03_5.htm
Sophomore Year
Take the ACT PLAN test and use the results to assist you with academic and career planning
Explore www.fastweb.com for cash awards for non-senior students
Consider attending the Troy School District College Night at Athens held in October. Even though this event
is at Athens, it is for every Troy student
Attend with your parents the Sophomore Junior Parent Night
Continue with the 9th grade suggestions above
Update your EDP often to reflect new experiences and use to research careers
If you haven't learned about college degree programs click here http://www.oaklandcc.edu/careerfocus/Spring2003/S03_5.htm
Check out the Menu Box to the left : Good Websites (take some interest surveys)
Check out the AP info menu box to the left, to learn about Advanced Placement Classes
Junior Year
Take PSAT in fall
In fall, attend Sophomore Junior Parent Night at your high school
Maintain the highest level of achievement in your classes
Attend local college fairs in the Fall & Spring. Attend the Troy Schools College Night held at
Athens in October
Visit college web sites. (Register as a prospective student) Use www.collegeboard.com
or www.connectedu.net/members, to help identify possible schools
Meet college representatives that visit your school— Go to the Troy High website, under Counseling,
look for Guidance Updates, for list of dates that reps are in the building
Watch for announcements for special college visitation days —
Formally visit colleges
Take ACT or SAT in the spring- you may want to take a test prep workshop (Your counselor has a list
of prep workshops.
go to www.learningexpresslibrary.com for ACT, SAT, and AP free practice tests.
Use www.act.org to register for ACT, and www.collegeboard.com to register for SAT.
Remember to request during the test registration process, the colleges where you would like your scores to be sent.
Explore financial aid using internet options ("Need Estimator" at www.act.org or Estimator tool at www.fafsa.ed.gov
Update your Educational Development Plan stored in Career Cruising software www.careercruising.com
Continue your involvement in school & community activities
In June, explore the process of requesting teacher recommendation letters for fall of senior year
Open a on-line college application, to examine the past year's required essay questions and
become familiar with application process. Learn if your college re-calcuates a student's GPA
Attend Financial aid night at your school
If considering playing college sports go to the NCAA website to register
https://web1.ncaa.org/eligibilitycenter/general/index_general.html
Senior Year http://www.troycolts.org/Counseling/
Troy High Counseling Website
www.michigancollegeguide.com
Use this website to learn about MI colleges. Click Print edition
In Aug before school starts, open on-line college application, start completing
Do a great job completing your Senior Survey/Questionaire that is mailed to you in the summer
Bring to the Counseling Office the "Counselor Page of the College Application
Retake the ACT or SAT if you feel it is necessary-send scores to schools that you are applying to
Concentrate on completing your college applications — (No trick or treat till applications are complete)
Common Application open college web site to see if supplement materials are needed: https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/DownloadForms.aspx
Attend college fairs and college representatives that visit your school
Attend financial aid information meeting
Continue to search for scholarships by using scholarship search engines www.fastweb.com
Pre-plan on a calendar early in the year which scholarships you will apply for. Example
SAE Engineering scholarships are due by 12/1/08. Don't miss deadline.
Apply before January 1st for pin number from FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
web site. Complete FAFSA form by Feb 15th
Continue to do your best academically
Continue your involvement in school and community activities
Notify the counseling office of any college acceptances, scholarships or awards
Narrow your college decision to one school- notify other schools before May 1st if you intend to
get a refund on reservation fee. Submit your dorm housing information to your college in the spring.
Check out the MACRO site http://www.macrao.org/ to see if you take classes at a community college
will they transfer to a 4 year college
Great Senior Website http://www.collegecareerlifeplanning.com- Click High School student - College Bound
the above site offers many college links (Out of country universities& colleges What colleges accept Common Appilication?)
College Ranks website: http://www.collegecareerlifeplanning.com/Pages/Education%20Planning%20Pages/Index%20College%20Search%20&%20Ranking.html
Check out www.chegg.com. Learn ways to save money at college by possible renting text books
Get 2 boxes, 1 to store all your college information, and one for scholarship information.
The Counseling Office is open daily from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Phone (248)-823-2715 The fax number is 248-823-2888.
Preparing for College
The President's Council of the State Universities of Michigan suggests "the best predictor of college
success is the quality and rigor of the courses you take each year in high school," In general, college
admission committees review overall grade point average, test scores, special abilities, scholastic and
volunteer activities, and work experiences, However the kinds of courses a student takes go a long way
in determining how well a student will do in college. It is to a student's advantage to prepare
for college by taking course work seriously and working hard. Recommended Courses from the Council of University Presidents:
4 years strongly recommended. Students need the ability to read critically, write clearly, and speak concisely.
Mathematics:
4 years strongly recommended. Colleges require high levels of math achievement. Colleges place great emphasis on math skills.
Biological and Physical Sciences:
4 years preferred, 3 years strongly recommended. Recommendations include yearlong courses in biology, chemistry, and physics, along with laboratory experience.
History and Social Sciences:
4 years preferred, 3 years strongly recommended. Colleges look for experience with American and World History, along with economics and government.
Foreign Language:
3 years strongly recommended. Universities are placing increased emphasis on foreign language as a graduation requirement.
Fine and Performing Arts: 2 years strongly recommended.
Computer Literacy:
1 year strongly recommended.
Out-of-state College Admission Requirements Each college and university has its own set of admission
requirements, If students plan to attend an out-of-state institution, it would be important to know that
institution's requirements. More often than not, following the Council of University President's
recommendations would prepare a student for admission to any college or university.
Applying to college is a multi-step process for a 4-year school
1. Apply with paper or on-line application (on-line preferred)
Some schools come to THS and do on-site admissions.
2. Get Transcript sent to College by printing the "counselor page" of the application, bring in to Miss Brubaker, the Counseling Office Secretary
Bring in $2,00 and complete a Transcript Order Form.
Anytime transcripts are requested there is a $2.00 fee. 3.
Make sure standardized test scores (ACT or SAT) were sent to your college. If you didn't request
to have scores sent during registration process, go to www.act.org to send ACT scores or
www.collegeboard.com for SAT (ACT costs approximately $9.00 per score to be sent)
Caution when considering paying $13.00 for "rushed scores". Some colleges (like University
of Michigan) don't accept "Rushed Scores"
4. Open on line application to see if teacher letter of recommendation is needed.
If teacher letter of recommendation is needed, you may want to ask your teacher in
June when is the best time to put the request in for a letter. (Most of the time it will be early Sept.
of senior year to make the request of the teacher.) Please allow your teacher
2 –3 weeks to write the letter." A. Meet the teacher in person to request the letter (follow up the request in written form via email
or write the details discussed, in a letter.)"
B. Ask if the teacher will email the letter or mail the letter to the college
C. If the teacher is mailing letter to college, supply the teacher with the college form
(usually called Teacher Letter of Recommendation), a pre-addressed stamped envelope with
admissions address on the envelope If the teacher is sending by email. The college application
will ask for the teacher's email address in the application and the college will send the teacher
the link to use to submit the letter of recommendation, so ask for the teacher's email address.
D. Supply the teacher with a tenative deadline date (allow teacher 2 weeks from your request date)
for the letter to be completed
E. Give the teacher your resume or "Activities Sheet" or a copy of Senior Questionaire
to illustrate activities you particpate in.
F. Follow up on the deadline date to ask if the teacher mailed the letter
F. Send the teacher a thank you letter or email for assisting you
6. Counselor Letters of Recommendation. When you submit "the counselor page" of the college
application to Miss. Brubaker, Secretary in the Counseling Office, she gives
these forms to the counselors. If you want a more detailed formal letter, follow the above procedure to
request one of your counselor. Provide your counselor with your resume or Senior Activities Sheet
so the counselor craft a letter.. Allow your counselor 2 weeks to complete the letter.
Other college tips
Please visit colleges during summer of junior to senior year. Check the admission requirements of colleges to know if you are applying to a "SAFE" school or a "REACH" school.
For prestigious colleges, know the terms early decision vs early action.
http://www.collegeboard.com/student/apply/the-application/104.html COLLEGE BOUND SENIORS - REQUIRED SUMMER READING Professor Moore's Helpful Hints for Academic Success
as an Undergraduate Student by Dr. Kathleen Moore Associate Dean College of Arts and Sciences Oakland University 1. Always go to class! You (or your parents) are paying tuition to give you the privilege of sitting in classes. 2. Sit in the front of the classroom. There will be fewer distractions, and it will be easier to see and hear.
Do not worry that you will be singled out by the professor.
3. Don't just sit there; take notes. Writing helps to imprint information on your brain. Listen carefully,
take concise notes, and ask a question if you don't understand. 4. Consult your class syllabus frequently.
The syllabus is an important source of information about test dates
grading policies, and schedule of material to be covered.
5. Do not let your studies slide... You need to study for every class on a regular (if not daily) basis. Before the next lecture
for a given class, you should have mastered previous material. 6. Don't be afraid to ask for help if you are having problems.
Professors and teaching assistants have
office hours (see course syllabus) to help students who are having difficulties. Don't wait until the day
before an exam to seek help. 7. Don't be "sick" on the day of an exam.
Except for the rare legitimate emergencies and illnesses,
it is your responsibility to be prepared to take an exam on its scheduled day. Some professors will give
make-up exams (usually more difficult than the original); some won't give make-ups.
None of us like dealing with a missed exam. 8. See your academic advisor on a regular basis.
It is a waste of time and money to register for classes
that do not fulfill a function in your academic program. If you want to graduate in a timely manner,
you can't afford to waste a single class. 9. Get to know your college catalog.
This book describes all of the rules and requirements for completion
of your degree. The more familiar you become with its contents, the more efficient your progress.
10. Don't drop classes capriciously. A transcript riddled with dropped classes is a bad sign; it signals
to prospective employers or graduate schools an inability to follow through. In most cases it's best to persevere—one
or two low grades won't ruin your record. Better yet, if you stay on top of things, you won't have any low grades. 11. Don't whine!
Take responsibility for your own actions. 12. Study productively! Find a quiet environment for your studies. Review your lecture notes; rewrite
or reorganize as necessary. Correlate lecture notes with text material.
Work problems—don't rely on problem solution manuals and workbooks. 13. Refer to your dictionary frequently.
It is extremely important that your written work is articulate and
grammatically correct at all times. Be cautious in your use of "spell-check" programs.
14. Do not pull "all nighters." This is a very poor way to learn anything, especially math and science.
If you study on a regular basis, there is no need for cramming.
15. If you are a full time student, college is a full time job. You will need to spend 40 to 50 hours per week
in class and studying; you probably shouldn't consider working more than a few hours per week.
If you are not a full time student, be realistic in your scheduling. 16. Take good care of yourself.
Eat well, sleep well, exercise regularly, and party conservatively. 17. Try to be organized. This is valuable training for your future endeavors.
18. Remember, your college record will be with you for life. Take your classes seriously; make your record one
that will open doors for you. 19. Develop a positive attitude toward accented English.
Your career will probably involve significant
international travel. While English is quite "international," you will need to develop listening skills that will allow
you to comprehend the language as spoken by others. 20. Learn to solve your own problems.
College is an adult learning environment. If you run into problems, work
to resolve them yourself with the assistance of campus resources. In most cases it is inappropriate for
parents to be trying to fix the problems of their adult college students.
21. Enjoy the undergraduate experience. You may never again have the opportunity to sample so many fields
of knowledge or the freedom to participate in such diverse extra-curricular activities. Good Luck!
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