Author: Terry Doyle

Senior Newsletter

From the VHS Guidance Office

VHS

Winter, 2012-13 2011

“College Admissions Issue”

Admissions Testing

Do you HAVE to take the ACT or SAT? Well, you MUST take it if you will be applying to a 4-year college or university. Taking one of the tests is NOT required if you are applying to a 2-year or technical college—they can give you the COMPASS test instead.

2nd Semester SAT DATES 2012-13 / Register at: http://sat.collegeboard.org/home
Test Date	Registration / Deadline	Late Registration
January 26, 2013	December 28, 2012	January 11, 2013
March 9, 2013 / *At VHS	February 8, 2013	February 22, 2013
May 4, 2013	April 5, 2013	April 19, 2013
June 1, 2013	May 2, 2013	May 17, 2013

2nd Semester ACT DATES 2012-13 / Register at: http://www.actstudent.org/
Test Date	Registration Deadline	Late Registration
February 9, 2013*	January 11, 2013	January 12 – 18, 2013
April 13, 2013	March 8, 2013	March 9 – 22, 2013
June 8, 2013 / *AT VHS	May 3, 2013	May 4 – 17, 2013

Note: Once you set up an account and register online, you can view scores quicker than you will receive them in the mail, send your scores to
additional colleges, and print you scores.

Many colleges now require SAT scores to be sent electronically by the College Board and will not accept scores sent by the high school.
Insure you list on your application up to four codes of the colleges where you think you will apply and want your scores sent. If you plan on playing sports at a NCAA school, you must also send your scores to the NCAA Clearinghouse. That code is “9999”.
Also, remember to put the VHS school code (113105) on your registration, even when registering online. Your scores will not be sent to Vidalia High School if this code is not listed.

Did you know?
The SAT is made by The College Board. The College Board makes two SAT tests, the SAT Reasoning Test, and the SAT Subject Test (in many subjects). The SAT Reasoning test (SAT 1) is the one you take for college admission. The Subject tests are only taken when a college specifically requests the applicant to take one.

Special points of interest:
College Admissions Testing
College Admissions Requirements
Career Center
Letters of Recommendation
Info on HOPE, NCAA, and Financial Aid
Helpful Websites

FEE WAIVERS
Fee waivers for the SAT and ACT tests assist students for whom payment of fees might be a barrier to college admission.
Students wishing to receive a fee waiver must meet the income requirements. This is usually based on the guidelines used to determine eligibility for free lunch. Also, you have to actually intend to apply to a two or four year college. You don’t need to test if you are not intending to go to college!
If you receive a fee waiver for a test you can also send a college application fee waiver.
Ask Mr. Carroll about it...

COLLEGE TOURS/VISITATION
Check the Admissions Office section of the website of colleges you are interested in for info about college visits and tour dates. These campus visits are fun, informative, and FREE events to learn about colleges you might like to go to. Nothing lets you know about a college more than actually seeing it for yourself! Continued...

A student may have two visits to a college or branch of the armed forces as excused absences.
Bring a parent note the week you will be out, and then obtain a note from the college or military recruiter to bring with you when you come back.
BUT...they are NOT excused for finals waivers! (All absences count against finals waivers…)

FINANCIAL AID WORKSHOP
A financial aid workshop will be held Monday, January 28, 2013 at 7:00pm for you and your parents. The workshop is conducted by a Georgia Student Finance Commission representative who will be able to answer any questions you may have in regard to funding your education. It is very important that you and your parents attend this meeting.

COLLEGE APPLICATIONS
If you want to attend college next August, you should begin working on your applications. Make sure you check college websites for specific requirements and deadlines.
Many colleges would prefer you apply online. However you apply, let the Guidance Office know that an official transcript needs to be sent.
Although you will receive a letter from colleges requesting additional information from you, remember that your “FINAL” transcript will not be available until you have graduated. At one of your graduation meetings, we will discuss final transcripts.

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SAT Tip: Go to College Board's web site, www.collegeboard.com and sign up for the "Official SAT Question of the Day" to get an idea of questions on the test.
They will email you one question every day.
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“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” ~Confucius

WAIVER OF COLLEGE APPLICATION FEES
Students who receive a SAT fee waiver and plan to enter college in the fall may be eligible to receive a waiver of college admissions fees, also. See Mr. Carroll for more information.

Southeastern Technical College
STC is one of the 34 technical colleges in the state. Technical education is hands-on (learning by doing) education leading to a certificate, diploma or degree. It is relatively short-term education; certificates are 1-3 quarters, diplomas are one to one-and-a-half years, and the Associates of Applied Technology degree is one-and-a-half to two years in length. Students who would prefer to learn by “doing” in a lab environment and to learn a set of skills for a certain job tend to like this type of education.
The mission of STC is not to provide the first two years of college; a two-year degree at STC prepares graduates for a career whereas a two-year degree at East Georgia College (or any other two-year college) is entirely core and is meant to transfer to a four-year college or university. However, students can take the core classes for a degree program at STC and those can be transferred to a four-year college or university.
STC is an “open admissions” college and does not evaluate transcripts. All Georgia residents are eligible for Hope at a technical college for a diploma or certificate course. They also provide job placement assistance for their graduates.

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Senior Newsletter

NCAA Athletics
Students who will participate in athletics at a NCAA Div. I. II, or III college must sign up for the NCAA Clearinghouse. You can wait until a college coach reminds you to apply because there is a fee. Just don’t fail to do it if you plan on participating your freshman year!

RESUMES
It is helpful to develop a personal resume you can use for job interviews and scholarship and college applications. A resume should contain personal information, academic information, activities, honors and awards, and work experience (including volunteer work). The Guidance Office has a form for students to list extracurricular activities/honors/recognitions to obtain a counselor recommendation for college admission or a scholarship.

Scholarship Information
Many scholarships are available to you as seniors, and you are encouraged to apply. Scholarship information will be posted in the Guidance Office as we receive it. Please take the scholarships very seriously. There is a lot of money available to students who take the time to apply. Local scholarship applications will be made available at the Financial Aid Workshop on Monday, January 28, 7pm.

HOPE SCHOLARSHIP
HOPE pays for 90—100% of tuition at a state college/university if you meet the GPA requirements.
Generally speaking, you need a 3.0 ACADEMIC average to be eligible for Hope in college , but not for a diploma or certificate at a technical college (you will need it for a degree).
A numerical GPA of 80 DOES NOT necessarily equate to a 3.0 GPA.
Students must complete a financial aid application at your college’s Financial Aid Office.
You can find out more on GAcollege411.org.

"Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself: I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn't arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I'm going to be happy in it." ~ Groucho Marx

LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION
Many of you may need letters of recommendation this year to send with college or scholarship applications. Remember that along with good grades and participation in various activities, you must also maintain a positive attitude, be cooperative and dependable and have good work habits. These are equally important when someone is considering a recommendation for you.
Give teachers and counselors appropriate notice to complete a letter of recommendation!

Financial Aid websites
Federal Government—PELL Grant: http://www.fafsa.gov
College is Possible : http://www.collegeispossible.org
College Board’s “Pay for College”: http://www.collegeboard.com/pay
FastAid: http://www.fastaid.com
FastWeb: http://www.fastweb.com
Peterson’s Financial Aid: http://www.petersons.com/finaid/

vidalia high school GUIDANCE OFFICE

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IMPORTANT WEBSITES

Georgia College 411—This website helps students plan, apply, and pay for Georgia colleges. www.GAcollege411.com
Georgia Career Information System (GCIS)—This website provides information on occupations, college degrees related to occupations, and labor trends, and also includes a career interest assessment. It requires a user name and password, use the one we gave to you, or there generic one: user name- vidaliahs password- gcis530.
www.gcic.peachnet.edu
The College Board—This website provides information on the SAT. You can register online for the SAT and review practice items. Registering online will allow you to check your scores online. It also has information about colleges around the nation. www.collegeboard.com
ACT—This website provides information on the ACT and allows students to register online. The ACT is another college admissions test like the SAT, but it is not used by as many students in Georgia. It is more like a comprehensive classroom test while the SAT tests reasoning ability.
www.act.org
NCAA Clearinghouse—Students who plan to play a sport at the collegiate level must register with the NCAA Clearinghouse. Find info here.
www.ncaaclearinghouse.net
Georgia Student Finance Commission—This website contains information about the HOPE scholarship, grants and loans and the ACCEL program.
www.gsfc.org
Selective Service—All male students must register for the Selective
Service by the age of 18. Students must be registered to receive HOPE or
federal financial aid for college. Students can register online at this website.
www.sss.gov
Georgia Department of Labor—Resources for the job seeker in Georgia.
www.dol.state.ga.us
Military.com—This website is for people interested in military service, whether they are in the military or not. There is an abundance of fun stuff: current events, shopping, video clips, military movie reviews, pictures, etc. For people who might be interested in joining the military, it describes the different branches of service, jobs available in the military, pay scales and benefits, etc.
www.military.com

Guidance Office Staff:

Mr. Carroll,
Guidance Counselor
Ms. Williams,
Guidance Counselor
Ms. Hansley,
Counselor Emeritus and Testing Coordinator
Ms. Nicki Balcziunas Guidance Secretary
Hours:
7:45 am — 3:45 pm,
Mon—Thurs

CAREER CENTER
The Career Center in the Guidance Office is here for your use. There are 3 computers for students to use for college and career research. Also, this is where we post college visitation day flyers, scholarship flyers, etc.
Come by the Guidance Office!