Next Step College Admissions Plan

Non-Restrictive College Application Deadlines

joanie@nextstepcollegeplan.com (Joanie Till) — Sun, 17 Jul 2022 22:34:14 GMT

What are they and how do they differ?

Regular Decision: Submit application by a specified date and receive a decision in a stated period of time. These are often January deadlines. California state schools and UC schools have deadlines of November 30th.

Rolling Admission: As soon as the application is available, student may apply and will get a decision shortly after that. Applications are reviewed as they are submitted and decisions are given throughout the admission cycle.

Early Action: Deadlines are usually late October and early November, some December. Students apply early and receive a decision well in advance of the regular decision response date.

SAY "NO" TO STUDENT LOAN DEBT!

joanie@nextstepcollegeplan.com (Joanie Till) — Thu, 05 May 2022 17:06:49 GMT

Did you know that the sticker price of college is completely irrelevant?

Do you know how much your family can actually afford? We can help determine your family’s college budget and show you the “true cost” of college after grants and scholarships so you can be a fully informed consumer and understand exactly what you are getting into. Reach out for a free consultation.

HOW TO ASK FOR A LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION FOR COLLEGE

Fri, 30 Apr 2021 15:57:00 GMT

Written by Alexis Allison, College Essay Guy Team

Cue the Hallelujah chorus: the letter of recommendation is the one part of the application that students don’t have to write.

But wait! Before you crank up Pharrell Williams, know this: You still have to know how to ask for a letter of recommendation.

There’s actually a strategy to getting a creme-de-la-creme letter of recommendation for college—kind of like there’s a strategy to getting your parents to un-ground you, or your teacher to throw out that homework assignment over spring break.

In the spirit of this topic, we’ve gathered advice from a number of experts, including:

And I’m Alexis, a high school English teacher-turned college counselor-turned journalist. Ethan (the College Essay Guy) and I serve as your synthesizers and storytellers in this guide, which we’ve chunked into a few steps:

GETTING STARTED: PREPARING TO ASK FOR A LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION FOR COLLEGE

So, you’ve got to get another human’s stamp of approval. Why bother? Because some colleges consider letters of rec pretty darn important — above class rank, extracurricular activities and, at least when it comes to the counselor recommendation, demonstrated interest (dun dun dun!). Check out the results of the 2017 NACAC “State of College Admission” survey:

Our buddy Chris Reeves, a member of NACAC’s board of directors, has another way to read this table: “If you consider ‘considerable importance’ AND ‘moderate importance,’ the teacher letter is also more important than demonstrated interest. The counselor rec even ranks above the essay.” Basically, if it comes down to you and another candidate—all else being equal—your letters of recommendation can get you in or keep you out. And, according to a presentation co-led by our friend Sara Urquidez at a 2017 AP conference, rec letters can also help decide who gets scholarships and who gets into honors programs. All told, they’re a big deal. In this student guide, we focus on how to approach your teachers for a rec letter. Your school counselor may also write you one—ask to find out. Either way, a word to the wise: Make sure your counselor knows who you are. According to Sara, your counselor is the person that admissions representatives will call if they have questions about your application. She writes, “It’s important to keep them up to date and in the know.” So pop in every now and again and say hi. Make a copy of this counselor questionnaire, fill it out and either email it to them or print it and hand-deliver it. They will love you for it. Now, the teacher letter.

How do I get started? First things first. Find out which schools on your list require a teacher letter of recommendation for college (or two! or three!), and which deadlines you’re pursuing : Early Action, Early Decision, Regular—some will be earlier than others. You’ll eventually give this curated list to your recommenders. A note: They’ll typically only write one universal letter to be sent to all the schools on your list, not individually tailored letters for each school. Now you can start asking around.

HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT TEACHERS FOR A LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION

In an ideal world, you’d ask someone who teaches a core subject (English, math, science, social studies), who taught you recently (junior year is prime) and who knows you well and actually likes you. If you can’t find one person who fits all of those things, this is what you should prioritize:

*Important note: Some colleges require or recommend that students submit recommendations from teachers in certain subject areas. Be sure you double check that. Overall, think of it this way—it won’t help the college get to know you if your recommender doesn’t know you.

What if I need two (or three!) teachers? Pick teachers who can highlight separate strengths. For example, your band teacher knows things about you that your English teacher doesn’t, and vice versa. Having said this, I wouldn’t recommend picking teachers who teach electives for your main letter of rec (with exceptions like your music teacher for music school and art teacher for art school) as colleges are most interested in how well you’re doing and will do in academic subjects.

What if I don’t know any of my teachers? It’s better to cultivate a relationship with a teacher before you need something. But if you find yourself in a bind and haven’t gotten to know any of your teachers, it’s not too late to start. One of the best things you can do is pop in during your teacher’s office hours and, if they aren’t busy, ask questions. About class, work, life. Get to know them too. Finally, to help your teachers get to know YOU better, click here . Make your own copy of the document, fill it out and either email it to them OR print it and deliver in person. (For good measure, here’s that questionnaire for you to fill out and give your counselor , too!) As you think about which teachers to ask, here’s an exercise, adapted from our colleague Stacey Picket Cunitz, that can help strengthen both their eventual recommendations and your understanding of what they’ll be doing.

Step 1: Grab paper and pencil, or open a new doc for notes… Step 2: And then open this up. That’s the Common App’s Teacher Recommendation Form. Step 3: Take some time and imagine how your teacher/s might fill it out for you.

Note that this exercise is useful to work through regardless of how much time you have before your letters or rec are due, but if you want to be able to act on that final bullet point, you’ll probably want a few months to be able to shift your actions appropriately.

RECOMMENDATION LETTER TIPS

WHEN TO ASK FOR A LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION

As mentioned above, ideally you’d ask for letters of recommendation at the end of your junior year (and you would, after doing the exercise above, spend a few months before the end of your junior year establishing a stronger relationship with them). To keep it simple, the sooner your application is due, the sooner you need to ask. But be sure to ask at an appropriate time. You know how you wait until your parents are in a good mood before you ask them for something? Do that with this. That means: Don’t ask your teachers during lunch. (They’re humans. They eat.) Not right before class. (You’ll interrupt their class-prepping mojo.) Not in the middle of class (just, no). Two better options for when to ask for a letter of recommendation:

You: “Ms. Smith, do you have five minutes to talk?” (This is key. You’re inviting her into the conversation, while also giving her a quick out if she needs one.)

Ms. Smith: “Sure, Johnny. What’s up?”

You: “Well, I’m in the throes of applying to college. I’ve got some deadlines in about three months, so I’m trying to be proactive and organized before all hell breaks loose. (She’ll love you for thinking ahead.) That’s why I’m here. Of all the teachers I’ve had, I think you know me the best, and I’m wondering: Would you be willing and able to write me a strong letter of recommendation?” (The word “strong” gives teachers a polite out if they feel like they don’t know you well enough or don’t have time to take on your letter.)

Ms. Smith: “Oh Johnny, I thought you’d never ask.” (She probably won’t say this, but you can dream.)

You: “Really? That would be wonderful/epic/lit. Tonight I’ll email you all the relevant information—my resume, my list of colleges and their deadlines, and some bullet points with stuff I’ve done in class. ( See below for more info on this follow-up email. ) Is there anything else you’d like from me?

Ms. Smith: “Wow, no, I think that about covers it. Thanks, Johnny.”

You: “Thank you, Ms. Smith!” (Turns away, nearing the door. Stops as if remembering something, turns back toward Ms. Smith with a winning smile.)

You: “Oh, Ms. Smith! I almost forgot to ask … what’s your favorite coffee shop?”

Ms. Smith: “Oh heavens. Starbucks, I think. Why?”

You: “No reason! Have a great day!” (Skips out the door and immediately jots “Starbucks—Ms. Smith” into notes app, because you’ll be getting her a Starbucks gift card and thank-you note when all this is over.) And that’s how it’s done.

THE FOLLOW-UP EMAIL: WHAT TO SEND YOUR TEACHER AFTER ASKING FOR A LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION

Now you know how to ask for a letter of recommendation. But you aren’t finished yet. Once you’ve had That Conversation, you need to do one more thing the very same day : Write your teacher a follow-up email. A teacher’s brain is like a very smart bowl of spaghetti: If you don’t put your conversation down in writing, it might get lost in a thick vat of garlic and marinara.

For this follow-up email, you’ll need these things:

Here’s a good example:

SUBJECT: Letter of recommendation follow-up (Deadline: Nov. 15)

BODY:

Dear Ms. Smith,

I hope this email finds you well.

First of all, thank you. It means a lot that you’re writing me a letter. To make the process smoother, I’ve included my current resume, as well as the attached questionnaire to remind you of all my amazing qualities (hehe). Otherwise, here’s what you need to know in brief:

That’s it! Again, thank you, thank you for doing this for me. Please let me know if there’s anything else you need, or if you have any follow-up questions. And, if it’s okay with you, I’ll probably send a check-in email maybe a week or two before the deadline to make sure all is well.

In the meantime, I hope you have a beautiful day!

Sincerely,

Johnny D.

A final important tip: After you’ve requested a letter of recommendation, at some point in the application process you’ll need to waive your FERPA rights .

What’s FERPA?

It’s a law that, among other things, protects your rights as a student to view your own education records. If you waive those rights on the app, it means you won’t be able to see what your teachers write about you, which basically frees them up to write whatever they like.

But what if you want to see how great they think you are?

Have them sign your yearbook instead. If colleges see that you have not waived your FERPA rights, they’ll assume you’ve read your letter of recommendation for college and may not trust its objectivity. So we recommend waiving your FERPA rights.

This is what you should see if you’re using the Common App :

THAT’S A WRAP.

Congratulations—and phew! You’ve made it to the end of our guide.

Before you fall over from the mental food baby we’ve given you, we’d love to hear from you. Is there something we’ve overlooked? A burning question we haven’t answered? Maybe you’ve your own suave asking strategy you’d like to share. Email us at Lori@nextstepcollegeplan.com or Joanie@nextstepcollegeplan.com

Finally, if you’re feeling inspired and want to learn more about all things college-admissions, we’ve got you covered— www.nextstepcollegeplan.com

ACT Formulas and Programs

Thu, 04 Jun 2020 15:38:00 GMT

Taking the ACT this late summer and fall? There are a number of formulas that students should know before sitting for the test, and many can be programmed into students’ calculators beforehand in order to save time and give students’ the best chance of completing the math section in time and to the best of their ability.

There are a lot of math concepts tested on the ACT and the ACT does not provide students with any formulas on a reference sheet. However, all the formulas and math knowledge for the ACT come from what students have learned and memorized in their high school math classes, so the formulas that show up on the test the most will likely be the most familiar to students. It’s the formulas that are only needed for one or two questions on the test that may be less familiar to test-takers. For example, the equation of a circle and logarithm formulas only show up once on most ACT Math sections. If you’re aiming for every point possible, go ahead and memorize them, but if you feel overwhelmed with formula lists, take comfort in knowing you likely won’t be tested on the more esoteric formulas.

For students preparing for the ACT this spring, here are the ACT formulas students must absolutely know before test day:

Algebra

Statistics and Probability

Geometry

Trigonometry

Programming Calculators

If you feel that remembering the above list of formulas is next to impossible for you, then it may be to your advantage to get TI-83/84/85 programs that you can enter into your calculator for the ACT Math section. Remember that the TI-89 is not allowed on the ACT, because of its CAS (computer algebra system) functionality! It’s perfectly okay to use programs on your TI-83/84/85, however, because these calculators lack CAS capability. There is a little-known rule buried in the FAQ and Help section of the ACT website that the calculator program “must not have more than 25 lines of logical text” and “must not call on any other programs.” Due to the fact that few test-takers and proctors are aware of this rule, it is unclear whether this restriction will be strictly enforced. Entering all the above programs into your calculator is quite easy and can even be downloaded from the internet or you can program them into your calculator yourself.

Of course, memorizing a list of formulas and programming them into your calculator won’t be very helpful if you don’t know how to use them on test day. It’s critical for students to come up with a test prep plan far in advance of their target test day and subsequently track their progress via practice tests. We work with students to help them identify their best-fit test, creating a test prep plan, and set realistic goal scores. Contact us today.

Ivywise

Community Service: Quality v. Quantity

Mon, 02 Mar 2020 17:16:00 GMT

As admissions experts, we are often asked, “How many hours of community service is enough?” It’s crucial to understand that community service is not about the quantity of hours spent, but rather the quality of those hours you’ve devoted. Some high schools require students to participate in a certain amount of service. In some cases it is required in order to graduate! Therefore your 100 hours may be seen as more or less impressive than another student’s 100 hours, depending on your high school’s requirements and the resources available to you.

Admissions committees pay attention to what you have done with your service time and how you have used the opportunity to better yourself and make an impact in your community. Your enthusiasm for certain subjects or activities should extend to all aspects of your life, therefore providing a full picture of who you are to admissions officers. Through your application, admissions officers should be able to recognize your unique personality as reflected in your community service, extracurricular activities, essays, and course selections. We’ve got some tips to help you go beyond the obvious opportunities, such as those at a local soup kitchen or community center.

If you are a freshman or sophomore , you may not know which activities interest you the most yet. Now is a great time to test the waters! Explore the different options available to you and don’t be afraid to get creative and think up your own opportunities. Many organizations are appreciative of assistance and you may be able to create a project that is entirely your own. As time goes by, it’s possible you’ll want to continue on with these organizations, or you might find that your interests lie elsewhere. Remember, you don’t have to join every community organization that is available to you. In addition to potentially stressing you out, this can illustrate a lack of focus and self-awareness.

We encourage students to find an organization or activity that excites them. If your school requires a certain number of service hours, it’s easy to go above and beyond if you look forward to your volunteering. When you are excited about the impact of your efforts, it becomes a part of who you are! The key is to demonstrate that you are helping out for the sake of doing good and making a difference, not just to fulfill a requirement.

As you progress to your junior and senior year , you should have a refined list of extracurricular and service activities. It’s important to show how your interests extend beyond the walls of your school. For example, if you love to dance, volunteer to teach dance classes at a center for at-risk teens. Or, start your own community service drive; organize a group of friends to go around your town and collect winter clothes or canned goods to donate to the local soup kitchen. Does science spark your interest? Use your spring break to help with the beach cleanup in the Gulf or volunteer at the local health clinic. As time goes by, offer to take on additional responsibilities and leadership roles within the volunteer organization. Your service work may even lead to an extra letter of recommendation! Don’t forget to let your teachers and school counselor know what you are doing outside of class. By knowing more about you, they too can write better and more thorough recommendations.

Admissions officers look for “angular” students, or specialists . It is their job to create well-rounded student bodies out of individual applicants. Staying true to your interests is key, both to demonstrate your strong sense of self as well as ambition. If admissions readers see the depth of your interests both in and out of the classroom, they will better understand who you are as a person and the impact you will make on their campus.

As admissions experts, we are often asked, “How many hours of community service is enough?” It’s crucial to understand that community service is not about the quantity of hours spent, but rather the quality of those hours you’ve devoted. Some high schools require students to participate in a certain amount of service. In some cases, it is required in order to graduate! Therefore your 100 hours may be seen as more or less impressive than another student’s 100 hours, depending on your high school’s requirements and the resources available to you.

The take-away: when it comes to community service, quality over quantity reigns true.

Ivywise

How to Apply for Financial Aid

Tue, 14 Jan 2020 16:48:00 GMT

Whether you are interested in scholarships, grants, federal work-study programs, and/or loans applying for aid is critical. We suggest that no matter what your income level, apply for both federal, state, and institutional aid at every college you apply to understand your paying for college options.

Understand What is Needed When

To apply for aid, you need to know the forms and deadlines, especially if you want to maximize free money. The federal form called the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is used at every college that offers federal financial aid. Each year, families can start applying as early as October 1st using the FAFSA . Most colleges and states have deadline associations with the timing of your college admission applications so that you can understand your financial aid eligibility at the same time as you decide whether to accept the offer of admissions. If you are applying for regular decision as a first year college student, many colleges use a February 1st deadline.

The good news is that most states use the FAFSA in order to apply for all state scholarships, grants, and loans. Also, some colleges use that same FAFSA to award institutional aid as well. However, lots of colleges (and some states) still require additional financial aid forms.

Nearly 400 colleges use the CSS Profile , a financial aid form for non-federal financial aid. Here is the list of colleges using the CSS Profile . Unlike the FAFSA, the CSS Profile will cost you. It is $25 for the first college, plus $16 for each additional college. Do be aware that there are fee waivers for low-income students. Many of these schools may also require CSS Noncustodial PROFILE . In addition, some college use the CSS Institutional Documentation Service, known as IDOC to ask and process additional financial aid application questions. Although multiple colleges use this form, each can create their own priority deadline dates.

Other states and colleges use their own unique forms. For instance, Pennsylvania has its own form for the Pennsylvania State Grant Program and Oregon’s Office of Student Access and Completion (OSAC) has its own form to be considered for any of their state scholarships. So check with your state agency or your high school college counselor to ensure you know the form and deadline. Many colleges have one or more forms that you need to complete to be eligible for specific merit scholarship funds or grant assistance.

For more details on which forms are needed and deadlines, check out the admissions and financial aid websites for each college that you apply.

FAFSA is Key

The primary form that every college uses for federal, state, and even institutional aid is the FAFSA. You can start applying for the next academic year’s financial aid as early as October 1st of the prior year. Here is what you’ll need:

1. Create an FSA ID. Both the parent and student need to use FSA ID to access the federal financial aid online systems. You’ll use this personal code for submitting the FAFSA and submitting your legal signature on other federal financial aid documents as well. when you’re ready. Just know it can take 1-3 days to complete the process.

2. Gather the Personal Information. You’ll need your social security number, alien registration number if you are not a US citizen, bank statements and records of investments, and records of untaxed income (if applicable). Hopefully, you will be able to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool in the FAFSA . If not, you will need your federal income tax returns and W-2s for the prior- prior year.

3. Complete the FAFSA. Experts say it takes 45-55 minutes to complete the FAFSA for the first time. Ensure you review your information before you submit the FAFSA so that you don’t have to make any corrections.

CSS Profile may be Essential

If you need to complete the CSS Profile, We suggest that you complete the form at the same time you complete the FAFSA. Why? First, you need all the same personal information to complete the CSS Profile. Second, you want to ensure that when asked about the same income and asset information, that you are reporting consistently. Be prepared for more questions on the CSS Profile and IDOC if you own a house, have a business or farm, or have retirement funds. One nice feature is that the CSS Profile also offers spot to add your extenuating circumstances and other explanatory comments. Like the FAFSA, it usually takes 45-55 minutes to complete this form.

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