Please use this timeline to help guide you through the college preparation/selection process. Be sure to refer to the more detailed college selection materials that are available from the guidance office, and to tap into your counselor’s knowledge/experience with this process. The Guidance website provides an assortment of helpful websites that can assist students with the entire college process.
*The Child Study Team recommends that all college bound students who currently receive services under IDEIA 2004 follow the timeline for the college bound below, and include the following additional recommendations highlighted in bold print.
Take as rigorous academic program as you can handle.
Begin exploring your career interests. The Guidance website can help you get started.
The following skills are essential for success in high school and college so it is important to begin strengthening them in middle school:
Reading
Note taking
Organization
Studying
Time management/prioritization
Take as rigorous an academic program as you can handle.
Your GPA (Grade Point Average) begins with your ninth grade classes. Resolve to get the best grades possible.
Create a list of all the activities, clubs, and community services in which you are involved. Add to this resume throughout high school.
Start exploring your career interests. The Guidance website can get you started.
Discuss your career/college intentions and interests with your parent(s)/guardian(s), counselor, and case manager.
Be sure to map out a plan for four years of coursework in high school. Remember to include a minimum of 16 academic units necessary for college placement.
Begin to visit some college campuses for exploration and to get a feel for the college life.
Your counselor has career, vocational, and college information of value to you.
*Become involved in the IEP process.
*Understand how your disability affects your life.
*Review modifications and accommodations that you presently use.
*List your strengths, needs, and preferences.
Take as rigorous an academic program as you can handle.
Resolve to get the best grades possible.
Develop a schedule of when you plan on taking the college admissions tests (PSAT, SAT, SAT-II, APs). We administer and strongly recommend the PSAT for sophomores who are planning to attend a 4-year college.
Continue to discuss your career and college interests with your parent(s)/guardian(s), counselor, and case manager.
Begin to send for information from colleges and other post-secondary programs of interest to you.
Visit more college campuses or vocational schools.
Talk with others (family, friends, counselors, teachers) who have gone to college or vocational schools to gather ideas about the experience.
Attend college fairs to gather information about a variety of colleges and to meet college admission representatives.
Continue to revise your resume.
*If applicable, apply for extended time for SATs through the College Board.
*Think about career choices and job samples.
*Review accommodations with future goals in mind.
*Continue to collect data on your needs, preferences, and interests as they relate to the demands of current and future working, educational, living, personal, and social environments.
Take as rigorous an academic program as you can handle.
Resolve to earn the best grades possible.
Prepare for, register, and take the PSAT. The PSAT will assist you in preparing for the SAT. Qualifying scores of juniors are eligible for National Merit Scholarships and many other national scholarships.
Start looking through the college guides for information about colleges. College profiles, as well as a college search, are available through our Guidance website.
Attend college visits with college admissions representatives that are scheduled at Central. Remember that you are accountable for the class time missed.
Be sure to attend college fairs.
Continue to talk with family, friends, counselors, and teachers about college experiences, and what college/vocational school might be right for you.
Be sure to check the guidelines for college admission testing at www.collegeboard.com to be sure that you take the college admission test at the right time.
If you are applying for early decision, you must complete all college admission testing by June of your junior year. Check with the college for their specific requirements.
Your guidance counselor/case manager will be arranging a junior conference with you. Prepare for this meeting by having discussions with your parents and your guidance counselor beforehand about your college placement opportunities and interests.
Prepare for and take the SAT I. You can take the SAT I here at Central in the Spring.
Try to obtain summer employment that relates to your intended major.
If you are considering early admission, be sure to:
Check the criteria needed in the school.
Discuss your decisions with your counselor and parent(s)/guardian(s).
Send for an application and necessary materials as soon as possible.
Visit college websites to view applications, online catalogs, and other admissions information.
Check this college information for deadlines and to find out if any SAT II tests are required. Many colleges require tests. Create a "to do" schedule to meet your school's deadline requirements.
If an essay is required in the applications that you receive, begin writing and outlining that essay fur further refinement during the early part of your senior year.
Continue to refine your list of colleges.
Try to take advantage of special summer school programs that colleges offer for high school students.
Try to visit some of the college you are considering. Many colleges offer informational tours during the summer. Seeing a college is one of the most important factors in deciding which college to attend.
Begin to explore scholarship opportunities.
*If applicable, take the PSAT with extended time in October.
*If applicable, take the SAT with extended time in Spring of 11th Grade.
*Create a Job Interview Pocket Resume Form
*Talk to your case manager about updated testing, transition assessments, and structured learning experiences.
*Work with your case manager to review levels of college services for classified students.
*Explore college websites for accommodation requirements.
*Explore careers through part-time or summer employment.
Schedule the most academically rigorous program that you can handle for your senior year. Your senior year is just as important as your previous years. Continued success in a rigorously academic program is necessary for colleges to make a final admissions decision about a student.
Attend college visits with college admissions representatives that are of interest to you.
Visit college campuses/vocational schools while they are in session. This will help you get a better feel for the school.
Prepare for, register, and take the SAT, ACT, or SAT II as needed.
If any SAT II tests are required at the schools you are interested in, register for those tests.
By the start of your senior year, you should develop your final list of schools.
Request teacher letters of recommendation, if required, and complete the essays required with your applications.
Application deadlines vary from college to college. Check with the college you are interested in to be sure.
File a Financial Aid Application, available at www.fasfa.gov.
You and/or your parent(s)/guardian(s) should attend a financial aid workshop offered by the Guidance office to assist you in completing the Financial Aid forms.
Search out other sources of financial aid. Check the Guidance list of scholarships on our website. You may also find additional sources of financial aid through your parent's employer or from service clubs of which they are members.
Update college/vocational school applications that have been submitted.
Consider going to the college/vocational school of your choice for an interview with the admissions officer.
By mid-April, most colleges will have sent acceptance or rejection letters.
As soon as you have decided which college's offer of admission to accept, let that college know.
Advise the other colleges that accepted you of your decision.
If you are waitlisted at a college you are eager to attend, call or write to the director of admissions and ask how to strengthen your application.
If you are denied admission, see your counselor at once about alternatives. Your counselor may suggest steps you can take to alter a college's decision.
Be sure to send your acceptance deposit by the deadline specified.
Notify your counselor which college/vocational program you have selected so that Central can submit final grades and proof of graduation to that institution.
*Discuss transition of available services from High School to College.
*Contact DVRS (732) 775-1799 to start work with a transition counselor.
*Sign record release forms.