Senior

Attend College Visits on our Campus

Every fall we are fortunate to have many colleges across the country (and a few international) visit our students to provide college information sessions. These are the College Admission officers that "read" for our school and are tremendous resources to help with all aspects of the application process. It is important to get to know these counselors and ask questions about their college, and a great way to preview a campus! You can find the schedule on Naviance under college visits. 

College Essays: 

Begin working on your Common App essays, UC Personal Statements and other supplemental writing required by each college. Remember that one Common App essay is written and shared between all your Common App schools, and the same holds true for the Coalition App essay. Your one set of UC Personal statements is shared with any of their nine campuses that you apply to, and there are no essays for the CSUs. Start early and seek help in the College & Career Center. 

Finalize your College List & Be Ready to Submit Applications by Deadlines

Use the Naviance SuperMatch and Scattergram features to narrow your list of colleges based on major, location, private/public, and other items important to you. Once it is solidified you'll know what is expected in your applications. You may have 6-12 colleges on your list, including 2-3 target schools, 3-6 match schools, 1-3 reach schools (or 1-3 more match schools if you do not want to apply to reach schools). 

• Type: Applying regular decision, early action, or early decisions? 

• Submission type: Are you using a school's application (UC, CSU, Common App, Coalition App)

• Application: What is the status of your application: submitted, pending? 

Letters of Recommendation:

Not all schools require letters of recommendation. If you are applying to a college or university that includes this piece in the application process, please have a conversation with your teachers and school counselor at least one month before any deadlines! Some may have an information packet for you to complete as part of the recommendation process. 

College Applications: 

• Admission types: Learn the difference between "Early Action", " Early Decision", "Regular Decision", and "Rolling Admissions"

• Application types: Become familiar with the various applications: UC, Cal State Apply, Common App, Coalition App and individual college apps. This way you'll have a greater understanding of what to do next fall. We will also host Junior workshops in the Spring to help you through this process. 

• Letters of Recommendation: Think about teachers who can write you a Letter of Recommendation (LOR) during the application process

*** Please note that UC's and CSU's schools do not use letters of rec.

• Athlete: Register on the NCAA website if you wish to play Div I or II sports. See the Athletes page for more information. 

• Essays: Keep a running list of possible subjects for your college essays/ prompts. See College Essay tips 

Send Test Scores or Register for Testing (only if needed)

If you have decided to include standardized testing as part of your application (many colleges are test optional or test blind), you will need to determine if they need official scores, or simply allow you to self report until admitted.