College Planning

Nelia Ekeji, the Duke CAC adviser at CE Jordan High School in Durham, NC (2019-2021), has graciously created this comprehensive guide for college-related information and resources. I highly encourage students, in any grade level, to refer to this guide as you begin to plan for and apply to college!

Match & Fit

Match: Determines your competitiveness to a school based on GPA, test scores, and classes taken.

Ex. 1: The middle 50% of students accepted to ECU have an unweighted GPA between a 3.1 and 4.1. Students whose GPA falls within in this range would be considered a "match" for this school. For students whose GPA falls below this range, this college would be considered a "reach" school, meaning it will be less likely to get in, but there is still a chance. For students whose GPA falls above this range, ECU would be considered a "likely" school. This means it is extremely likely that the student would be admitted.

Use the documents below, to get an idea of the average grades and test scores admitted to the 4-year public colleges in North Carolina as well as private colleges.

Ex. 2: Mark, a senior in high school, has a 3.6 GPA (the following categories are based on the metrics listed in the document above).

Mark's Reach Schools: App State, UNC Chapel Hill, UNC Charlotte, UNC Wilmington, NC State

Mark's Match Schools: NC A&T, UNCSA, ECU, UNC Greensboro, Western Carolina, UNC Asheville, UNC Pembroke

Mark's Likely Schools: NCCU, Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State, Winston-Salem State

Fit: Determines your likelihood of being successful at a college based on what you want in a college: size, location, financial aid, programs and clubs offered, diversity, etc.

Ex. If Michael, from Charlotte with a 3.8 GPA, wants to stay close to home and study engineering, he should consider schools in the Charlotte area that have engineering programs. UNC Charlotte would be a great option because it has a great engineering program and is close to his hometown. UNC Wilmington, however, would be farther from home and has no engineering program so it wouldn't make the most sense for Michael to consider this school seriously.

*Use the Match & Fit planner below to begin building a list of colleges you are interested in.

College Foundation of North Carolina (CFNC)

This is an invaluable resource that helps students plan for and apply to colleges in NC. Students can also explore career options, search for scholarships, and more! Create an account now if you haven't already using these steps:

1. Go to cfnc.org

2. Hit the little orange circle with a person in it in the top right corner of the screen

3. Click "register"

4. Use a personal email address if you have one to create your account

Once you put in all of your information on the next page you will have created an account. Make sure you enter your name as it is shown in PowerSchool. Also make sure that Smithfield Selma HS as listed as the school on your profile.

The system will have issues with sending your transcript if the names/schools don't match what is in Power School.

*There is a tutorial that walks you through the website's resources and the process of creating an account here.