College Counseling Policies

Transcription

1 Chapter 3 Cllege Cunseling Plicies T he cllege search prcess can be an exciting and rewarding ne, but it can als be cnfusing, and there is much pprtunity fr miscmmunicatin. Please read thrugh the fllwing plicies established by the APIS Cllege Cunseling Office: Each Student is in Charge f His r Her Own Cllege Prcess Clleges want t see an rganized, independent applicant with internal mtivatin. While ur ffice fcuses n giving gd advice and representing the students t the clleges, students need t remain aware f and n tp f ALL requirements and deadlines, either internal t APIS r external t the clleges. At the end f the day, the student is respnsible fr researching clleges, writing essays, cmpleting applicatins, preparing fr and taking tests, and keeping track f due dates. Building a Balanced Cllege List As mentined befre, this is the essential task in the cllege prcess! An ideally balanced cllege list wuld have at least 2-3 likely schls, 2-3 target schls and 2-3 reach schls. We strngly recmmend wrking twards this kind f balance in the list s that each senir is presented with a dilemma f chice in the spring semester. Finding Likely Schls Perhaps the mst emtinally difficult aspect f cnstructing the cllege list fr parents, and smetimes the students, is chsing and sticking with several schls t which the student is quite likely t gain admissins. Each parent knws well the rich talents and persnality f his r her child, and each parent has cme t regard certain schls as excellent and sme as merely serviceable. There are sme things that families can d t make the prcess f finding likely schls which wuld be a gd match f the student easier: When visiting schls r researching schls fr the first time, try schls ther than thse that are amng the mst cmpetitive fr admissin! Remember that there are far mre students applying t clleges than in the past and average GPAs and SAT scres are higher than ever befre. While this has made the mre famus schls even mre cmpetitive, it has als made less well-knwn schls bth mre demanding and filled with 10

2 strnger students. Befre yu dismiss a schl because yu have nt heard f it r because smene wh graduated mre than 4 years ag fund it unimpressive, d yur wn research int what that cllege is like tday. Yesterday s weaker schl may be tday an institutin f a very high caliber and increasingly cmpetitive t be admitted int. Lk at the wrst case scenari using Naviance fr each schl n yur list. Ntice that high GPAs and high test scres d nt guarantee admissin. This further reinfrces the fact that yu need t have sme schls n yur list where there is high prbability they will admit yu based n yur academic strengths. Imprtance f Extracurricular Invlvement and Leadership It helps t recgnize that clleges lk carefully at levels f extracurricular invlvement, leadership at schl and extracurricular excellence utside f schl. Athletics is a gd example with invlvement ranging frm participatin as a hbby t team MVP. Similarly in music, technlgy, service, theater, art, cultural and ethnic clubs in all f these, clleges are lking fr ways t measure ability, cmmitment, and/r leadership in an bjective fashin. The better yu can shw them directly, the strnger yur candidacy will be. APIS Transcript The high schl transcript is ne f the mst imprtant dcuments in a student s applicatin because it ffers imprtant insight int the student s academic life in terms f his r her curse selectins, rigr and classrm perfrmance. We d nt rank ur students. There is n class rank n the transcript. The GPA is a weighted cumulative average. At the time students file their cllege applicatins, the GPA reflects all wrk dne thrugh the end f junir year. Curses in prgress during the senir year will als be nted n the transcript sent t clleges. Senir year grades are nt sent until January, after the majrity f cllege applicatins have already been due. Standardized Testing All the activities arund standardized testing take place between the student and the Cllege Bard r ACT. Students plan their wn testing calendar in cncert with us, but the students themselves need t register fr the tests, attend the tests and reprt the scres t the clleges. The Cllege Bard and the ACT are large bureaucratic rganizatins and are subject t the same drawbacks f any large rganizatin. If it appears that the Cllege Bard r ACT has made sme errr, we strngly recmmend that yu cntact the representatives f that rganizatin immediately and make them aware f the mistake. Test Preparatin The SAT/ACT/Subject tests are NOT entrance exams t US clleges and universities. The SAT measures aptitude in quantitative and verbal areas that are develped ver a lng perid f time. Students typically experience a natural lift in their results thrugh cntinued expsure t a strng high schl curriculum, greater familiarity with the tests themselves and maturatin as test takers. Preparatin 11

3 certainly des nt hurt, but it is imprtant t understand the limitatins f using test prep rganizatins and utside tutrs, and t cnsider the significant cmmitment f time and energy required during a time already filled with tremendus demands. Testing results must cnfirm and verify the level f academic achievement as presented n the APIS transcript. Discrepancies between the tw may nt help the clleges understand the student s true academic ability but instead may cnfuse them. They may ask why a student with a very high SAT scre did nt perfrm better in the classrm. Recmmendatin Letters Recmmendatin letters are cnfidential cmmunicatins between Asia Pacific Internatinal Schl and the clleges. Feedback frm parents and the students themselves help us t present a full and psitive prtrayal f each student t the clleges. That the clleges knw that these are cnfidential nly adds t the effectiveness f and integrity in ur testimny. Financial Aid Merit schlarships are schlarships that can be given either by schls r by ther rganizatins that d nt depend n the student s financial status. They change rapidly, are different at every schl and are frequently linked with specific achievements, talents, backgrunds r residency requirements. Our ffice cannt keep track f all available merit schlarships. We recmmend that if yu are interested in a merit schlarship, that in yur investigatin f each cllege, yu lk int what schlarships are available and what their requirements are. It is the student s respnsibility t fllw thrugh n any merit schlarships, and we are happy t ffer advice and supprt in the prcess. Need-based financial aid is ffered based n the financial need demnstrated by each family. Needbased aid may cme in the frm f schlarships, student lans, and wrk study. Please cnsult the financial aid websites f each cllege t understand which frms (i.e. FAFSA, CSS Prfile, and internatinal student financial certificatin) will be required t be submitted and their respective deadlines. See the Financial Aid sectin f this handbk fr a mre cmprehensive discussin. Early Actin, Early Decisin, and Rlling Applicatins With the recent discussin in the US media regarding Early Decisin and Early Actin admissin plans, it is imprtant t understand the varius plicies fr students wh wish t pursue Early Actin and/r Early Decisin prgrams. Admissins ffices are able t crss check early candidate lists; APIS students shuld carefully fllw the early plicies f the cllege r university t which they are applying. CHECK EACH SCHOOL S WEBSITE TO CLARIFY ITS POLICY! Early Decisin One applies early, is ntified f results early, and if admitted, is cmmitted t attend and must withdraw all pending applicatins immediately. One may simultaneusly apply t rlling applicatin clleges. Sme early decisin schls will als allw simultaneus applicatins t nnbinding early actin (nt single chice early actin) schls. 12

4 Early Decisin II A secnd rund f Early Decisin, ne applies typically in January and is ntified f results typically in early February. At the time f filing the early decisin II applicatin, ne must simultaneusly submit regular decisin applicatins. If the student is admitted, s/he is cmmitted t attend and must withdraw all pending applicatins immediately. A student can apply ED II after being denied r deferred ED I by anther cllege. Early Actin One applies early, is ntified f results early, but if admitted early may still cntinue applying t ther clleges. One may simultaneusly apply t rlling applicatin schls. Sme may als allw simultaneus applicatin t an early decisin cllege (if it is nt a single chice early decisin schl). Single Chice Early Actin One applies early, is ntified f results early, but if admitted early may still cntinue applying t ther clleges. At the time f the Single Chice Early Actin applicatin, ne may apply nly t rlling applicatin clleges. One may nt apply t early decisin clleges r ther Early Actin clleges. Rlling One may apply anytime ver a lng perid (frequently September thrugh February, fr example), and culd hear back as sn as several weeks after applying, thugh a rlling schl might als wait quite a while t ntify an applicant. Regular Decisin One applies by the regular deadline typically in early January but can be as late as March. Admissin decisins are returned t students typically n later than April 1 st and a student must reply by May 1 st. Cmmitting t a Cllege and Making an Enrllment Depsit If yu are accepted under an Early Decisin plan, yu have cmmitted t attending the cllege and are made ineligible t be cnsidered fr admissin anywhere else! Yu must each additinal cllege t which yu have applied and cc: yur cllege cunselr n the nte that yu will be withdrawing yur applicatin frm the ther clleges immediately after yu hear yur psitive ED results. Failure t d s jepardizes yur privilege f attending any cllege in the fall. Fr early decisin candidates, clleges may require an enrllment cntract and depsit in late winter. Fr spring acceptances, clleges require that students make their enrllment decisin and submit a depsit by May 1 st. If yu are n the waiting list at anther cllege and wish t remain in cnsideratin, yu need t still accept and depsit with ne f the schls t which yu have been accepted by May 1 st. If yu are then accepted at a schl ff the waiting list in May r June, yu can then accept the new ffer and infrm yur ther schl f this decisin. In mst cases, yu will have t frfeit yur riginal depsit. DO NOT duble depsit a plicy that is guided by APIS s cmmitment t hnesty and the Natinal Assciatin f Cllege Admissin Cunseling s accepted standards f gd practice. Clleges require final transcripts befre they fficially finalize yur enrllment and the APIS Cllege Cunseling Office will nly send a final transcript t the cllege yu will be attending. 13

5 Deferring Cllege fr a Gap Year After having been admitted t cllege, sme students take a gap year t travel, wrk, pursue cmmunity service, military service r enrll in a nn-degree granting academic prgram. We strngly supprt such cnsideratins; ur experience n cllege campuses shws that students wh take gap years ften begin cllege refreshed, with greater fcus and bring maturity and wrldliness t their campus cmmunities. Please pursue this ptentially rewarding ptin with the values f penness and hnesty at the cre f yur chices. In the spring f yur senir year f high schl, we encurage yu t be in tuch with the admissins ffice f the cllege r university t which yu have been admitted t learn abut its prcess f deferment. A small number f students have in the past realized during their gap year an interest that leads them t cnsider applying t ther clleges they had nt cnsidered the first time thrugh. If yu wish t apply t ther clleges, yu must first seek the written permissin f the cllege t which yu had been intending t matriculate. When that cllege releases yu, APIS will then be able t send a full packet f yur transcript, recmmendatins, and prfile t ther clleges. Withut a release, yu risk lsing bth yur place at the first schl and at ther clleges. 14