ROCORI College Information Night 1
Types of Colleges Technical and Community Colleges offer education for employment-programs that take two years or less to complete, and lead to specific jobs and careers. Or provide an affordable way to get a good start on a four-year degree Private 2yr. Colleges offer education for employment-programs that take two years or less to complete and lead to a specific jobs and careers. Some may offer 4 year degrees. Four-year Colleges and Universities offer four-year degrees and graduate programs for a variety of careers. Military Academies offer a variety of program areas and also require some service time. 2
Choosing a college How to learn about a college. Schedule a visit (MEA vacation) Visit a college s web site Call for information Talk to current students or graduates Attend a college fair College library in guidance office Visit with the college representatives 3
Choosing a college Factors to consider Programs/Majors School size and class size Location (close to home or far away) Cost Quality and Reputation Campus life Is it a good fit for you? 4
Technical College Entrance requirements HS Diploma or GED Open door admissions/programs are available until they are full Students take a placement test (Accuplacer)/ACT is not needed Some programs may have specific criteria (Example: Veterinary Technology program requires Chemistry) All schools have begun accepting applications 5
Community College Entrance requirements HS diploma or GED Open door admissions No ACT needed/placement test required upon admission (Accuplacer) 6
4-year Universities Entrance requirements St. Cloud State University Comprehensive application review. Class rank, ACT score and completion of preparatory cur. St. Johns/St. Ben's University Review entire application, class rank, ACT, letters of recommendation, writing sample University of Minnesota TC Completion of preparatory curriculum, high school rank, GPA, ACT, strength of curriculum 7
Service Academies Entrance requirements Admissions is very competitive State and US representatives need to recommend. rigorous physical and academic requirements students receive full scholarship upon admissions Service time is required upon graduation from the academy. 8
College Search Tools Minnesota State Colleges & Universities www.mnscu.edu Private Career Colleges www.mncareercolleges.org National College Search www.anycollege.com www.collegeview.com www.campustours.com MN College and Career Search www.iseek.org 9
Naviance Family Connection: is an online tool, custom-designed for our high school, that students, parents and your counselor can use together to determine your best path to college and ultimately a career. http://connection.naviance.com/rocori 10
The Admissions Process All schools require an application (several schools applications can be found in the guidance office or online at the colleges website) Complete all portions of the application: essay, letters of recommendation, etc. if needed. Application fee (not refundable). Seek counselors help if you have questions. Bring completed materials to the guidance office to be mailed with a transcript. If applying online, let the guidance office know to send your HS transcript. 11
Completing your online application Student can find the online application on each schools website. Search under admissions tabs. Some applications have transcript request or counselor forms that are sent electronically to the guidance department. Some online applications may ask students to print and distribute this information to the guidance department. Student may be asked to print and distribute teacher recommendation forms as well. Applications are not reviewed until all parts are complete. Students must read through admissions processes and required forms thoroughly. Guidance office will mail the application fee and teacher recommendation forms with the official high school transcript. 12
Completing your hard copy application The guidance office has many applications available for students, or can help locate. Students are responsible for getting all parts of the application, including the application fee, essays (if required), letters of recommendation (if required) to the guidance office at least 1 week prior to registration deadlines. The guidance office will mail official high school transcripts with the completed application. 13
ACT Test Required for all 4 year colleges and universities. Test in Reading, English, Math and Science Reasoning. Optional Writing Test. Students may request to have ACT scores sent to 4 colleges at the time of registration. Additional score report requests are available on the ACT website with a charge of $10 per college. Www.actstudent.org To order scores or register online. 14
SAT Test SAT I-tests in critical reading, writing, and math reasoning abilities. SAT II- tests your child s knowledge in a specific subject area, often related to your child s desired area of study Registration materials in the guidance office. Www.collegeboard.com 15
Accuplacer Test Assessment used to determine course readiness at technical and community colleges. Accuplacer scores do not impact admissions, but admission is not complete without completion of the accuplacer. If students completed the Accuplacer at ROCORI (for enrollment in college classes at ROCORI), they may not need to test if their scores are high enough for their college. Students are responsible for registering with the technical/community college test center if still needing to test. 16
Requesting transcripts from FDLTCC Students are responsible for requesting transcripts from Fond du Lac College. MNSCU schools share transcripts so no fee is required, simply make the requests. Be aware of application requirements. Official transcript cost is $8, an unofficial transcript cost is $3. Go to www.fdltcc.edu Click on current student Click on offices Click on transcripts Click on transcript request form Paper copy request forms are also available in the guidance office. 17
Application Deadlines Pay attention to deadlines!!! Students must give the guidance office all material at least 5 days prior to the deadline! Keep in mind the different deadlines such as early action, regular action, housing deadlines and financial aid deadlines are different for each college. 18
Transfer Credits Visit guidance office website for fdltcc specific course numbers. The guidance offices does have some course/school equivalencies on file. Go to www.mntransfer.org Click on students Click transfer planning Click transferology, and follow directions. Visit with the transfer specialist at your college for more information. 19
What about costs? Cost comparison (FY 2010) 2-year colleges average annual tuition Minnesota s 2 year comm. And tech. Colleges $5,370 Private 2-year colleges and trade schools $15,376 (costs vary by program) 4-year colleges Minnesota s state universities $7,704 University of Minnesota TC $13,626 Private colleges (average) $35,177 Room & board, personal expenses, transportation --Average cost for the four expenses = $7,000. 20
What about costs? What is Financial Aid? Money used to help offset the cost of higher education. It can come from the federal government, state programs, the college or university your child hopes to attend, and private sources such as companies or community organizations. 21
What about Costs? Financial aid opportunities Scholarships Federal and state grants Work-Study (campus jobs) Low-interest student loans Military service packages Most aid is awarded through the completion of the FAFSA form 22
What about costs? Example: Joe s cost for one year Joe is a freshman at a state university. He has a sister in college, a brother at home and his single mother owns a home but has no other significant savings. His family s income is $58,000. 23
What about cost? College costs for one year Annual tuition: $3,901 Fees 427 Est. room and board* 3,840 Est. living expenses** 3,272 Cost of Attendance $11,440 24
What about costs? Joe s Financial Aid Federal grants (does not need to be paid back): $ 0 Minn. grant (does not need to be paid back): 1,990 Work study earnings 3,000 Student loan (to be paid back after graduation): 2,625 Total financial aid: $7,615 25
What about costs? Cost to Joe s family Cost of attendance $11,440 Total financial aid $ 7,615 Cost to Joe s family $3,825 26
Financial Aid Tips Assume you qualify Apply on time Compare different college packages 27
What about costs? Where to get more information Attend ROCORI High School financial aid night on February 2nd at 6:30pm. Attend SJU/CSB financial aid meeting on???? Contact your college and meet with financial aid counselor. Visit various websites www.fastweb.com www.fafsa.ed.gov 28
Scholarships How do I find scholarships? Visit the guidance office website www.rocori.k12.mn.us Click on guidance office and then scholarships Visit other internet scholarship websites Check with employers Check with the college you are planning to attend for scholarship opportunities. **Be aware of scholarship scams 29
What about costs? Reciprocity Reciprocity is the agreement that Minnesota has with neighboring states to provide lower tuition for attending public colleges and universities in those states. Out of state fees are reduced or eliminated. Participating states: Wisconsin, North Dakota and South Dakota. Midwest Student Exchange Program Participating states: Kansas, Michigan, Missouri and Nebraska 30
REMEMBER Be aware of deadlines for college applications and scholarships 31
Student Athletes NCAA requirements for division I or II athletes Perspective student athletes need to register with the NCAA clearinghouse during their senior year of high school. ACT, GPA and curriculum requirements Visit the website at www.ncaaclearinghouse.com Or see a guidance counselor 32