Springing into Senior Year

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a great weekend and a Happy Mother's Day! Thank you to all of the mothers out there who support our decisions and desires to go to college! Ya'll are the best!!

Today I wanted to give some advice on what you should do in the spring of your junior year (either of high school or college)! You are about to enter the transition phase where all of your hard work has without a doubt paid off, so make sure you lay the groundwork for an amazing and fulfilling senior year!

1. Reach out to Recommenders - Before you leave for the summer, it would be a good idea to talk with your teachers and your professors who you think you may want to write your letters of recommendations for college applications or to act as your reference for future internship and job applications. It doesn't have to be an extensive conversation, but you will want to mention it to them that you are starting to think about your recommendations and that you think you would like them to write one in the Fall. This early notice will give them the opportunity, if they choose, to write it over the summer prior to the start of the year and the rush of other applications. If you don't want to mention the letter to them right away, then at least start having conversations with them about your future plans and they may bring it up too!

2. Speak with your Counselor or Advisor - Make sure you check in one last time with your school counselor or your Academic Advisor so that you can start talking about plans for the future. They may have some extra advice for you on tasks you can do over the summer to better ensure your plans will work out! They also may know about opportunities for this summer where you can work or gain more experience in your choice career!

3. Take your SATs/ACTs - For you juniors in high school, you will want to take your first round of college tests. Then also schedule one for next fall too. This allows you to utilize all of those math skills that you are using in your upper-level classes to do really well on the math portions of the exam. Oftentimes, your school will offer test preparation courses or after-school programs, so take advantage of those. Taking your exams before the summer let's you know your average score for when you visit colleges and have conversations with admissions counselors!

4. Prepare for Graduate School - For you college students, use this summer as your opportunity to prepare for graduate school. This could be prepping for and taking your GRE, LSAT, or GMAT or just completing more internships to round out your resume and experience. While this is the "last" summer before life really hits you, you still want to take it seriously and start planning for your future goals!

5. Take on a Leadership Position - Honestly, being a leader on your high school or college campus is really important for improving your people and management skills. If you are already a member of a club, then run for a position and if you are already an officer, then why not run for the President position! Management is a skill you will need no matter what career you choose, so taking advantage of leadership opportunities is really important. Personally, I always started out as a secretary because I loved to write and take notes. If you're better at math and finances, why not a position as Treasurer? Find the opportunity that best fits your personality and then go for it!!

6. Plan to Attend a Summer Camp -  High School juniors, use your last few weeks of school to lay the ground work for attending a summer camp; whether academic, arts, or leadership - based. It will be an amazing experience for you to get that first glimpse of life away from your house. For academic camps, you will most likely need recommendations from your teachers and a transcript, so you will want to make sure you secure those before leaving for the summer. If you are attending a leadership camp, just make sure you have all of the contact information you need. ( I attended Girls State, which is a politically-based leadership camp for high school juniors throughout your state (Each state has one) where you develop the government of a new state. I loved every second of it because it was something I enjoyed and I was surrounded by girls with the same interests that I had.) Look into a program that you will gain the most out of!!

As you finish up your school year, make sure you set the scene for what your senior year will be like! Make it enjoyable and prosperous as you begin your transition into becoming a senior!

enjoy the chase,

skylar

Reminding your Recommenders

Hi everyone and Happy Saturday and Happy Thanksgiving Break to all of the college students who have next week off! (Something to look forward to high schoolers!!) Today I thought I'd give you some ideas on how to remind your recommenders to fill out your college evaluations and write your letters. This can be tricky because you don't want your teachers to feel like you're hounding them or that you're not grateful, but at the same time you want to make sure that all of your items are in before the deadline!

Here are some of my tips:

1. If you are bold and feel like it is not an issue, then just remind them like it is no big deal! You can stop in on their lunch hour, at the end of the day, or during a study lab to talk to them about it. Just be honest with them and remind them of the deadline. They may have a plan to complete it soon, but just haven't because they've been so busy.

2. You can "thank them in advance," as a way to remind your teachers to complete their evaluations and letters. Teachers are busy and may have a lot of letters to write, so a soft reminder like this will make them grateful. They honestly may have forgotten or lost track of time, so a "Hi, Mrs. Jones. I just wanted to thank you for writing my letter of recommendation and doing my evaluation, please let me know if you need anything else from me to complete it."

3. If you don't want to confront them face to face, then send them a professional e-mail with a reminder of the deadlines for each college they are evaluating you for. Much like above, reiterate how thankful you are for them writing your evaluations and helping you towards your dream of attending college. You can also say how they have helped you choose the institution or program you are going to pursue and why they are important to your schooling career.

4. If you've reminded your recommenders already and they still haven't completed your evaluation then I would enlist in the help of your guidance counselor to reach out to your teacher and reiterate the importance of their timely completion of the letter of recommendation and evaluation. Your guidance counselor may also be able to contact the Admissions Office of the universities to which you're applying about the delay in the recommendation.

Ultimately, do whatever feels naturally to you and your personality when you are reminding your teachers to complete the evaluations and if you think you need to change your recommenders, then do what is right for you and your college applications. I would definitely talk it over with your parents and your guidance counselor before you ultimately choose to change who your recommenders are.

If you are facing this issue, I hope this post has helped you determine your plan of navigation for reminding your teacher. If you have other questions or concerns along this line, please let me know and I would be happy to do a post about them and give you my recommendations!

enjoy the chase,

skylar

Should I do an Instant Decision Session?

Hi everyone and Happy Sunday! The university where I work and study had our final Fall Open House yesterday, so I apologize for the delay in posting this! Some universities will still have opportunities for you to visit this fall, so be sure to check out those universities if you want to visit before the Holidays start! Today I want to talk to you about the choice of whether or not to take part in an instant decision session at a university that you're interested in.

Instant decision sessions vary by institutions and not all of them offer this opportunity, so it is important to check with your admissions counselor. This event is where you submit your application, test scores, letters of recommendation, and high school transcript to the college before your arrival on campus. Then, while you are out on tour or taking part in the Open House, admissions representatives review your materials and make their decision based on the materials they have on file. So, if your test scores aren't in or your transcripts aren't official, then you won't be able to receive a decision.

Here are some Pros and Cons of doing an Instant Decision Session:

Pros:

- Exactly what it says, INSTANT DECISION, if you really want to know whether you are accepted to a university, then this is the quickest way to know. You don't have to wait the three weeks (if the school has rolling admissions) or the four months (if they have a regular deadline).
- You can start planning a little earlier for your future! If you know whether you are accepted, wait-listed, or denied you can plan to apply to other schools if necessary or you can start gaining experience in the program you are interested in studying.
- If it is your top-choice university and the decision is favorable then you get to find out the fate of your future while at your dream school. That is pretty awesome!

Cons:

- There is a lot of last-minute work that goes into preparing your materials for an Instant Decision Session. You have to follow-up with your guidance department to make sure they sent everything in and that there are no delays. You also have to apply earlier than you may have planned on. It is quite a bit of stress.
- Because the admissions representatives are in a hurry to give everyone their decision, some items may be overlooked (not on purpose). Some test scores may be ignored, even though they are higher than the others, or your History teacher wrote a stronger letter of recommendation than your counselor, but they only had time to look at the one from your counselor.
- You may not get the decision you want during this visit. You could be wait-listed because your test scores aren't high enough, or you could be denied. Personally, if I am going to be denied by an institution, I'd rather it be in the comfort of my home, rather than in a public spot with others around.

There are definitely positives and negatives of choosing to take part in an Instant Decision Day, but it is important to weigh them based on your own needs and your own expectations. Personally, I never took part in an Instant Decision Session and I don't necessarily recommend doing so, just because I am a private person when it comes to school work and achievements like a college acceptance. However, if you and your family believe that an Instant Decision Session would be a positive experience for you, then why not try it out!

I hope today's post helps you consider this one aspect of college admissions and helps you weigh your options in terms of waiting for a decision or receiving it right away! If you've had a positive experience with Instant Decision, I'd love to hear, so feel free to leave it in the comments or contact me through my Contact Page! Have a great week everyone!!!

enjoy the chase,

skylar

Exploring the Common Application

Happy Monday everyone!!

In hopes of helping the younger readers or those who have never gone through the college application process, I am discussing some concepts about applying to multiple universities through the Common Application. Here is a step-by-step approach to creating and submitting your college admissions application!

1. Create an account on http://www.commonapp.org to get started. There isn't much you need for this other than your identifying information (name, date of birth, e-mail address, and phone number). 
• It is really important that you create and use a semi-professional e-mail address when you are applying to colleges, for scholarships, and for financial aid. Something as simple as your first initial and your last name would be fine. This is how CommonApp and most universities are going to be in contact with you about various things, so be sure to check this e-mail address regularly (every few days).
  
2. Add the colleges you want to apply to into your queue. You can search for your colleges by name before adding the school to your "My Colleges" list. This is how your application and materials get sent to these institutions. If you don't have a university on the list, then they won't receive your application and thus you won't have the chance to be accepted to that school.
   
3. Because each college/university has their own requirements and expectations, it is necessary to compare all of these requirements to make sure you don't miss something. Some universities are exam optional, some require two academic letters of recommendations whereas others require one academic and one personal, and some require a different personal statement. You don't want to miss out on an opportunity simply because you misread or forgot something!
• When I was completing my graduate school applications, I created an Excel document (if you have a Gmail account, you can use the Google Docs 'Sheets' application) to keep track of when applications were due, who I had as references, the number of words my personal statement had to be, and any other requirements that were unique. This helped keep me so organized so that I didn't forget anything or misinform anyone.
  
4. You'll want to organize all of your information in one place so that when you are applying you have it ready to go. You will need the following items, no matter the university: a copy of your high school transcript, a list of extra-curricular activities (in school, volunteer, athletics, arts), test scores and dates (SAT, ACT, or Subject Tests), and parent/guardian information. All colleges require this information, so this will go in your general profile. Be sure to have accurate information because once you've submitted your application, you can't go in and change it.
   
5. Now you are ready to officially start your application. This is what you have been working so hard towards ... to go to college and get a degree! This is going to be rather daunting and applying does take some time, but just know that it is worth it. If you have to set aside some time each week to devote to applying, that is perfectly fine! Just make sure you keep your deadlines in mind so that you don't miss any! 
• During my application process, I spent all of my study halls gathering my information and spent each Saturday completing my applications and organizing everything. I was able to complete everything on time and received my first college decision in the middle of November! 

Applying to a college is a very daunting and sometimes overwhelming task, but once it is over and you feel an immense amount of pride in yourself and in what you have accomplished in your high school years, you will be thankful it is over! You have so many great things to come in the next several months and you will accomplish even more to be proud of! Enjoy this time and make every moment count!

enjoy the chase,

skylar

P.S. If you have more questions about the CommonApp, here is a link to their Frequently Asked Questions webpage! Good Luck to all you college chasers!

Who should write my recommendations?

As you begin your college applications, you will eventually come to the major question of "Who is going to write my letters of recommendations?" This is a question that will plague your mind from the moment you select those references until after you've received your admissions decision from the colleges to which you applied. Here are some things you may want to consider before selecting the teachers, administrators, and mentors to write your letters of recommendation!

1. Look at the application requirements - For certain universities, they will require specific letters depending on the major/academic program you hope to enter. Oftentimes, if you are entering a science or mathematics program, the university will require a letter from a science or mathematics teacher. The same can be said for a prestigious English or Foreign Language program.

2. Think about the classes you excelled in - This is a no-brainer; you will want a letter of recommendation from someone who can speak highly of your scholastic ability, your desire to challenge yourself academically, and your general personality. Typically the classes you did well in in high school will be those same classes whose teachers' you are in good standing with. Consider these teachers first as possible references.

3. Think about the classes you didn't excel in - Also a no-brainer, a teacher who genuinely did not enjoy having you in class nor seeing you in the hallway will not write a great letter of recommendation for you. Unless you absolutely need their letter (Look at Tip #1), do not even consider using these teachers as references. ** Sometimes a teacher whose class you did not perform well in, but you challenged yourself in, can write a good letter of recommendation. But, use your judgement carefully.

4. Bosses, Coaches, and Clergy work too - Some universities offer options besides just two teachers for letters of recommendations, ie: one academic reference and one personal reference. These letters are just as great at supporting an application. Typically a coach, boss, or pastor can provide more details about your personality traits and what attributes you may bring to a college campus. If you feel that their observations of you will better support your application, then definitely add a letter of recommendation from them into your application!

5. No family members - Family members do not hold much credibility as a writer for a letter of recommendation. Even if you work under an aunt/uncle or your dad was your baseball coach, this should be your last resort for a letter of recommendation. Use an assistant manager or an athletic trainer who can still attest to your ability and your leadership skills. * If it is a real issue, such as your mother was your only upper level math teacher and you need a math recommendation for the Physics program, then I would call the admissions office at the universities where you plan to apply and inform them of this "conflict." They may allow this letter or may provide you with an alternative option.

Now that you have decided who will write your letters of recommendation, be sure to ask them with plenty of time before the deadline. I suggest asking each reference and giving them about a month and a half to complete their recommendations. Some of the teachers, especially those who are well-liked by your classmates, could have ten to twenty letters to write for your Senior class. You will need to provide them with the information about how the evaluation form will be coming. Common App recommendations will be delivered to the teacher electronically, however if it is a physical letter that the reference will be sending, be sure to provide them with an addressed, stamped envelope so that they can simply send the letter out without any hassle. Finally, send a thank you card to those people who write your letters of recommendation to thank them for their time and effort.

Who are you asking to write your letters of recommendation and why?
Leave it in the comments section below!

enjoy the chase,

skylar