October 2005 Newsletter
What's
Up?
The
leaves are turning and the initial exuberance of September has shifted
to the October pace of the long haul. By the time you read this, we will
have already had many colleges give presentations to interested seniors
and the initial, early decision/action deadlines loom on the immediate
horizon. At this point of the year, I'm often fielding from the seniors
the question, "What should I be doing now?" I have already completed
another round of one-on-one meetings with the seniors to see where they
are. If you feel your son is at sea at this point, please give me a call.
That's why I'm here.
At this point your son should be sending away for applications from those schools to which he knows he wants to apply. Some schools have two part applications and take a while to complete. Other schools just take a long time in mailing out their applications. The sooner you order, the sooner you will receive them. And, yes, on-line applications are becoming the primary way of applying to college. Many colleges are waiving the application fee if you apply on-line. Your son should be thinking of which teacher(s) he will ask to write letters of recommendation on his behalf. (Don't forget to give the teacher a stamped, addressed envelope with the due date on the flap along with the teacher evaluation form. Schools should be visited; interviews should be taken. Your son will soon take the SATs on October 8. There is another administration of the SATs in November and St. Sebastian's School is a testing site for these November 5 SATs. If your son is taking SATs in December, he should be signing up by October 28th. (Please note: St. Sebastian's School is not a test site for the December SATs.)
College
Visits:
Follow the link
to see which colleges are scheduled to have College Information Sessions
at the School.
Your son can gain permission to be excused from a class to attend these presentations. Each session lasts about 45 minutes and provides a wonderful opportunity for your son to hear in detail about the college and the programs available at the college from an admissions representative.
Thank
you and a plug:
Thanks to those parents who have already taken the time
to send back the Senior Parents Questionnaire I sent out last month. Your
input about your son is a great help to me as I now begin to write my
counselor letters on behalf of the seniors. If you have not yet returned
it, there is still time! If you have lost the form, you can download
it here.
Food
for thought:
(I
re-read Gatekeepers over the summer. I thought I’d recycle this
from last year’s newsletter.)
That there are so many books and articles out on college admissions reflects the current (and heightened) interest in this process. Two I recommend to you are The Gatekeepers- Inside the Admissions Process of a Premier College by Jacques Steinberg and The Game of Life- College Sports and Educational Values by James L. Shulman and William G. Bowen. Jacques Steinberg, a national education correspondent for The New York Times, spent an academic year at Wesleyan University observing the admissions process with the permission of the Admissions Office. It provides a good understanding of how admissions decisions are made at a highly selective school. The Game of Life, re-issued in paperback, examines the role of athletics in admissions. Both are enlightening, although I agree with Andrew Delbanco when he grimly wrote in his review of these books in the New York Times Book Review (9/29/02), “As for the preposterous power of U.S. News, Shulman and Bowen tartly remark that, ‘while presidents universally dismiss the rankings as shallow and thoroughly flawed, many are (with the other hand) manipulating their schools’ data in such a way to move up a notch.’ In short, like the other business executives who have been in the news for inflating corporate earnings, academic administrators have every incentive to meet or exceed next year’s targets so that the company will look good to trustees, alumni, and potential future students – its equivalent to stockholders.”
Note
of interest to Senior Parents:
I give your son a weekly newsletter. Ask to see it and
use it as your excuse/opportunity to check in with your son in terms of
the progress of his college search.
Early
Decision/ Early Action
Many
students are currently making decisions about Early Decision (binding)
and Early Action (non-binding) application options.
Here are a few reminders concerning these application plans:
a) You may apply to only one school under an Early Decision plan. If your son is applying Early Decision, remember that it is a ‘binding’ agreement. Because many of you will apply to schools with November 1 or November 15 due dates, it is important that you notify Mr. Hall of your intention to file an early application. Please turn in the green form that is in the red folder Mr. Hall handed out to you. This should be turned in to the front office no later than Friday, October 14. After that, I cannot promise that we can get your paperwork out on time.
b) Early Action Programs differ in that they are not binding, but they (for the most part) do not provide you with the "edge" that can be gained applying under an Early Decision Program. In fact, BC and ND are two schools I've found to be more difficult to get in to early than regular. Discuss your strategy with Mr. Hall in your one-on-one meeting(s). You can be denied acceptance in an early plan. Gone are the days of (only) acceptance or deferral when applying early. You have something to lose in applying early.
c) In the event that you decide to file and Early Decision/Early Action application, it is critical that you be prepared to file other applications in the event you are not admitted or are deferred to your Early Decision/Early Action School. See me with any questions.
d) Some Early Action schools are now “Single Choice Early Action” meaning you can apply, get in, and still apply elsewhere BUT you can only apply to that school and not elsewhere! Harvard College, Stanford University and Yale University are examples of this latest hybrid.
News
you can use:
The
site on the web to access the FAFSA, which is the financial aid form required
to be filled out in order to receive any federal money for college, is
www.FAFSA.ed.gov. This is free. If you go to an engine like Google, it
will refer you to FAFSA.com, which is a commercial company that will charge
you to fill out the FAFSA form. Remember: FAFSA.ed.gov is free; FAFSA.com
will charge you. The CSS Profile form, which is the second financial aid
form required by many colleges (though not all as is the FAFSA), can be
found on line via www.collegeboard.com. I was interested to hear that
over 90% of the Profile forms were filed on line last year.
Please
note a change in the School’s policy on paperwork to your
son’s colleges. For a number of reasons, the School will no longer
put SAT stickers on the back of your son’s transcript. All scores
must be received by all of your son’s colleges via The College Board.
(This can done by going to the website: http://www.collegeboard.com/
Newell N. Hall
Director of College Counseling
781-449-5200 ext. 119
Newell_Hall@stsebs.org
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2005-2006 Academic Year