TOWAMENCIN- As all students know, planning and getting ready for college can be the most stressful part of your time as a high school student. To many, it seems that no matter how you attempt to plan, you are doing it wrong. On February 26th, North Penn High School held a college planning night to help students who feel lost in the college buzz. Here are the highlights from the night and the top tips the counselors provided:

Naviance:

• About tab: do strength explorer surveys and write your resume to keep track of all your accomplishments
• College- advanced college search: do college search and research colleges that you might want to apply to

The Options: different degrees

• Four year college: bachelor’s degree, 2+2 or 3+2 masters program built in
• Two year college: associates degree or certificate, MCCC 4 year program with partner school, technical or trade school certificate
• How to pick your college: location, size, academic majors, competitiveness, cost, experiences

Academic Performance: what will colleges see

• All classes 9th-12th and final grades
• Attendance
• Weighted and unweighted GPA

The process: year by year what to do

• Sophomore year: work hard, earn good grades, get involved, PSAT, career day, college and career research
• Junior year: work hard, earn good grade, continue with activities, work on Naviance, visit campus
• Senior year: visit campus, begin working on applications, be aware of deadlines, Naviance boot camp, college application night September 10th

Standardized Testing: options

• SAT, SAT II, ACT
• A tutor or tutor book can help boost your scores

Your statistics (GPA and class rank)

• Based on 5 majors
• IFE: ineligible for exclusion (certain classes are ineligible to be excluded)
• 9-12 ranked

Resources Available

• College and Career center (student and family appointments)
• Naviance
• Guidance office
• College representatives and fairs
• College admission websites and offices
• FAFSA: application required to be considered for all federal aid; must be submitted as soon as possible after October 1st of senior year
• FAFSA4Caster: provides students and families with an early estimate of eligibility for federal student financial assistance
• FAFSA Pin: apply for your pin number required to complete FAFSA
• Smart Track
• CSS/Financial Aid Profile- College Board: some colleges or scholarships require completion of this profile to apply for aid
• PA HIgh education assistance agency
• Smart Track: A college and financial aid predictor. Percentages of college aid from each specific college
• Fast web, Smart Student Guide to Financial Aid: scholarship search engine
• Merit Aid: guide to merit and academic scholarships across the U.S.