Picking the Right
College
& Finding Some Money to
Pay for It
David G. Landfair
Agenda
 Rules
 Some
Statistics
 Picking & Finding Money
 Tips
 NOTE:
 Slides
will be posted to the GBHS web
site under Guidance
Available Here
$10 here …. or
$12.00 plus S&H at
AMAZON.COM
Includes:
How to Narrow Your
Choices
How to Hunt for
Scholarships
Academy Appointment
Advice
Bonus Chapters:
-
4-Year Plan
Interview Tips
First, Some Rules
 First
Rule: You Need To Take Charge
 Second
Rule:
Different Schools, Different Rules
 Third
Rule: Have A Plan “B,” “C,” “D”
Some Statistics
 30%
of Adults in the U.S. Have a
Degree (Wall Street Journal, 24-25 Aug 2013)

Value?: One way to measure … fewer college
grads unemployed than High School graduates
(U.S. Bureau of Labor)
 28
to 40% of College Freshmen Do
NOT Return for their Sophomore
Year
 55% Do Not Graduate in Six Years
(American College Testing)
(Wall Street Journal, 24-25 Aug 2013)
Why Is This Happening?
 Picking
 Good
the Wrong the School?
News: We Can Work on That
 Admissions
People Tell Me … #1
reason … not going to class
 Big
Schools Have Big Distractions
 Good News: We Can Work on That
 Money
 Good
News: We Can Work on That
Picking the Right College:
So Where Do I Start
What Do I Do First?
 Make
a list of favorites based on whatever
… sports teams, legacy, close to home,
friends, feels right
 Whatever … just make a list and start
researching costs and scholarships
available
Consider: What Are Admission
Boards Looking For?

Different Schools, Different _______

You can find out by asking @ College Fairs &
looking at the School’s Web Page & calling them
ACT/SAT…standardized tests--easy to compare
 GPA
 IB Programs, AP and Honor Classes
 School/Community Involvement
 Some Measure Character
TIP: Ask Your Admissions Representatives

Consider:
Where Is Everyone Else Going?

About 725 Grads Last Two
Years total






•
•
PSC – 90/62 … local & feeds UWF •
•
UWF – 74/67 … local
•
FSU – 29/39 … Honors Grads
•
UF – 24/15 … Honors Grads
•
Santa Fe – 3/0 … feeds UF
•
TCC – 2/0 … feeds FSU
•
Source: School Paper
& Graduation Programs


Honor Grads = 94% weighted GPA & above
UCF – 4/11
USF – 3/5
UNF – 3/0
Auburn – 3/0
U of Alabama – 3/5
Univ S. AL – 3/5
Miss State – 4/4
Southern Miss – 3/2
Other Colleges –
44/50
• Military – 20/9
47/35% Local College
35/37% Out of Town College
5/2.5% Enlist in Military
13/20% Not Listed in Paper
What is Our List Looking Like?

Local


Big State Schools


FSU, UF
Close By Out of State


PSC, UWF
USA, Alabama, Auburn, MSU, GA
Other

Notre Dame, USAFA, Duke
Now Consider Your Standardized
Test Score
All Starts Here
 Affect Admissions & Scholarships
(Different Schools, Different _______)
 Most schools want to see your ACT or
SAT score for admission & scholarships

Get tutoring to raise scores
 Many scholarships also are based on score

Standardized Test Scores
(continued)
The Bottom Line: Your score will affect your
admission decision and it might indicate your
probability of success
 If the mean score of the freshmen class is a
lot higher than your score, you may not get
into the school, if you do it seems you are
already behind


Good News: That works the other way too

If you choose a school where your score is higher
than the mean, you might do well
Look To See Where You Fit
UF
USAFA FSU
UWF
Mean 50% of
Fresh Class ACT
27-29 28-32
25-28
22-24
# of Applicants
27,295 12,732
28,313
5,744
% Offered
Admission
43%
9%
58%
63%
Freshman Class
6,742
1,071
6,774
1,460
#1 Tip: Look at the Mean ACT score and
see where you fit
Sources: collegedata.com & School Web Pages
Now What Do I Do?
Make A Chart
School Mean
Tuition
Housing Scholarships Rank
ACT
25-28
$5,238
UWF 22-24
$3,016
USA
In – $3,690
Out - **
$5,280 Bright
Futures
0–
Bright
Stay
Futures
Home
$1,610 **Out of
State
Waiver
$4,612 Scholarship
FSU
21-23
MSU 22-24
In – $5,805
Out –$14,670
3
1
Close
2
4

Food
More To Consider:
Other Expenses
Meal plans can be expensive or a good deal
 Note: Some dorms require a meal plan
(Different Schools, Different _____)


Greek Life


May include a meal plan … $2,000?
Entertainment
Some schools require a fee for “student
passes to games etc…”
 Tickets, movies, intramurals, clubs

Wall Street Journal Advice
Focus on the Net Price
 Make Sure the Aid Keeps Coming (i.e.
one-year money)
 Save the Pricier School for Later

Most Don’t Care Where You Got Your AA
 Graduate Schools Can Be Expensive

 TIP:
But Many Graduate Schools Favor Their
Undergraduates when it comes to admissions
(Different Schools, Different ______)
Wall Street Journal Dec 22/23 2012
More To Consider:
Big Schools Have Big Distractions

How disciplined are you?
It is not just Big Football … basketball, soccer,
baseball, etc…
 Population of College Towns double on game
weekends … for the entire semester

 All

Feeling like a number


year at some schools
Big classes at some schools
Bottom Line: Might want to consider
school size, class size
Other Considerations

Start with the End In Mind

If You Are Going To Go To Graduate School,
What Does It Take to Get In?
 Vet
School for example
 Different Schools Have ______________

Graduation Rates (Six-Years – from Chronical.com)
UF – 85%
 MSU – 58%
 USAFA – 82%
 Notre Dame – 96%

• UCF – 63%
• FSU – 74%
• UA – 67%
• Auburn – 66%
Comparison Tool
 Collegecost.ed.gov
 Compares
Costs
Graduation
Loan
 TIP:
Rates
data
One source compares apples
to apples pretty well
Is It Possible To Graduate Debt-Free?
TIPS:
(Wall Street Journal 24 Jul 13)








Stay Close to Home Can Save $
Community College then Transfer
Take classes on-line
Dual-Enrollment in HS helps a Ton
College Level Examination Program (CLEP) …
CLEP out and Save $
Look hard for Scholarships
Generate Income: Work … during the year &
Especially Summers
Live Frugally
Coming Up
More

Tips
Coming Up:
College Fair Advice
 Hunting for Scholarships
 More …

TIP: Go Check Out the School
 My
Advice: A school, like a
jacket, does not fit everyone, try it
on for size
College Fairs

Be Prepared!
Have your Resume Ready – Just In Case
 Questions Ready:

 What
is Your Admissions Board Looking For?
 What was the Mean ACT Score for Your Freshmen
Class Last Year?
 What is the Graduation Rate For Someone Like Me?
 Do You Offer Any Scholarships for Someone Like
Me?

Use Resume listing residence, ACT/SAT Scores, GPA,
etc…
 What
is Contact Info For When I Have Questions
Later?
So When Should I Apply?
 Different
 FSU
Schools, Different _____
… website says: January 14th
 First
Notification of acceptance is in
December
TIP: Talk to Admissions At the Schools
 Great
question for college fair
Tips
Get rid of the cute e-mail address: like
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
…. unprofessional; make a new address just
for your scholarship correspondence
 Change the “stylish” answering machine
messages
Observations from Interviews
Not prepared … underdressed (parents
too), late, etc … interview not a priority
 Poor communicators … wrong numbers or
e-mail addresses, don’t answer messages,
poor eye-contact & posture
 Missed deadlines
TIP: Successful

Read a lot … articulate, good vocabulary,
write well
 Well prepared … practiced … courteous

Observations (continued)
 TIP:
Include impact statements in your
Resumes & Letters of Recommendations
Instead of this: NHS VP–led 2 fundraisers
Do this: As NHS VP, raised $526 to help
pay medical bills for student with cancer
 Also, if they already have your resume,
may not want to repeat that information …
ask your admissions officer
Many are looking for a real story about you
… about your character
Let’s Be Honest …
Price Makes A Difference
 You
Must Pick a School You Can Afford
 Good news – lots of scholarships out
there
 Wall
Street Journal: “86% of freshmen
received some sort of grant in 2011”
 Some
statistics are good, some not
really … School Paper: 59% of Sr.s won
scholarships, totals: $12 Million
Where Can I Find
Scholarships?
… try for as many as you are
qualified for
 TIP
 Why?
Money is money … take it; Win
five $1,000 scholarships and you can
pay $5,000 worth or tuition, or housing
costs, or …
Gateway to Scholarships

Join a Club – many can lead you to a
scholarship
FBLA
 JROTC
 Lots of Others – Just Ask … it’s ok to ask


Sports
Lots of competition (1% of athletes get awards)
 Talk to the Coaches at school and at the college
you want to go to … you need to initiate the
conversation
 Many recruit via their summer camps

Where Can I Find
Scholarships?
• Where are these scholarships?
1. Look on the Web
2. Financial Aid and Scholarships are
found on the school’s web site
3. Local – Check with Guidance; Listen
to ITV; Ask Around; Look in the
Paper and Magazines
Search & You Will Find
Coke - coca-colascholars.org
 Girls Going Places Scholarship



Best Buy


www.bestbuy-communityrelations.com/scholarship.htm
Sallie Mae Fund Scholarship Program


Guardianlife.com
Thesalliemaefund.org
Voice of Democracy Audio Essay Scholarship

vfw.org
Scholarships
 Many
schools consider you
automatically for scholarships; many
do not, so YOU need to find out
example, MSU – automatically
considers you “out-of-staters” for a
scholarship... Pays your out of state tuition
… this year … 25 ACT
 TIP: Ask at the College Fair
For
Other Scholarships
Local

GBHS Guidance Does a Great Job Listing
Opportunities For You (list on web, and in their
office)

TIP: Don’t rely on one source … go find
scholarships
 Sometimes
you see them in the Gulf Breeze News
or the Pensacola News Journal
 Parents hear about them at Optimist, Sertoma,
Kiwanis, Women’s Club meetings around town

Listen to ITV … many are announced
Bright Futures*

Three Levels






FL Academic Scholars (FAS)
FL Medallion Scholars (FMS)
FL Gold Seal Vocational Scholars (GSV)
Moving Target - so get the best GPA, ACT/SAT, and
as many Community Service Hours as you can
Must do FAFSA
At GBHS, students fill out application in Dec of Sr Yr
at school
*Source: floridastudentfinancialaid.org
What About Federal Help?

Federal Aid

Need to demonstrate Financial Need





Do that when you complete the FAFSA (Free
Application for Federal Student Aid)
Go to FAFSA.GOV (with your tax info ready)
They have Grants (Free Money)
Work Study Programs (Work at School and
Use Money to Pay Bills)
Loans (last choice be prepared to pay the
money back)
Scholarships (continued)
 Different
Kinds of Scholarships
 Community,
business sponsored
YOU need to ask around … “Hey
Mom, Hey Dad, Hey Uncle Bill does your
company or club offer any scholarships?”
TIP:
Other Scholarships
On the Web

Where Do I Look?
 On the Web, do a Google search. Here
are some you will find:
 www.fastweb.com
 www.cappex.com
 www.scholarshipexperts.com
 www.scholarshipamerica.org
 www.gocollege.com
Note:
 Some Scholarships are not
awarded until late in the process
…may want to keep your options
open when you are making a final
school selection
Winning A Scholarship
 TIPS:
Some variables can help
 Minority
status sometimes plays in your
favor
 Financial status (FINANCIAL NEED)
 First in the family to go to college
TIP

Plan to start applying the Summer
between your Junior and Senior year

Have best ACT/SAT scores ready
 Get
tutoring: PNJ Ad in GB call Alice Hart; Club Z
Tutoring; Sylvan Learning Center
Great resume ready
 Sign up for a challenging Senior Year


Senior Year: Execute the plan
Take Aways
 You
Need to Take Charge
 Different Schools, Have ______
 Ask Admissions
 NOTE: These slides are located
on the GBHS web site under
guidance
Good Luck

Questions?