College Knowledge
BHHS Class of 2015
AUGUST 25, 2014
MRS. AHYOUNG CHI
D EAN OF COLLEGE A DMISSIONS
ACHI@ BHUSD. ORG
Agenda
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 College systems and application types
 Personal statements & essays
 What should I be doing now?
 Requesting recommendation letters
 Naviance & Brag Sheet for counselors
 Common Application schools
 Non-Common Application schools
 Ordering transcripts: Parchment
 College rep visits to BHHS
 Upcoming events
College Knowledge Class of 2015
College Systems & Application Types
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 California Community College
 California State University (CSU)
 University of California (UC)
 Private colleges and universities
 75+ in California
 THOUSANDS in United States
 Out of state public colleges and universities
 Simple Guidelines for Applying to Colleges
College Knowledge Class of 2015
College Systems & Application Types
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Simple Guidelines for Applying to Colleges
College Knowledge Class of 2015
California Community College
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 112 campuses in California
 Associate degrees (many lead to careers)
 Transfer to 4-year school (to obtain Bachelors degree)
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CSU or UC: must complete 60 semester units or 90 quarter units
(equivalent to 2 years of full time studies)
Most private schools: 30 semester units or 45 quarter units okay to
transfer (check with each college and major)
 Articulation agreements or TAG are available for most
schools- use www.assist.org
 VERY important to plan for transferring- it is NOT an
automatic 2 year plan!- use UCTAP
 Apply to community college by February/March of Senior
year- use www.cccapply.org
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Pop Quiz on CCC!
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When should you apply to a community college?
College Knowledge Class of 2015
California State University
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 23 campuses
 Bachelor and Master degrees
 First institution of higher education established by the
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State of California, originally created to train teachers
To be eligible: 2.0 GPA, A-G courses, SAT or ACT (no
Writing)
Not required/accepted: SAT Subject exams, essays,
recommendation letters, transcripts
Application filing period: Oct 1–Nov 30
To apply: www.csumentor.edu
Many CSU’s are impacted and very difficult to get into!
Like… Cal Poly SLO, San Diego State, Long Beach, San
Francisco State
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Pop Quiz on CSU!
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When is the CSU application due?
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Pop Quiz on CSU!
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Which of the following are required for CSU eligibility?
(Choose all that apply.)
1. Successfully completing the A-G coursework
2. Minimum GPA of 2.0
3. SAT or ACT
4. 2 SAT Subject exams
5. Teacher recommendation letter
6. 2 short answer essays
7. None of the above
College Knowledge Class of 2015
University of California
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 10 campuses but San Francisco is graduate only
 Bachelor, Master, and Doctorate degrees
 Research & theory based curriculums
 Competitive admissions with many highly selective
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campuses
To be eligible: 3.0 GPA, A-G courses, SAT or ACT with
Writing, personal statements, list of activities & honors
Not required/accepted: SAT Subject exams (some majors
“highly recommended”), recommendation letters,
transcripts
Application filing period: Nov 1–Nov 30 (available Aug 1)
To apply: www.universityofcalifornia.edu/apply
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Pop Quiz on UC!
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When is the UC application due?
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Pop Quiz on UC!
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Which of the following are required for UC eligibility?
(Choose all that apply.)
1. Successfully completing the A-G coursework
2. Minimum GPA of 3.0
3. SAT or ACT with Writing
4. 3 SAT Subject exams
5. 3 AP exams (subjects of your choice)
6. Teacher or counselor recommendation letters
7. None of the above- I can just walk into UCLA and
become a student. Woohoo!
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Private Colleges & Universities
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 75+ private colleges and universities in California
 3,000+ in US (including public schools)
 All vary in admission requirements and application
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deadlines
Application requirements: official transcript, official test
scores, essays, activities & honors, recommendation
letters, interview, portfolio/audition
Use Common Application or Universal College Application
Early Admission Plans: Early Decision vs. Early Action vs.
Restrictive Early Action (more info click HERE)
National Candidates Reply Date: May 1
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Out of State Public Institutions
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 3,000+ colleges and universities in US (including private
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schools)
Many operate on rolling admissions plan (check Naviance
for a list of popular schools)
Many offer non-selective or slightly selective admissions
with non-impacted majors
Many have low out-of-state tuition
Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE): tuition
discount for California students
Don’t forget about Honors programs/colleges at public
schools; rigorous academics in large, research universities
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Personal Statements & Essays
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 One of the most important pieces of your application
 One of the only ways to show your true self and personality
 Follow instructions, spell check, have someone look it over
 Not a typical English paper
 Don’t procrastinate- doing so will send the message that you
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don’t care
Do it YOURSELF- your essay must be authentically you
Avoid clichés and controversial topics; you never know who
will be reading your essay
Write about WHY and HOW, and it should always be about
YOU
Check Naviance for list of Essays that Worked
College Knowledge Class of 2015
What Should I Be Doing Now?
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 College Counseling Timeline for Class of 2015
 Get organized with application requirements,
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deadlines, interviews, portfolios/auditions, essays
Request recommendation letters
Complete Brag Sheet for Counselors
Attend college related events on and off campus
Attend College Tuesday workshops
Take/retake SAT or ACT (consider CSU apps!)
Complete applications and write essays
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Requesting Recommendation Letters
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 Required:
 Counselor recommendation letter
 Must complete Brag Sheet for Counselors in Naviance
 1-2 teacher recommendation letters from academic subjects
(English, history, science, math, & foreign language)
 Okay to include 1 additional letter from coach, employer,
professor, club advisor, program director, etc
 UC and CSU do not accept recommendation letters
 Some schools do not require recommendation letters
 You may need letters for scholarships
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Naviance Family Connection
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Log in: https://connection.naviance.com/bhhs
1.
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Username: your email address
If you don’t remember your log in info, email your counselor
Update email address
2.
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Tip: use the same email address for all college applications
Make sure your email address is appropriate
Click on “about me” and complete the following tasks:
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Under “surveys to take”
brag sheet for counselors (if you need a counselor rec letter)
 parent brag sheet (one of your parents must do this)
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Resume
Test scores
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Naviance Family Connection
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4. Finalize your college list
 Click on “colleges”
 Click on “colleges I’m applying to”
 Add colleges to this list
 You can also move colleges from “colleges I’m thinking about”
to “colleges I’m applying to”
 Include all UC and CSU campuses you are applying to
 Include SMC and other community colleges you are planning
to enroll in
5. Contact your counselor for your senior meeting
after completing the above steps
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Here you can watch videos, review
admission information, link to the
school’s website, and even begin
the application!
If you are interested in
a school, click here to
add it to your colleges
I’m thinking about list.
College Knowledge Class of 2015
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You can also research
other colleges and
scholarship opportunities.
College Knowledge Class of 2015
21
Here you can keep track of
colleges you are interested in,
rate your level of interest, view
upcoming application deadlines,
and transfer schools from
colleges I’m thinking about, to
colleges I’m applying to.
Common Application: Inviting Recommenders
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 Create an account: www.commonapp.org
 Save your Common App ID; you will need it to order
transcripts from Parchment
 Create a college list using the “College Search” tab
 Your college list will appear on your “Dashboard”
 Add Beverly Hills High School to your Common App:
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Click on “Common App” tab
Click on Education
Click on Find School then choose Beverly Hills High School
Complete this section of Common App
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Common Application: Inviting Recommenders
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 Click on “My Colleges” tab then choose one of the
schools listed
 Click on Recommenders and FERPA and sign the
FERPA Release Authorization
 You must waive your right to review all
recommendations and supporting documents in
order for your counselor and teachers to write your
recommendation letters
 Click on Invite Counselor and enter the requested
information to invite your counselor to be a
recommender (click HERE for counselors’ email
addresses)
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Common Application: Inviting Recommenders
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 Click on Invite Teacher and enter the requested
information to invite your teacher(s) to be a
recommender
 You will need email addresses of your counselor and
teachers
 Completing these steps will trigger an email to your
invited recommenders with instructions on
submitting their recommendation letters via the
Common App Recommender website
 Confirm with your counselor and teacher(s) that they
received the invitation
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Non-Common Application Schools
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 Complete online application on the school’s website
 Follow instructions specific to that college to request
your counselor and/or teacher recommendations, if
applicable (remember, not all schools want
recommendation letters)
 If letters need to be snail-mailed, then let your
counselor and/or teachers know in person and
provide them with self-addressed and stamped
envelopes
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Requesting Recommendation Letters
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 September 12: Deadline to ask your counselor and
teacher(s) for recommendation letters for Early
Action and Early Decision schools; also to notify
your counselor if you are applying to schools with
rolling admission deadlines
 October 10: Deadline to ask your counselor and
teacher(s) for recommendation letters for regular
decision schools
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Ordering Transcripts through Parchment
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 Once you start your college applications, you must
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request that official transcripts be sent to ALL of the
colleges to which you are applying.
UC & CSU campuses and the University of
Washington do not want transcripts.
All transcripts must be ordered through Parchment.
Get an unofficial copy and review it for accuracy
before you send official transcripts to colleges.
Follow the step by step guidelines to order your
transcripts.
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Ordering Transcripts through Parchment
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Go to www.parchment.com or click on the link on
the BHHS website or Naviance.
2. Click on “Order Transcript” and then “High School
Transcript”.
3. Register and complete your information. You do
not need a code to register. Remember that you are
entering college in 2015.
4. Once you are registered, click on “My Transcripts”
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Search for and select Beverly Hills High School
Enter your earliest year of attendance (2011 if you entered
BHHS as a 9th grader)
Enter 2015 as your expected year of graduation
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Ordering Transcripts through Parchment
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5. Complete the FERPA agreement and waive your
right to review. Remember that your counselor and
teacher(s) will not write recommendation letters if
you do not waive your FERPA rights.
6. If you are applying to one or more Common App
schools, then you must click on “The Common
Application” tab and enter your Common App ID.
This will generate a copy of your transcript for all
Common App schools.
7. Search for other colleges to which your transcript
should be sent.
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Ordering Transcripts through Parchment
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8. For other organizations such as scholarships and
NCAA Eligibility Center, click the link under “Select
Other Destinations” and enter the required
information.
9. Once you have added all of your
schools/organizations, pay for your transcripts
online.
10. If you add schools to your “colleges I’m applying
to” list, then be sure to order additional transcripts.
College Knowledge Class of 2015
College Rep Visits to BHHS
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 Over 100 college and university reps visit our school
each year
 Great way to get to know the school and the
admission rep who will read your application
 Most updated list is in Naviance
 If you want to attend a college rep visit:
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Sign up in Naviance
Get the gold permission slip signed by your teacher prior to the
day of the visit
Gold forms available in House offices and College Center
College Knowledge Class of 2015
Upcoming Events
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 College Tuesday workshops: every Tuesday in the
College Center
 Essay review sessions: more info coming soon
 ACT 101 Workshop
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Saturday, September 6, 9-12pm, Cherney Lecture Hall
$40 per student
 College Day for Seniors: October 15 during school
 Financial Aid Night: October 21, 6:30 p.m.
College Knowledge Class of 2015