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Stay on track! Enjoy your holiday break but don't get lazy. Finals are coming up soon so make sure you're prepared. In this Issue SAT/ACT Dates Next ACT: Dec 13 College Seminars Colorado Illinois Massachusetts Michigan New York |
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Get Involved! 
Many first year college students have trouble meeting new friends on campus. If you aren’t involved in sports or Greek life in college, you may find yourself falling into a rut and hanging around the dorms instead of meeting new people and getting involved on campus. Most campuses offer an array of extra curricular activities that can appeal to almost any college student. Extra curricular activities are also helpful in building your resume. Employers like to see that you were involved in your campus community because these programs promote leadership and responsibility, which are two important qualities that future employers seek during their hiring process. These activities are a great way to get involved and meet new people that you share a common interest with. Intramural and Club athletics are helpful to meet lots of students with similar athletic interests as you. Intramural athletics are beneficial to enjoy the sport you love without the drastic time commitment as the Varsity sports. Outdoor recreation clubs offer several excursions, depending on your campus location, doing white-water rafting, hiking, biking, and even cave diving. These clubs help get students out of their dorms and into the great outdoors. Cultural clubs are dedicated to giving students of a certain race, gender, religion, or lifestyle an outlet to meet students with similar lifestyles as well as inspire meaningful conversations and promote cultural growth on the campus through group inspired events and charitable fund raisers. These clubs are open to all members of the campus community. Media clubs are designed to give students a voice in their campus community through newspapers, radio stations, and television. These clubs are a great way to build your resume if you are going into media studies and news publication. There are several other clubs and organizations awaiting students to join. Most colleges will offer at least one if not several clubs that are of interest to you. Remember, it is always good to get a resume builder while you’re still in college. And why not have it be something fun? Check out our Blog! The founder of CAPlus, Paul Celuch, updates his blog at least once a week and discusses topics such as college loans, staggering statistics, how to avoid debt, some of the mistakes parents make, and how to make good choices. Visit his blog at http://forgiveusourstudentdebts.blogspot.com. Interview with a Graduate - Fallanne DeLong 
Editor's Note: Fallanne DeLong has a degree in Public Justice from SUNY Oswego. CAPlus: Where did you go to school and what was your major?? FD: Well I started at Genesee Community college and then I transferred after my second year to SUNY Oswego where I majored in Public Justice. CAPlus: Do you think it was beneficial to start at a Community College? FD: Yea, most definitely, I was able to pay in cash for my first two years. It didn't require me to borrow anything. When I got to SUNY Oswego I was forced to take out loans. CAPlus: How much did you have to borrow in loans? FD: In total it was approximately $11,000. I had $5500 per year. CAPlus: How much are your monthly payments now? FD: I pay $127.49 a month for the next 10 years. CAPlus: Where are you working now? FD: I work at the Bank of NY Mellon. I am a data clerk there. I also bartend on the side to make ends meet. Between my car payment, my loan, and my rent, it gets a little tight. CAPlus: Do you feel like your education was worth it? FD: I definitely think that it is really good to have a degree but spending that much money on it was a bit of a waste because my job now has nothing to do with my major. CAPlus: If you could go back and do something differently what would you do? FD: Well I probably wouldn't have gone into Public Justice. I never really had any interest in being a lawyer or a cop and that is what most people do with that degree. I would have liked to change my major into something that I was more interested in but by the time I figured that out it was a little late. If I had changed my major I would have had to stay a lot longer and pay more money that I didn't have. CAPlus: What would your advice be to students entering college? FD: Well I definitely recommend starting at community college. However, I would tell them to research their options a little bit more than I did. It would give them a better idea of what they really wanted to go into. When I was at GCC I didn't think about any of that and when I transferred it was more about picking a title out of a list that "seemed" interesting. High School Freshmen & Sophomores 
• Start studying for the SAT and/or ACT exams. Try to spend at least one hour a week studying with a computer program. Boosting your scores will help you get more aid money from colleges. • Start thinking about where you'd like to go to college. Talk to your parents so that you're all on the same page about your expectations and how much money is reasonable to pay for college. If you decide together how much you can afford, you'll be able to make an informed decision based on fact rather than emotion. • If you are involved in community service or volunteer projects, ask the teacher or supervisor for a recommendation letter now. It's good to get a head start, especially while the project is fresh in the teacher's mind. • Look into taking AP courses so you can make a good impression on college admission officers and get some college credits out of the way. Talk to your guidance counselor about this when it's time to choose courses for next semester. High School Juniors 
• Work hard in your junior year, because your junior year grades are very important on your high school transcript. By keeping your grades up, you might be rewarded with college grants, free scholarships, and other educational grants. • Look into taking AP courses so you can make a good impression on college admission officers and get some college credits out of the way. Talk to your guidance counselor about this when it's time to choose courses for next semester. • Study for the ACT and SAT exams! The next ACT test date is February 7; regular registration is accepted until January 6, however, test is not given in New York State. The next SAT test is January 24; regular registration is still accepted until December 26. Visit www.actstudent.org and www.collegeboard.com for more information and to find testing sites. There is also an SAT prep center at the website. Better scores can mean better financial aid! • Keep refining your list of possible college choices. Check out the websites and start comparing schools by factors that you think are most important. • If you play spring sports (track & field, baseball, softball, etc.) and want to play in college, take some photographs and video of yourself now. By the time your season is over, colleges will have already made decisions about teams and scholarships. Now is the time to make sure your portfolio is strong. • Explore the Web for scholarship opportunities. You won't get a free ride to college based on scholarships, but finding some grants and scholarships may help you in the long run. High School Seniors 
• Know the admissions deadlines to schools that you're interested in! Look up the financial aid deadlines as well. Make a list so you don't miss anything. • Narrow down your list of potential colleges to about six or fewer. Christmas break is a great time to fill out applications and write admission essays. • If you aren't happy with your SAT/ACT scores, retake the tests. The highest combination of scores is always used, so taking the tests again won't hurt you. • File the FAFSA as soon as possible in January to get the maximum amount of financial aid. You can use last year's tax forms and make corrections when you actually finish your taxes. • Due dates for recommendation letters are approaching, so figure out who you want recommendations from. Make sure you tell them exactly when the letters will be due, and don't hesitate to remind them! It's an important part of your application process. • Plan visits to any colleges and set up interviews if you didn't get to them during the summer (or if you want to visit again). Read bulletin boards and the college paper, talk to students and professors, and try to spend a night in the dorms. Ask your CAPlus advisor for a college visit packet before you go! • Take advanced placement (AP) courses if you can. It will help boost your admission standing, and you might be able to test out of required courses when you get to college. College Freshmen and Sophomores 
• Work hard during finals week to maintain strong grades for this semester or quarter, especially if you have an academic scholarship. Good grades are important during your first two years! • When you meet with your advisor to talk about next semester, make sure you're on track to graduate in four years. Don't get trapped into an extra semester or year! This is especially important for transfer students. • File your renewal FAFSA by the middle of January to get the maximum amount of financial aid. It's easy to make a mistake, so have your CAPlus advisor review your form before you submit it. • Beware of credit card companies! You'll receive dozens of credit card offers in your college mailbox, some of which will offer you free t-shirts, iPods, and other gadgets. Don't sign up for a card unless you are going to pay it off each month. Credit cards do not give you "free money" that you can spend whenever you want. • Don't buy new books from your campus bookstore! You can buy used or new books online for a fraction of the cost. We recommend several sites on our website. • Don't buy Christmas gifts for your friends using loan money. It might be tempting to think of it as free money, but when you add in the interest over 30 years, you will end up paying a lot more for those Christmas presents than you bargained for. College Juniors 
• Work hard during finals week to maintain strong grades for this semester or quarter. Good grades are important during your junior year! • When you meet with your advisor to talk about next semester, make sure you're on track to graduate next year. If your college requires you to get a PIN number to register for next year, make sure you get it at this time. Don't get trapped into an extra semester or two! • Students with cars should look into getting AAA in case something goes wrong while traveling home for the winter break. You can also get roadside/towing service through your insurance carrier. • Beware of credit card companies! You'll receive dozens of credit card offers in your college mailbox, some of which will offer you free t-shirts, iPods, and other gadgets. Don't sign up for a card unless you are going to pay it off each month. Credit cards do not give you "free money" that you can spend whenever you want. • When you are home for the holidays, talk to your parents and friends about helping you find a summer internship or job that is in your field of study. This will help you decide if you've chosen the right field, and it will help you land a job after you graduate. • Don't buy Christmas gifts for your friends using loan money. It might be tempting to think of it as free money, but when you add in the interest over 30 years, you will end up paying a lot more for those Christmas presents than you bargained for. College Seniors 
• Take advantage of being home for the holidays to talk to people about helping you get a job after you graduate. Getting your first job is all about networking! • If you have any special family circumstances, such as the recent discovery of an immediate family member with a serious illness or a sudden death in the family that is causing extreme hardship, write a letter to the college asking for a one-time gift in some form. Colleges may honor these kinds of requests if they have the funds to do so. • Remember to pay off your credit card as soon as your bill is due. Credit card companies slam you with high interest rates, and getting out in the "real world" will be much easier if you have a positive credit history. • Make sure that you have finished all of the requirements for your degree or major. Don't rely on your advisor to tell you if you need more classes; it's your responsibility. Don't get trapped into an extra semester just because you didn't pay attention. • Don't buy Christmas gifts for your friends using loan money. It might be tempting to think of it as free money, but when you add in the interest over 30 years, you will end up paying a lot more for those Christmas presents than you bargained for. What is CAPlus? College Assistance Plus assists parents in navigating the college process to make the process smoother and save money in multiple ways. This newsletter is available bimonthly and contains helpful advice for each age group. To receive the full benefit of this service, contact CAPlus to schedule a FREE consultation today! Find a Franchise For a complete list of our locations, please visit our website. |
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