Seniors
Fall Semester Overview

• Take demanding courses.  This is no time to take a break.  Colleges look at your strength of schedule.
• Colleges do see your Senior year grades!
• If satisfied with your SAT/ACT + Writing scores you do not need to re-take the tests this fall.
• If you think you can improve your test scores, re-take the test in October, November or December.
• SDSU will NOT take a SAT test date taken after the October test date.  
  

September

• Review the list of colleges you are interested in applying to.  You should narrow your list to no more than 5 colleges. Be sure to have a few institutions from at least 2 to 3 colleges from different categories (highly selective, very selective, and selective).
• Always include a safety school in your list.  A safety school is a college/university you know you exceed the admissions requirements for.
• Look up college application deadlines for the colleges on your list.  Colleges will NOT accept late applications.
• Know if you will be applying for Early Decision, Early Action or Regular Admissions.
• Request your ACT/SAT test scores to be sent to the colleges on your list.  LHSSD CANNOT send your scores on your transcript. 
• Request your letters of recommendation from your teachers.  Give each teacher who writes a recommendation an addressed, stamped envelope for each college you are applying to.  In addition, give each teacher a list of activities, leadership positions, achievements, volunteer work, paid work, etc that you have done over the last three years.  Give teachers Two (2) weeks to complete the recommendations.   
• START YOUR APPLICATIONS!!!

October

• Decide if you will be applying Early Decision or Early Action.  These deadlines are between October 30 and December 1.
• ALL UC applications are due by November 30th.
• Keep working on your College and Scholarship applications.

November

• Give Mrs. Kunde a list of colleges you are applying to in order for your transcripts to be sent.  In addition, give her any school report forms ans Counselor's letter of recommendations that need to be completed. 
• Send your SAT, SAT Subject, and ACT (if needed) to the appropriate colleges. 
• Colleges will only review completed applications.  All paperwork (application, test scores, transcript and recommendations) must be received by the college before your application will be reviewed!
• Keep a copy of everything!
  
• Get all applications in by Thanksgiving! 
• If the above step is completed - Enjoy Thanksgiving Break!

December

• Complete any college applications you have not yet submitted.
• Make sure all paperwork and requests for letters of recommendation are turned into Mrs. Kunde by the first week of December.
• Early Decision and Early Action applicants will be notified about the college's decision.
• Be aware of deadlines.
• Apply for your fafsa PIN for financial aid.  To apply for your and your parents' PIN go to http://www.fafsa.ed.gov.  You and your parents both need a PIN of your own.
• Study for your finals.  Mrs. Kunde will send your 7th semester transcript to all colleges you have told her you have applied to the first week of January.  Keep your grades up!
• Enjoy your Christmas Break, your college application process is over!    

January

• Complete your FAFSA and any other financial aid from your colleges require (i.e. CSS/Finanical Aid Profile, specific university form, etc). 
• http://www.fafsa.ed.gov
• http://www.collegeboard.com (CSS/Financial Aid Profile)
•  You will need your tax information to complete the forms.  If you are not at the point of being ready to submit your taxes you can compete the financial aid form using your estimated taxes.  All colleges will request a copy of your tax forms prior to offering a financial aid package.
• Make sure Mrs. Kunde has a list of all colleges that your have applied to so that they receive your 7th semester transcripts.

February, March

• Continue to apply for scholarships!
• Update colleges about any changes that have occurred.
  

April

• Most schools start to send out decision notices in early April.  CSU's and UC's, due to the large number of applicants take longer to process decisions.  Their notices may not come out until the end of April.
• Consider all acceptances before making a final decision.
• Take financial aid into consideration when making your decision. Make comparisons between schools to determine the actual cost at each school. Private may be less expensive than Public. 
  
• Mail your acceptance to one school along with your deposit prior to the deadline (usually by May 15th).   
  

  

Juniors
September

• Take a demanding course schedule.  Colleges look closely at your junior year classes.
• Focus on your strengths.  Narrow down your activities to those you excel at.  Colleges want to see a person who does a quality job in their areas of strength as opposed to seeing a large quantity of activities that they are mediocre at.
• Go beyond basic graduation requirements in your classes.
• develop a rapport with your teachers.  These are the people who will be writing your recommendations next year.
• Look for opportunities to participate in Leadership positions in academic or extracurricular activities.
• Get extra help from teachers or a tutor if you are struggling in a class.  You need to keep your grades up!

October

• Take the PSAT/NMSQT.  LHSSD administers this exam on campus for all 9th-11th grade students.  You do not need to sign-up.
• Attend college fairs and talk to representatives of colleges you are interested in.  All on-campus college visits and off-campus fairs are listed on Mrs. Kunde's College Counseling Page. 
  
• Sign on to College Board for college information and searches.  In addition, you are eligible to log-on to My College Quick Start on http://www.collegeboard.com because you have taken the PSAT.  This is a very useful site.

January-June

• Request information from colleges you are interested in.  The more information you can find out about a college the better decision you will be able to make about keeping it on your list.
• Do a practice SAT test.  http://www.collegeboard.com  gives a SAT question of the day.
• Plan on visiting colleges.  The best time to visit a colleges are when they are in session.  You want to see what the school is like when students are present and professors are teaching.  Talk to the students to get a real feel for the school.  Admissions counselors  are paid to sell the school.
• Take the SAT in May or June.  Register at http://www.collegeboard.com.
  
• Take the SAT Subject Exam for any subjects you have just completed that you are strong in.

July-August

• Narrow down your college choices.  You want to get your list down to 3-5 schools.
• Develop a three-level college list:

Reach Schools (highly selective): These are schools that you may only meet the minimum requirements for acceptance, but you would go there if you were admitted (i.e. your dream school if acceptance or financial aid was not an issue).

Possible Schools (very selective): These are schools that you will more than likely admitted.  You meet the requirements for admission and you have a more than 50% chance of being admitted.

Safety Schools (selective): These are schools that you most likely would be admitted based on your school record, test scores, and other background information.   

• If you have done well in a course that has a corresponding SAT Subject Exam sign-up to that the June SAT Subject Exam.  This can be done at http://www.collegeboard.com.
• Our school code for registering for exams is 051339.