Planning for College
Posted by AdminLinkEd
January 27, 2009, 2:11 pm
We know the college application process can be quite a whirlwind, so we thought we would share some great tips on how to best prepare for college. To do that, the LinkEducation team interviewed Dan Blednick, Director of College Guidance at TEAK Fellowship. The TEAK Fellowship helps talented New York City students from low-income families gain admission to and succeed at top high schools and colleges. Along with academic support, TEAK provides leadership training, exposure to the arts and outdoors, mentoring, career experience, and assistance with the high school and college application processes. Through TEAK, Dan has worked with over 100 students and has helped them gain admission to a wide variety of colleges and universities, from the Ivy League to larger state schools. Sit back, grab an ice cold glass of lemonade and start thinking of the possibilities!
At what age should students start preparing for college?
Some parents get carried away and start preparing their elementary school student for college; that is a little too early for a student to really understand what kind of academic environment best suits his or her learning style. I think it is good to initiate some dialogue about what fields could potentially interest your child in middle school, but the real planning should start in the ninth grade. In ninth grade they need to make sure their child is on track to take the right classes later on in high school. Sometimes I see students not taking the most challenging course load in ninth grade, which means they can’t take the courses like calculus or Advanced Placement (AP) when they get to 12thgrade. Since colleges put quite an emphasis on the rigor of a student’s courseload, you want to put yourself in a position to stand out.
I also recommend that early in high school families step foot on a college campus to get a feel for campus life and what atmosphere fits the student best. It doesn’t matter the name of the college or if your child is interested in attending, it just helps them determine what they like or don’t like about college and campus and can help gauge what types of schools they should consider applying to in the future.
How do you identify what college is a good fit for the student?
It is based on a variety of factors:
1) What is your main academic interest? Keep in mind that the most popular college major is “I changed my mind!”
2) How far away from home do you want to be? The answer to this question varies widely from student to student. It is important to gauge each particular student’s comfort zone in terms of how far from home they wish to be.
3) Do you want an urban, suburban or rural environment? Often students who come from New York are used to having access to a lot of amenities and wish to be in a college environment that they will not find too boring. However, some wrongly assume that they need to be in an urban area to meet those needs. I have seen many students who have this impression initially, but after visiting a few colleges that are “in the middle of nowhere” they realize that the campus and college communities have so much to offer that they don’t even miss the big city.
4) Do you want a large or small school? Different students learn in different ways. Some like to develop a close bond with their teachers, others prefer to absorb the material in the relative anonymity of a large lecture hall.
Little factors sometimes make a big difference: It can even be as trivial as if the cold weather puts them in a bad mood. It’s important for students to be true to themselves. If the student is true to themselves, finding the right fit for that student is going to be easier.
How do you normally do the research to find the schools that are out there?
There are a number of resources. The Internet can be helpful, but it can become boring. Use your network – friends, family, and especially students that graduated recently. Spending 20 minutes on Facebook or asking friends can really give you much more information than other resources and can help you figure out what type of people benefit from certain types of schools. High schools often have college fairs where college reps will come; that’s a great chance to check out a variety of schools and talk about potential majors.
How many schools do you recommend students apply to?
8-12. This numbers varies depending on how much the family relies on financial aid. If you are heavily reliant on financial aid, apply to more schools so you can compare financial aid packages. Also look very closely at the state universities. Here in New York State, we have an amazing network of state universities where tuition is only a fraction of what it would be at a private institution. In addition, all students’ lists should be “balanced” – that is, comprised of a small number of schools where that particular applicant may be a “long shot,” as well as a few where that student knows that have a “good shot” at gaining admission. For the remaining schools, the applicant should feel that while admission is not guaranteed, they are “in the ballpark” in terms of average GPA and SAT/ACT scores for admitted students.
Once you find the schools that you want to apply to, do you reach out to the school or take any action other than the application?
The first thing is to meet college reps in your area. The second is to visit the campus: sit in on an info session, read the school newspaper, try to interact with the students, sit in the student center. Once a student identifies their top 5 colleges, it can be helpful to spend an overnight to really determine the college’s potential. Most colleges have overnight options to allow prospective students to get a real feel of the campus. A lot of times, if it’s the right fit, the student will just know and have “that” feeling.
Can you give any advice on the financial aid process?
The financial aid process begins just as early as the college application process. Financial aid comes from two sources: the school (private) and government money.
There are different steps for each pool of money. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) needs to be completed for federal money (and takes about an hour to complete) and you will need your previous year’s tax return, W2’s, bank statements, and any retirement account information. www.FAFSA.ed.gov has a lot of useful tips about how to fill out the form. It is based on family income and assets, and is never available until January 1st of the year you are going to college. I recommend that students submit their FAFSA as soon after January 1st as possible. Parents: you don’t have to wait until you file your tax return to complete these financial aid forms. In fact, you SHOULD NOT wait that long. By using your W2’s and bank statements, you can estimate the numbers fairly accurately. A neat new tool on that website it the “FAFSA Forecaster,” which enables families to get an early estimate of their EFC (estimated family contribution) - what they will be potentially paying to the college.
To qualify for private money you need to complete a CSS Profile. College Board www.collegeboard.com has a lot of useful information to help you with the Profile. Many colleges require the CSS Profile to be submitted on or before their application deadline, which is usually around January 1. Again, parents will be providing estimates based on their previous year’s tax return and current pay stubs, etc.
In addition to the FAFSA and CSS Profile, some schools have their own financial aid form. I recommend that students check the financial aid site at each school to which they are applying in order to find out which of their schools requires their own form. You don’t want to miss one of those!!
What do programs like TEAK do to prepare for SATs and the college application process? Are there any websites, books, or general advice you could give for people who would like to do this at home?
We encourage our students as early as 8th grade to improve their vocabulary. For building vocabulary, an interesting website is FreeRice.com. For every correct response received on FreeRice.com, there will be 50 grains of rice added to the world food bank. Kids tend to think this is more fun than flashcards.
We also get the students to take a Summer SAT class prior to junior year (when they usually take SAT for first time). In spring of junior year after they take the test, we assess their scores and figure out a plan for the summer. TEAK has some drastic increases on the SAT with as much as 150 pt improvement on each section.
There are lots of resources on the collegeboard.com website to help you improve your score. They have some practice tests and are generally helpful at identifying which SAT subject tests are appropriate for a student.
Programs like TEAK are great for helping kids get into college; how can a parent apply to TEAK?
The application process takes about 6 months and begins in the fall of the student’s 7th grade year. Throughout the fall we hold info session for parents and the application is due in the winter. The final class is selected after a round of standardized testing in the spring. Last year’s incoming class was 30 students from 4 out of the 5 boroughs. I would encourage any parent interested in learning more about our application process to visit our website at www.teakfellowship.org.
If TEAK is not the right fit for their kid, but they are looking for a similar program, can you recommend any other college prep programs or courses?
Prep for Prep and the Oliver Program are other very strong academic programs here in the city. There are many others as well, and often middle school guidance counselors are great resources for parents looking to tap into programs like TEAK. Also, students can take advantage of summer classes at local universities. Columbia University has some great (sometimes free!) options for students who live in certain parts of Manhattan.
