What to Do the Summer Before Your Senior Year

1     Rest and Have Fun (You’ve Earned it!)

2     Do something productive You can write about your experience on college and scholarship applications: summer class, summer program, volunteer work, job

3     Start working on college/scholarship essays. If you write an essay on each of these topics, you will likely be able to adapt them to many different applications. (What experiences have made you the person you are today? AND Why do you need this scholarship?) We have people that can help you revise and edit your essays, so contact Mrs. Stanley if you want help with that.

4     Think about what future career you want to pursue and find out what you need to take in college to get there. If you don’t know, take Naviance quizzes that can help you narrow it down. (Go to About Me in Naviance to take the quizzes)

5    Think about what college is a good fit for you.

Financially: Find out how much the tuition costs are for the colleges you are interested in. Be sure to factor in cost of housing if the college is outside of Houston. Ask your parents how much money they make and how much they can give you for college. If your parents make less than $60,000 a year, there’s a good chance you can get up to $10,000 for college. If they make more than that, you may not get any grant money. You are still eligible for academic and private scholarships. No matter what your situation, you should apply for as many scholarships as possible. Don’t wait. The prime scholarship time is from August-April.

Location: Decide if you want to stay in Houston, in Texas or even in the USA.

Size: Do you want a small college or a large university?

Major: Colleges offer a variety of majors. Make sure the one you want is offered at the school you choose.

Visit: If you can, go see the school and get a feel for it to see if it’s right for you.

Naviance: There are tools on Naviance that can help you find a good college match.

        SAT: Figure out if you need to retake the SAT. Compare your score to the average scores at the colleges you want to attend. If your score is too low for those schools, sign up on www.collegeboard.org. Take the August (best) or October test. Be sure to study beforehand or you will get the same score.

7     Order a tax transcript from the IRS for your parents and yourself. www.irs.gov This year most students had to turn in tax transcripts, so they could finish their FAFSA (financial aid application). If you get it now, you will have no delays in completing your FAFSA. Also make sure your parents have a copy of their 2017 taxes when you need to apply to FAFSA.

8    Contact Mrs. Stanley if you need help. She will be available Mondays-Thursdays in June and Mondays-Fridays in August. Email her to ask questions or set-up an appointment.