Central Catholic College Counseling
Class of 2022 - June 2021
What can you do this summer to prepare for college applications?
- Register for one or more of the Common Application Classes -- see below.
Use Naviance Student to search for prospective colleges.
- Research colleges using Naviance Student. Use criteria that's important to you -- major, location, campus environment, diversity, opportunities, etc.
- Add prospective colleges to the Colleges I'm Thinking about List.
- Use the Compare Me and Scattergram tools to compare your GPA to Central Catholic students who have applied and been admitted in the past.
Research careers – research hundreds of careers and career clusters, and take career assessments.
Talk to your parents! Get their input and advice!
Email nmartin@centralcatholichigh.org for a Naviance Student password. Both parents and students can have a login that is synced to the student's Naviance Student profile.
- Get ready to Ask for Letters of Recommendation! See below for specific directions and what you can do now to be ready on day 1 of senior year!
- What about the SAT or ACT? Many colleges are not requiring test scores for the Class of 2022. See below for current test information. If needed, you could take the SAT Test on Aug 28 and/or Oct 2 or the ACT test on Sept 11 and/or Oct 23.
- Practice for SAT or ACT! If you plan on taking the SAT or ACT in the summer or fall, it's always a good idea to prepare! Many of you took the practice PSAT through Compass earlier this month. Compass should have emailed your scores and information about test prep. Khan Academy is another test prep tool and it's free. See below for more information about.
- NetPrice Calculator - Estimate how much a school will cost by completing a NetPrice Calculator for each school on your list. See below for more information.
Summer before Senior Year
Senior Year (typical timeline)
Common Application Class!
The class is designed for rising seniors applying to colleges using the Common Application. The Common Application is accepted by over 800 colleges and universities including, University of Oregon, Oregon State University, Stanford University, Gonzaga University, University of Portland. A complete list of colleges accepting the Common Application can be found HERE.
The class will cover components of the Common Application such as the list of activities, application deadlines, supplemental questions and essays, and more!
All Seniors are encouraged to attend at least one session but can attend any or all sessions.
Session 1 • Thursday • August 19 • 9:00 - 11:00 AM
Session 2 • Thursday • August 19 • 12:30 – 2:30 PM
Session 3 • Friday • August 20 • 9:00 -11:00 AM
Session 4 • Friday • August 20 • 12:30 - 2:30 PM
No Charge
REGISTER HERE
Questions? contact Mrs. Martin, nmartin@centralcatholichigh.org
Letters of Recommendation!
What do you have to do before a letter will be written for you?
Teachers and counselors need some assistance from you so that they emphasize what’s important to you! Help them help you!
Complete the Letter of Recommendation Survey in Naviance Student (About me > My surveys > Letter of Recommendation Info).
Parents are also welcome to complete the Naviance survey, Family Comments for College Recommendations (About me > My surveys > Family Comments...)
Resume of Activities - Naviance Student has an easy to use resume tool -- or email me a resume and I will upload it to your Naviance account.
LAST BUT IMPORTANT STEP! Tell ME that you have completed all the requirements above (asked, questions done, resume done). Letters will not be in process until you let me know you’ve completed all the steps above!
WHO, WHEN, HOW?
How many letters do you need? USUALLY you will need:
A letter of recommendation from your academic counselor.
A letter of recommendation from 1 teacher - but check your Common Application requirements under college information tab or if it isn't a Common App school check the college's website (or check with me). You may need 2 teachers.
Which teacher should you ask?
A teacher from your junior year if you are applying to college with a November or other fall deadline. If applying for a January or February deadline you could use a senior year teacher.
Teacher of a core subject - MATH, SCIENCE, ENGLISH, SOCIAL STUDIES, WORLD LANGUAGE. If you plan to apply to nursing or engineering schools you should ask a math or science teacher.
When and how should you ask a teacher and your counselor to write for you?
Ask in the fall of your senior year! First come first served! So ask early!
Ask at least 4 weeks prior to your first deadline. We give teachers and counselors 4 weeks from the official request date (the date you tell me you are ready for letters).
Ask in person! "Would you be willing to write me a positive letter of recommendation?"
Should you take the SAT or ACT?
Here are a few of the colleges that will not require a test score for the Class of 2022:
University of Oregon
Oregon State University
Portland State University
All University of California schools (UC Berkeley, UCLA, UCSD, UC Davis, etc)
University of Chicago
I'm sure that there will be more going this route -- so stay tuned for updates!
Consider the following:
Is the SAT/ACT optional for the schools you're applying to? Here's how to find out...
Check out the List of Test Optional Colleges link above. If the school you're looking for does not have information for the Class of 2022 then...
Do a Google search [name of college] application requirements - you're looking for the official page from the college you're applying to.
If the SAT/ACT is optional for your colleges, should you take it?
If you know the SAT is optional for your colleges, then you now need to think about your application packet as a whole. Basically, colleges are assessing two things:
Your academic achievements which includes GPA, course load (how many honors or AP courses you've taken), academic extra curricular such as ConTeam or Robotics Club and possibly an ACT or SAT score.
Who you are as a whole. You will have the opportunity to tell colleges who you are via your personal statement or essay and your list of extra curricular activities including hobbies, service work, work, etc.
How do you know if your GPA is strong enough for admission?
Naviance Student! The compare me tool and/or scattergram tool will give you GPA data for Central Catholic students who have applied and the admission decision.
You can also Google search for [name of college] class profile, then click on the result from the college site. On this page, search for info about the high-school rank of students or their incoming GPA. If you're higher than average, then you're in good shape. If you're a lot higher than average, you're in great shape. You can also find the range of SAT scores for each section here. If you are academically strong, the SAT is optional for your college, and you don't think you can easily get in range or above the range based on taking a practice test, then don't take the test.
If the college has merit-based scholarships, then look into the requirements for those scholarships. It might be that the SAT/ACT plays a role in those awards.
If after all these questions, you don't need to take the SAT/ACT, then start thinking about the other aspects of your application. Do you need to beef up on volunteering? Maybe you want to get in a couple AP classes while you still can. Or, maybe you want to start brainstorming personal statement ideas.
ACT Test Dates 2021-2022
- July 17 - Register by June 18
- Sept 11 - Register by Aug 6
- Oct 23 - Register by Sept 17
- Dec 11- Register by Nov 5
CollegeBoard (the sponsor of the SAT) has eliminated the optional essay portion of the SAT test. I anticipate that the ACT will do the same. My recommendation is to skip the optional essay portion.
REGISTER - HERE
See ACT’s COVID-19 updates HERE. -- Includes information about cancellations and refunds.
FREE ACT PREP - HERE
SAT Test Dates 2021-2022
- Aug 28 - Register by July 30
- Oct 2 - Register by Sept 3
- Nov 6 - Register by Oct 7
- Dec 4 - Register by Nov 5
CollegeBoard has discontinued the optional Essay portion of the SAT test. It will, however, be available through the June 2021 test date. Those students who have registered for an SAT test with writing between now and June can contact the CollegeBoard and ask that their reservation be switched to the SAT without Essay and the difference in fees refunded.
REGISTER - HERE
Most, if not all juniors should already have a CollegeBoard account. DO NOT create a new one -- use the one you have!
NET PRICE CALCULATORS - How much will a college really cost?
Search for Net Price Calculators on each college's financial aid page or search HERE
What is a Net Price Calculator?
Net price calculators are available on a college’s or university’s website and allow prospective students to enter information about themselves to find out what students like them paid to attend the institution in the previous year, after taking grants and scholarship aid into account.
What does Net Price mean?
Net Price is the amount that a student pays to attend an institution in a single academic year AFTER subtracting scholarships and grants the student receives. Scholarships and grants are forms of financial aid that a student does not have to pay back.
Complete a NETPRICE CALCULATOR for each school on your list! Students and parents will need to work together to provide the required information.
Khan Academy as a Test Prep Option
- Create a Khan Academy account -- unless you already have one!
- Add SAT prep to your list of courses.
- You will need to take some diagnostic quizzes to establish a baseline. The goal is to give you deliberate practice in the areas where you need the most help.
- Choose which subject you'd like to focus on first: Math or Reading and Writing. If you choose Math, you will be sent to a series of diagnostic quizzes in math. These quizzes help figure out what you already know and what you need to work on. With this information, the system can craft an ideal practice plan for you.
- After you complete the four diagnostic quizzes, the summary page will lay out your starting skill levels in a variety of math categories. Skill levels change to reflect your mastery.