Senior Planning
Planning for the Future
Senior Information
Senior year of high school is full of many important events and rites of passage (like sitting in white chairs on your first AND last day at Poway High). But there are also a lot of things you can be doing to prep for your future. This newsletter is designed to help with your journey.
You can find some of the specific information from the Senior Homeroom Presentations on our power point presentation here and you can see the packet that was given out here.
Calendar for the Class of 2024
9/19 - Financial Aid Night at 6 pm in the Poway Performing Arts Center
9/25 - UC 101 College Workshop during Homeroom (K-1)
9/26 - Letter of Recommendation Workshop in the Titan Center during lunch
9/29 - Community College 101 Workshop during Homeroom (K-1)
10/1 - FAFSA application is postponed until Dec 2023 www.fafsa.ed.gov
10/9 - CSU Workshop during Homeroom (K-1)
11/1 deadline - College/Scholarship, Letters of Recommendation. Submit packet to your counselor by October 10
11/15 deadline - College/Scholarship, Letters of Recommendation. Submit packet to your counselor by October 24
Make sure if you are going to a UC/CSU you are A-G compliant
- Finish your last NCAA Core Courses
- Submit SAT/ACT scores to NCAA using Code 9999
- Complete NCAA Eligibility Center account questions
- Ask Registrar to submit final official transcript to NCAA Eligibility Center
PHS College App Workshops
4-Year Schools
Besides getting a deeper and more thorough education, there are many benefits to attending a college or university. You can discover your passions, challenge yourself, expand your worldview, and, meet new people. Frequently, job searches rely as heavily on who you know as they do on your degree. Below are some helpful links for your college application process.
Cal State Apply - The application site for the 23 California State University schools
UC Admissions - The application site for the 9 University of California schools
Common App - The application for over 800 private schools
Coalition App - The application for the 140 schools in the Coalition
CA Private Colleges - Connections for California's Private Colleges
Factors Affecting College Admission
- High school grade point average in A-G classes
- Standardized and College Prep Test Scores
- Number, content, and performance in academic courses beyond the minimum eligibility requirements
- Number of and performance in honors or AP courses
- Quality of the senior year program, as measured by the type and number of academic courses in progress or planned
- Quality of academic performance relative to educational opportunities available in the applicant's school
- Recent marked improvement in academic performance
- Special talents, achievements, and awards
- Academic accomplishments in light of an applicant's life experiences and special circumstances, such as disabilities, low family income, first generation to attend college, need to work, disadvantaged social or educational environment, difficult personal and family situations
Palomar Promise
Community College Info
Community College is a great option for many students. Seniors are eligible to attend upon the completion of a high school diploma or GED. The SAT or ACT is not required, however may help with the placement of courses. Many students attend for 2-3 years before transferring to a college or university to complete their degrees. There are several transfer programs available and it is recommended to meet with a counselor at the community college to review your options. Please note that each College has an allotted amount of spots for transfer students and will be considered before another student who may want to transfer from a 4-year University. Below are some helpful links for the Community College process.
California Community Colleges - A site with info about the many college options
Palomar College - The application site for Palomar College
San Diego Community College - The admissions site for the SD Community Colleges
Mira Costa College - The application site for Mira Costa College
Grossmont College - The application site for Grossmont College
Community College Transfer
Scholarship & Financial Aid Resources
Looking for scholarships? Our PHS website has lots of resources to check for scholarship opportunities. Our scholarship deadline log is updated as they become available. Generally, the local scholarship season is January – June so you won’t see as many opportunities right now. It’s still a good idea to regularly check scholarship websites for national scholarships and colleges for merit scholarships.
College can be expensive. Even Community College can come with unexpected cash flows. Below you will find some sites with information about how to pay the bills.
FAFSA - The Free Application for Federal Student Aid
Student Aid - Federal student aid programs
FinAid - The SmartStudent Guide to Financial Aid
Saving For College - Get personalized information to help with saving for college
Letters of Rec Info
Letter of Rec Workshop On September 26th in the Titan Center at lunch.
If your college application is due on November 1st, the deadline to request Letters of Rec is Friday, October 10th!
The deadline to request Letters of Rec for January 1st is Friday, November 3rd.
- UC's/CSU's - Letters of Rec are not part of the initial application. Only send a Letter of Recommendation if requested by the University.
- Private schools usually require one counselor letter of recommendation and 1-2 teacher letters of recommendation. Use the Common Application if possible!
- These deadlines are for both counselors and teachers and you need to ask them in-person.
APPLICATION & PROCEDURES
Career Info
For students who aren't planning to go straight to college, working toward a career may be a good option. These students can get a jump start on building up their bank accounts. Below are some helpful links for finding and starting the career path.
CA Career Resource Network - Resource for career exploration and planning
CA Career Zone - A Vocational Assessment Site
Cal Jobs - A job search website
SD Workforce Partnership - A site with local jobs information
ABC Apprenticeships
SDFD Cadet Program
Military Info
Some students plan to serve the country after graduation. If you are planning to go to one of the Service Academies, click here to get information about getting a nomination for a Service Academy from your congressman.
For students wanting to join the military right after high school, you can find information on the process here.
Poway High Counseling
Counselors
A - DAG: Karly Wardwell
DAH - HOC: Jerrah Smith
HOD - MCG: Tanya Ibrahim
MCH - RUE: Blanca Arreguin
RUF - Z: Jerilyn Padua-Reyes
CTE/Student Services: Monica Taylor
Support Staff
Career Guidance Tech: Jaime Brown
Registrar: Michelle Bourget
Scheduler: Jodie Hughes
Administration
Assistant Principals:
A-F: Gannon Burks
G-M: Monique Kanouse
N-Z: Michael Gizzo
Principal:
Email: jbrown@powayusd.com
Website: http://www.powayusd.com/phs
Location: 15500 Espola Rd, Poway, CA, USA
Phone: (858)748-0245