One of the goals of Advisory is to help students prepare for their post-Paly and career plans. After a successful Career Speaker Series last month, we continued that preparation in several ways - depending on the grade level - this week it is the 10th and 11th graders’ turn.

10th Grade - Sophomores will be learning about Taking Care of Business in Advisory. The main message is there are 6 weeks left of the school year - enough time to make a difference! Understanding where they stand by checking each class on Schoology is key. Students should check to see if they are missing any assignments and communicate with their teachers about what they can make up or improve, and see if any tests might be available for retaking, if needed.

At the end of Advisory, Sophomores will be taking a short survey that we will use for TA placement and Advisory cohort creation for next year.

9th Grade - Next week, Frosh will also hear the Taking Care of Business message. Many proactive tips are shared to make sure students are staying on top of their class work so they can finish strong.

The balance of the Advisory builds on the career theme with an introduction to RoadTrip Nation. This career exploration tool on Naviance is meant to ignite curiosity about possible career choices based on a student’s strengths and interests. Students can listen to short video interviews (8513 are available!) broken into 48 themes and 29 interests with professionals from many different careers.

11th Grade - Juniors are in the middle of a series of Advisories that prepare them for the transition to their post-Paly life. The journey started with a lesson about exploring The Viking Guide a College & Career Planning tool in March, to this week’s lesson about Letters of Recommendation. I know this is a topic of interest to parents, so feel free to read through the lesson slides by clicking here: Letters of Rec Lesson.

Juniors will learn about the College Essay during their next Advisory.

12th Grade - Many seniors are in limbo right now. Most college application outcomes are in, but some students are waitlisted or still waiting to hear back from a few colleges. It can be a difficult time for many (students and parents) who might not have received the results for which they hoped. Jay Mathews, a Washington Post Columnist, wrote a great article titled “So you're bummed because your favorite college said no”. The message is perfectly timed, the article can be read HERE.

Seniors

College Decisions

Senior families may want to review Ms. Cernobori’s April 12 update in the C&CC Class of 2023 Schoology course for advice and practical tips about how to choose among admission offers and select a college. In addition, this blog offers great advice: https://sites.gatech.edu/admission-blog/2022/04/14/5-years-of-advice-for-seniors-making-a-final-college-decision/

If your student is rethinking his/her post high school plans, there are some colleges still accepting freshmen applications for Fall 2023. You can do a search on the Common App (www.commonapp.org) or look at out-of-state public colleges with rolling admission. And NACAC will publish the College Openings list of colleges still accepting Fall 2023 freshmen applications (updated weekly): https://www.nacacnet.org/news--publications/Research/openings

Accepting Admission & Financial Aid

Seniors will submit their intention to enroll (SIR) and any deposit to ONLY ONE college or university by May 1 (typically, the national date is May 1. Be aware that some colleges require multiple actions in order to accept admission (e.g. make a deposit, sign up for orientation, complete housing contracts).

If students are on a wait-list and are later admitted to that institution, they may then accept the offer of admission off the waitlist and send a deposit to that school. However, they must immediately notify the college they previously accepted to indicate they will not be enrolling; it is unlikely the original deposit will be refunded.

Don't forget to help your student accept or deny need-based financial aid awards, too, if applicable.

Colleges will assume students are rejecting an offer of admission if they don't indicate their intent to enroll by the deadline. However, if students are certain of where they will matriculate and want to be courteous to friends on the waitlist, they can let the other colleges know that they do not intend to attend. If there isn't an online mechanism for doing so, sending a short email to the admissions office is sufficient.

Thank You’s
Please encourage your student to update and thank those who helped them during the application process--especially the teachers/TAs who wrote letters on their behalf. Seniors will be asked to formally report their application results in an upcoming Advisory.

Scholarship Program Update

The scholarship committee and/or scholarship sponsors are still reviewing/finalizing the Paly Community Scholarship applications submitted back in January. Selected recipients will be invited (via U.S. Mail) to attend Senior Awards Night on Thursday, May 25.

Juniors

While the advice Brennan Barnard's Forbes article "The College Admission Paradox: Opportunity and Choice" is intended to help seniors choose among their college options, it also features excellent advice about how to approach the college search juniors are actively engaged in, including the "paradox of having too many options." The article highlights the framework for decision making from the last chapter in Barry Schwartz's The Paradox of Choice. You are encouraged to read and discuss this article with your student.

Upcoming College Info Sessions & Fairs

Junior families may want to attend college information sessions or college fairs. Check the college visit calendar on paly.net/college for off-campus events (also listed in Naviance) as well as the college fairs listed as events in the C&CC Class of 2024 Schoology course. For tips on how to prepare for a college fair, see the resources in the College Fair folder in Schoology.