October 2018: 12th Grade
MDHS Counseling Newsletter
12th Grade Monarchs
Happy Fall, Seniors!
It was wonderful to meet with you all through your English classes last month to go over college applications. Try your best to keep organized with your upcoming application deadlines and the different documents that need to be submitted. Your counselors are here to help if you have any questions.
Make sure to come to Life After High School: College & Career Night on Tuesday October 9th. You will have the opportunity to speak with visiting college and program reps and learn more through our workshops sessions!
If you qualified for CSF, sign-ups will be on October 23rd - 26th.
Please note your college application deadlines and request letters of recommendation early. For applications due with a December 1 to January 15 Deadline, your counselor needs to know and have a submitted copy of your Senior Guidance Questionnaire by October 26th.
Also available to you is our College Planning Resources and Senior Year Calendar. A schedule of College Rep Visits is now listed on our main counseling website.
Application Workshops & Review
Tuesday October 16: Common App Workshop
Monday October 22: UC Workshop
Tuesday October 30: Cal State Application Workshop
Tuesday November 6: Common App Workshop
Thursday November 8: UC Workshop
Monday November 12: Cal State Application Workshop
Life After High School: College & Career Night 2018
MD's Annual College & Career Info Night is Tuesday, October 9th. Mark your calendars! All students and their families are welcome to attend. Wellness and Future Planning Seminar Workshops begin @ 4:45PM and a Fair begins @ 6PM.
Over 100 college and universities (2 and 4 year), technical/vocational schools, and military & service academies will be represented! Don't miss this opportunity to explore your future and get some questions answered.
Financial Aid
Get started by reviewing the 7 things you need before you fill out the FAFSA.
SAT/ACT
Mock Exams
- Dates: Saturdays October 20 and October 27
- Time: 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM
- Location: Mater Dei High school--500 & 600 Wings. Students will be notified of their test location through rosters posted on LeVecke or on the doors of the classrooms located in the 500 & 600 Wings.
- Cost: $15 per exam with discount code MD10
- To Register: Go to https://store.triedandtruetutoring.com/collections/southern-california/products/mater-dei-hs-fall-2018. You can take one test on one date. For example, you can take a mock SAT exam on one Saturday and ACT on the next, but you cannot take a mock SAT and ACT on the same day
Official Tests
If you have not taken a test yet, register for a date ASAP! December SAT & ACT testing dates are the last dates most colleges will accept scores.
- To register for the official SAT with writing and/or SAT Subject Tests: www.collegeboard.org
- To register for the official ACT with writing: www.actstudent.org
For College Applications
Please remember that you must send official SAT/ACT scores to colleges in addition to self-reporting your scores. You can send your official scores by going to collegeboard.org (SAT) and act.org (ACT). Please note that if you are applying to UC campuses, you will need to send scores to just one UC school. All UC campuses you apply to will receive your scores if you send to one campus. You can also send scores to just one Cal State University, and they will also be shared with all campuses you apply to. This can help you save on the cost of sending scores.
Service Hours
Service Hours are a requirement for graduation here at MD, and your next 10 hours of Christian Service must be completed and submitted through MobileServe by November 26, 2018. If you have any questions, please speak to Mrs. Hopkins in Campus Ministry. To graduate from MD, you will need at least 80 hours total of service, with at least 40 hours of direct service. You also need to complete a service hours reflection.
If you love to serve, Mater Dei honors students who complete 400+ hours by spring of their senior year with a Christian Service Program Cord.
Letters of Recommendation/Transcripts
If you need to send an official transcript, please order your official transcripts online through Parchment, www.parchment.com. You can order hard copies or electronic copies of your transcript from Parchment. For example, you can order your transcript to be sent directly to the "Common Application" for Common App Colleges. Please remember to select "Common Application" as the recipient, and not each individual college. The PDF below outlines the steps to ordering your transcript to the Common Application. Please remember that you do not need to send a transcript to the UCs or Cal States unless the college specifically requests you to send one.
Transcripts sent now (select "send now") will include grades through second semester of junior year. You must order a transcript in the fall in order for your counselor to submit your Letter of Recommendation to Common Application. Approximately one in three colleges that are part of the Common App will also request a Mid-Year Report, for which you will order a transcript at the beginning of spring semester senior year, to include your first semester senior year grades. At the end of senior year, you will order a final transcript, including your second semester senior year, to the college/program you choose to attend. When ordering your final transcript, please be sure to select "hold for grades" instead of sending now.
Transcript/Parchment Timeline:
Fall - Order August to December | "Send Now"
Spring - Order Mid-January | "Send Now", if Mid-Year required by Common App or college requests
Final Transcript - Order May-June | "Hold for Grades"
If you have completed enrichment courses outside of MDHS, request an official transcript from that school/program be sent to the colleges you apply to, and to any other school that asks for a transcript as part of its application. For UC/Cal States, you can order the transcript from your enrichment class at the end of the year, when you request your final MDHS transcript to be sent, or only if you specifically requested to do so by a college.
Common Application
If you are applying to any colleges on the Common App, please remember to:
- Select a admission plan/deadline for each college
- Invite your counselor as a recommender and submit Senior Guidance Questionnaire
- If needed, invite your teacher recommenders and assign them to colleges
- Order your official transcript through Parchment to Common App
CSU & UC Applications
- October 1-November 30, application submission period for all California State University (CSU) campuses https://www2.calstate.edu/apply
CSU Freshmen Application Checklist - November 1-November 30, application submission period for all University of California (UC) campuses https://admissions.universityofcalifornia.edu/applicant/login.htm
Presenting Yourself on the UC Application
UC Application Guide - All applications are due by November 30th!
CSF Sign-Ups
A CSF Ceremony/Meeting will be held Wednesday, December 7, 2018, at 7:30AM, LeVecke Center. All CSF Members must attend!
If a student has been in CSF for four (4) semesters (do not have to be consecutive) and one of the semesters is for grades earned during the first semester of the senior year, they qualify as a Sealbearer. Sealbearers will be recognized in the graduation program, and in the spring, they will be given a gold cord at the Senior Awards Ceremony. This cord will be worn with their gown at the graduation ceremony and they will also receive a gold seal on their diplomas.
Student Athletes: NCAA and NAIA
MD Wellness
Please consider attending our student and parent Health & Wellness Seminar which will be part of our Life After High School: College & Career Night on October 9, 2018. This seminar is held during of the second seminar session and will be 6-7pm.
Mater Dei High School Counseling Department
Website: https://www.materdei.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=70016&type=d&pREC_ID=237246
Location: Mater Dei High School, 1202 W Edinger Avenue, Santa Ana, CA 92707