I had a difficult conversation with one of my students today. She is bright, articulate, mature, and eager to pursue a college education but is undocumented. Unfortunately, undocumented students can not receive government financial aid.
The good news is that undocumented students can receive scholarships as long as being a US citizen is not a specific criteria for the scholarship. Check this link http://www.e4fc.org/studentresources/scholarshiplists.html for an excellent source of scholarships that all high school students can apply for regardless of immigration status. Don't forget that colleges are also a good source of financial aid and undocumented students should make sure to discuss their financial need with the financial aid office at the college they would like to attend. Many colleges can provide collegiate grants and scholarships for undocumented students.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Community College Early Decision
If your high school has an Early Decision program with the local community college you should take advantage of the opportunity. There are two big benefits of community college early decision. First, you will be able to register for your classes ahead of all other new students. This is huge as community colleges are packed and many students aren't able to get the classes they need/want. Second, you will be completely enrolled, registered, and have your classes arranged before the end of senior year. You can relax over the summer and smoothly, easily start school at your community college in the fall.
Friday, February 11, 2011
I'm bilingual, do I have to take two years of foreign language?
My bilingual students have recently been asking me about meeting the college A-G requirements and the foreign language piece. One clever student reasonably asked if he could, "use English as his foreign language." No, sorry. But there are many ways for bilingual students to meet the foreign language requirement. The easiest option is taking the SAT Subject Test in your native language. If you score well, the foreign language requirement is waived. Unfortunately, there isn't an SAT Subject Test in every language. If your language isn't tested, you can have your high school certify your fluency and make a note of it on your transcript. This method also waives the foreign language requirement.
Of course, another way to think about this question is to realize that if you are already fluent in two languages, picking up a third language would make you even more competitive for college and employment. Go ahead and take those two years of foreign language and you'll be on your way to being trilingual!
Of course, another way to think about this question is to realize that if you are already fluent in two languages, picking up a third language would make you even more competitive for college and employment. Go ahead and take those two years of foreign language and you'll be on your way to being trilingual!
Friday, February 4, 2011
I have low SAT scores, can I still go to college?
Folks, its only a test. (You do know the College Board is making a profit from SAT takers, right?) So the answer is YES! of course you can go to college... so what, you suck at taking the SAT. There isn't a college admission officer alive who won't admit that SAT scores are not a valid predictor of how a student will do in college. Even the College Board was forced to admit that high school GPA is the best predictor of college success, not the SAT. That's right: GPA is the best predictor of college success.
Can you forget about your SAT scores? Just blow them off? No, colleges do look at them so you want to make sure you get the best score you can but please, keep it in perspective. The higher your GPA the less your SAT scores matter. If you have a solid GPA (3.5 or higher) you can be perfectly content with a mediocre SAT score (450-500 on each section) as it is your high school GPA that the colleges care the most about. And don't forget the other college admissions factors: what else you've been doing with your time (composing music, becoming an Eagle Scout, working to help support your family, etc) and those impressively hard Advanced Placement classes you've been taking. These factors all work together to boost you into the college of your dreams.
If you aren't great at the SAT: make yourself great at something else and colleges will be bending over backwards to admit you.
Can you forget about your SAT scores? Just blow them off? No, colleges do look at them so you want to make sure you get the best score you can but please, keep it in perspective. The higher your GPA the less your SAT scores matter. If you have a solid GPA (3.5 or higher) you can be perfectly content with a mediocre SAT score (450-500 on each section) as it is your high school GPA that the colleges care the most about. And don't forget the other college admissions factors: what else you've been doing with your time (composing music, becoming an Eagle Scout, working to help support your family, etc) and those impressively hard Advanced Placement classes you've been taking. These factors all work together to boost you into the college of your dreams.
If you aren't great at the SAT: make yourself great at something else and colleges will be bending over backwards to admit you.
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