Applications to the U.S. Presentation - Lisgar Collegiate Institute

Lisgar Collegiate Institute
POST-SECONDARY OPTIONS
IN THE UNITED STATES
Friday, September 28, 2012

Applying to the US
• There are over 7,000 US colleges and
universities
• Many factors make the schools very
different

Selecting Schools
• Consider why you want to go the to US
• Can you still attend if you don’t receive a
scholarship or financial aid?
• Online research
• Choose “dreams schools” as well as “backup
schools”
• Be realistic
• Use College Board Match-Maker

College Board Match-Maker

What Matters?
• School marks, grades 9 to 12
• Students took the most academically-challenging
courses offered at their school
• SATs and/or ACT
• Extra-curricular activities – depth and breadth
• Demonstration of leadership
• Teacher recommendations
• Application Essays
• Counsellor Letter

Early Decision
• Early Decision – apply in November, answer in
December
• Early Decision is a binding contract – once
accepted student must withdraw all other
applications, including those in Canada and
Europe
• May only select one school as Early Decision
• Compare early acceptance rates against normal
acceptance rates

Early Action
• Early Action – apply in November, answer
in December
• Early Action is not a binding contract
• Students may choose Early Action for more
than one school

The Common Application
• www.commonapp.org
• 456 schools using Common Application
• Applicant information
• Future plans including financial aid
• Demographics
• Family
• Education

Academics
• Class Rank
• GPA Calculation
• List of courses for the current year
• Academic distinctions or honors

Extracurricular Activities &
Work Experience
• A list of main extracurricular, volunteer, and
work activities
• Listed in order of importance to you
• Writing section gives an opportunity to
elaborate on one of your extracurricular or
work experiences
• Option to attach a resume

Essay Prompts
• Essay 250-500 words
• Helps schools become acquainted with you as a
person and student, apart from courses, grades,
test scores, and other objective data
• Six prompts to choose from
Ex: Evaluate a significant experience, achievement,
risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have
faced and its impact on you.

Teacher Evaluation
• Choose two teachers that have taught you an
academic subject, ideally during grade 11
• Teachers are asked to comment on how long
they have known you and in what context
• Teacher Rating
• Written Evaluation
• Letters are taken very seriously and a good letter
takes time

School Report
• Completed by school counsellor
• Confirm school information
• Confirm student’s academic information
• Rating
• Written Evaluation
• Letters are taken very seriously and a good
letter takes time

Other School Reports
• Midyear Report – Will be completed after
semester one
• Final Report – Will be completed after
semester two, if student has chosen to
attend a school in the US
• Optional Grade Report

Student Responsibilities
• Research schools and requirements
• Create a realistic list of schools for your
profile
• Meet and manage all deadlines
• Write SATs, SAT Subject Tests, ACT,
TOEFL
• When offered an interview – Do whatever
you can to make the date and time work!

Counsellor Responsibilites
• To create and upload School Profile
• To upload Counsellor Letter
• To answer questions
• Provide support and direction throughout
the process

SAT
• Standardized test for college admission
• Recommend that students write their first SAT at
least the summer before grade 12
• October, November, December, January, May,
June test dates
• Not all schools require SATs from International
students
• No limit on the number of times it is taken
• Register at www.collegeboard.org
• Lisgar School Code: 826462

SAT
• 90 percent of the SAT material has been covered
by grade 9
• All SAT content has been covered by the end of
grade 10
• Three components of SAT
• Critical Reading (200-800 points)
• Math Problem-Solving (200-800 points)
• Writing (200-800 points)
• 3 Hours and 45 minutes in length

SAT Subject Test
• Multiple Choice format
• 1 hour in length
• Score out of 800
• Can be used to compensate for low mark
somewhere else, or to enhance an
application
• Common App allows up to eight SAT
Subject Tests

ACT
• All content covered by the end of grade 10
• English and Math components
• October, December, January, February,
April, June test dates
• ACT is not necessarily easier than SAT
• Some US schools translate ACT scores
into SAT scores
• www.actstudent.org

Financing School
• Financial Aid is sometimes available to Canadian
Students
• Needs-Blind – student applications are judged on
their merits
• Needs-Aware – colleges review applications and
need for financial together
• The Federal portion of OSAP may be used for
Foreign Study if the school is on the Government
of Canada’s designated colleges list
(www.CanLearn.ca)
• www.fastweb.com

Applying to the US - Tips
• Be a different applicant through:
• Your personal statement
• Community service and involvement
• Leadership skills
• Extra curricular activities
• Your academic record
• Excellent letters of recommendation
• Telling schools who you are outside of the
classroom