MHS School Counseling Newsletter

Junior Post-Secondary Planning Edition 2024

Junior families,

We are rapidly approaching the end of the year and it's time for juniors to start thinking about their plan for after high school! We know that this process can be overwhelming but we are here to help along the way. We created this newsletter specifically for juniors and their families because we know how much information needs to be shared. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us at anytime throughout this process!

Most of the following information is geared towards the four-year college process since majority of our students pursue that path after high school. However, there are many other paths to choose, such as..

- 2-year/community college

- Certificate programs

- Gap year

- Employment

- Military

- Apprenticeship

Some of these can also be done in combination with one another. We will discuss individual plans with all students and families in one-on-one post-secondary planning meetings.

- Amy Petroskey, Nicole Fernald, and Dana MacPhee

Recent Events

We held our Junior Family Post-Secondary Planning Night on March 25th. Thank you to those who were able to join us! We reviewed the entire post-secondary and college planning process during this event.

- For those of you who were not able to join us, you can watch the recorded event here

- View the slides from the presentation here

On April 1st, we went into the junior history classrooms to start our lesson on what to expect throughout the college application process. In this lesson, we focused on the college search, creating your college list, standardized testing, and college visits. We will be doing a second lesson with juniors the week after April break and will be focusing on the components of the college application, the college essay, letters of recommendation, and what to do between now and the fall. Students completed a college search through mefapathway.org during this lesson.

- View the slides from the April 1st lesson here

Next Steps

Meet with your school counselor!

We know that this process is lengthy and can be complicated. We want to meet individually with you and your student. In these meetings we will review graduation requirements, and discuss your student's post-secondary plan so that we are able to provide individualized support. Please come with any questions you may have! We will be meeting with students and families throughout the spring.

To schedule your meeting please visit the calendar link of your school counselor

Amy Petroskey (last names A-La)

Nicole Fernald (last names Lb-Z)

Dana MacPhee (last names throughout the alphabet) - please email her directly to schedule a meeting at dmacphee@maynard.k12.ma.us

If the times on the calendar don't work for you, please email or call the school counselor to set up a different time. We look forward to working with you throughout this process!

Complete the Caregiver Brag Sheet

School counselors will automatically write a letter of recommendation for any student who needs one for their post-secondary plan. In order to this letter, we ask students to fill out a brag sheet in the fall so that we can get some additional information to include in our letter. However, we know that not all students are eager to brag about themselves, so we have created a Caregiver Brag Sheet for families to fill out to help us get some additional information. This is completely optional, but we do appreciate it.

Get Organized!

The college application process has lots of moving parts and the best way to manage everything is to stay organized! There are many things to keep track of when researching colleges - application deadlines, financial aid deadlines, cost of attendance, application requirements, etc. We encourage all students to find an organization system that works best for them, whether this is a notebook, folder, or a spreadsheet. Here is a sample college research spreadsheet that students can make a copy of and use themselves.

Upcoming College Fairs

National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) College Fair

Both dates are hosted at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center 415 Summer St. Boston, MA

May 2nd from 9am-12pm and 6-8:30pm

May 3rd from 9am-12pm

New England Association for College Admission Counseling (NEACAC) College Fair

This fair is being hosted in multiple locations throughout the spring

- Sunday May 5th from 6-8pm at Merrimack College in North Andover, MA

- Wednesday May 29th from 5:30-7:30pm at Assumption University in Worcester, MA

- Thursday May 30th 9-11am and 12-1pm at Bridgewater State University in Bridgewater, MA

Helpful Links and Resources

MEFA Website - MEFA is the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority. It provides tons of resources about the financial aid process and the college application process. In the fall, they offer lots of webinars on the overview of financial aid.

Financial Aid 101 Webinar - Wednesday May 8th from 6:30-7:30pm - This webinar will provide information and clarity on the entire college financial aid application process. You'll learn about financial aid applications and types of financial aid, the factors that determine your aid eligibility, how colleges determine the amount of aid to offer, and the details of financial aid offers. Live transcription will be available. This webinar is often held multiple times a week in the fall, closer to when the FAFSA opens up

Scholarship Resource List - some information about where to start researching scholarships

College Visit Tips for Parents

New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) Tuition Break Program - This program enables New England residents to enroll at out-of-state New England public colleges and universities at a discounted rate for certain approved programs

MA Transfer Program - This program allows students to start at a community college and earn their associates degree with a guaranteed transfer option to a public four-year college in MA. This program provides students with a handful of benefits such as a freeze on tuition, guaranteed transfer with a certain GPA, no application fee, etc.

MA Independent College Transfer Guarantee - A similar program to MA transfer, but for some private four-year colleges within MA

Guide for the College-Bound Athlete - This NCAA guide covers everything about the college process for students who are hoping to be college athletes at either Division 1 or Division 2 schools

Standardized Testing Information

During the pandemic, most schools stopped requiring standardized test scores as part of their admissions criteria. Many schools made the test scores optional and some schools enacted a test blind policy, meaning that they do not consider the scores at all and will not look at them as part of a student's application. However, we are beginning to see more and more schools bring back the standardized testing requirement, so we do encourage students to sit for the SAT or ACT and want to encourage students to sit for a test this spring. There are also tests in the fall if students want to re-test, or if they are not able to make any of the spring testing dates.

There are still many schools that do not require standardized test scores. The website fairtest.org lists all of the schools that are both test optional and schools that are completely test blind.

SATs - Students must register at collegeboard.org through their College Board account

May 4th test - register by April 19th to avoid late registration fee

June 1st test - register by May 16th to avoid late registration fee

There are also testing dates in August, October, November, and December (December may be late for many college application deadlines)

ACT - Students must register act.org

April 13th test - can still register until March 24th with late registration deadline

June 8th test - register by May 3rd to avoid late registration fee

July 12th test - register by June 7th to avoid late registration fee

There are also testing dates in September, October, and December (December may be late for many college application deadlines)

Unsure which test is for you? Check out this blog by MEFA which has some questions that can help you decide