Hyslop Educational Consulting

03/27/2018

College counseling
Blog post - 3/26/18

Sophomores and Juniors!

Many students think that the college process does not really begin until the junior year, but that’s not true. Especially now that it’s spring, there are a number of things that both sophomores and juniors can be planning for and thinking about.

Course selection: If you haven’t already, it will be time soon to speak with your counselor regarding your courses for next year. Seek guidance about continuing one more course in an area of interest, pursuing an AP course, and being sure that you are selecting courses that set you up to have a strong academic profile for applying to college

College list: This is more aimed at juniors than sophomores, but both can be thinking along these lines. Juniors should be at least beginning to assemble a preliminary list of schools to consider so they can research and possibly visit some of their schools of interest. As the year continues and into the summer and fall, you will narrow down your list.

College visits: If possible, it’s preferable to visit schools when they are in session, but we all know that summer is a time when there is generally more flexibility. Visiting a campus is a great part of your research about a school - sophomores and juniors can be visiting campuses at any point. A great program for Minnesota families is Minnesota Private College Week which takes place this summer from Monday, June 25 - Friday, June 29. Sessions are held twice a day on the 17 campuses included this group across the state. Registration is free and opens on April 1st. Visit here to register: www.mnprivatecolleges.org/mpcw.

Testing: If you are taking an AP course, be sure you have registered to take the AP test in May. Also, it’s a good idea to consider taking the corresponding SAT Subject Test in May or June - you will have already done extensive review with the AP test, so this is a great time to take a Subject Test as well. While many schools won’t require Subject Test scores, it’s a good idea to take them just in case.

Stay tuned for more pointers. And as always, let us know if you are interested in some guidance in your college admissions process. You can reach us at [email protected] or 413-552-8213.
www.hyslopedc.com

In 2018, Minnesota Private College Week will be held on June 25-29. Registration will open on April 1, 2018.

03/05/2018

SAT, ACT, SAT II, test preparation….this can all feel very overwhelming. To take some stress out of the process, it’s helpful to design an outline of a testing timeline. Due to the differences in the ACT and SAT, it’s a good idea to take both tests once and see how you score. Some students will find more success and/or feel more comfortable with one test over the other. After determining which is a better test for you, plan to take that test again. You may decide that you would like to seek out some help with test preparation in between, and there are many resources - in person and online - to assist with that. Visit www.collegeboard.com and www.act.org to find out which tests are offered when and where you can take them near you. Some schools may also suggest or require that you take SAT II tests (Subject tests) ; while there are many times these are offered, one good time to think about taking them is in May if you are taking AP courses, as you will already have reviewed the subject matter.
Let us know if we can help you navigate the college process!
www.hyslopedc.com

01/14/2018

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