New Blog for College Admissions Info

The A+ College Admissions Blog has a new look and home: www.aplushigherscores.com/blog.  As a matter of fact, our whole website has been redesigned!  All information on this blog has been transferred over.  Once you visit the new blog, click “Follow” in the bottom right corner to continue receiving all the college admissions info without interruption.  Thank you for subscribing.

IEP, 504 Plan, etc? College-bound? Read on….

Now is the time to prepare your college-bound seniors for success. Students with IEPs and 504 plans (and those without but who might need such in college) must have current documentation of their educational, mental, and behavioral disabilities to receive academic accommodations in college. Unfortunately, many students move on to college without the documentation and do not mention their need for services until they begin failing courses. Dr. Jenn can help.

To help ensure that your students receive the accommodations they need, Dr. Jennifer Rounds Bryant is offering a significant break on educational testing and psychological evaluation with flexible hours and locations.  Visit her website to get more information.

Serious about College? Take the SAT now. Here’s why…..

The last SAT of the school year is June 7, 2014.  Students who are serious about college should take the SAT before their senior year. Why?

  1. Getting a good score now makes senior year less stressful. Students can focus more on other college admissions activities (i.e. looking for scholarships) and spend their time keeping their grades up and participating in the fun aspects and privileges of being a SENIOR.

2. Students will have more time to prepare.  Students who take the test now and then choose to retest in October have FOUR MONTHS in between tests to prepare more fully.  Seniors who wait until October and then plan to retest in November or December have only ONE MONTH between tests to prepare and also have let the SAT consume almost half of their last year of high school.  By that time, clubs, sports, and other activities are in full swing; many students also work.  Preparing for and taking the test early avoids the hassle of trying to cram yet another important obligation into an already-crowded schedule.

3.  Getting a good score early maximizes a student’s  chance for scholarships.  Having all the necessary components of scholarship application ready early means that students can apply early when the money is most available.

4. Time is money.  The longer a student waits to take the SAT, the more money and time it could cost later.  Many students who end up retesting numerous times during their senior year to achieve higher scores often spend much more money to do so than they would have if they had begun the process much earlier.  There are many seniors right now still taking the SAT in hopes of performing better; a year ago, they never would have believed that they’d be in such a desperate situation now.  Waiting later also adds to the stress level, which hinders a students focus on the test.

5. Rising JUNIORS & SOPHOMORES, the SAT will be completely redesigned in 2016.  Avoid the unknown.

The next A+ SAT Prep course begins June 3; register by May 9 and get $25 off (use the code EARLYAPLUS).  

Click here to register; save time & money.

8 Ways Teens Can Explore Careers This Summer

As summer draws near, many families forget that summer is the perfect time for students to explore career options. With a tight job market, parents want to know that a six-figure investment will result in their child being able to launch a career when they graduate.

The trouble is that high schools rarely provide students with an in-depth opportunity to learn about different professions. And without that insight, few students are able to select the right college and major based on a long-term plan. Here are some suggestions to help students explore different fields.

Career testing for teens.  Career testing has been around for decades. However, many adult-oriented tests ask a lot of questions based on real world experience that teens just don’t have. This career test from the University of Missouri asks age appropriate questions for teens. Students can then click through to Department of Labor outlooks for different professions and read about the majors and degrees that are recommended for each. Based on their interests and corresponding majors, teens can then identify target colleges.

Summer programs with career focus. Summer programs are also a great way for students to learn about different careers. Many state and private universities have pre-college summer programs which allow kids to try different courses or work with professionals from different fields. Dartmouth has a wonderful program which exposes students to a variety of health professions inside the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Hospital. The University of Maryland allows students to explore different engineering disciplines in a hands-on environment. Georgetown introduces students to business in today’s global economy. And Marist College offers a wide variety of summer career programs, including fashion design, law enforcement and movie production. These programs have a fee, but there are scholarships, and the cost is minimal compared to four years in college without a direction. MIT also offers highly selective programs in science and Princeton in journalism – and they are FREE if you make the cut.

Read more via GoLocalWorcester | Lifestyle | College Admissions: 8 Ways Teens Can Explore Careers This Summer.