October is jam packed with events and information. FAFSA opened up, there are numerous FAFSA related help sessions, fair break is around the corner, there are many college representatives coming to BCHS, OUL has an event series starting, there is a career fair in Carroll and more. Let’s dive straight into the information!
FAFSA Intro/Review
The odds of a student going to college goes up drastically when FAFSA is completed. What is FAFSA? FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Essentially, it is a form completed by students/families in order to receive financial aid from the government to help pay for college.
“Each year, over 13 million students who file the FAFSA get more than $120 billion in grants, work-study, and low-interest loans from the U.S. Department of Education”.
FAFSA - United Way | In-Person Help Session
United Way is hosting an in-person FAFSA help session on October 26th @ 6pm (Flyer). United Way recommends students and parents attend together. Families are also encouraged to bring their tax information to the session. Registration is necessary and families can register by clicking here.
Another benefit to attending this United Way FAFSA help session is that Abby King from the Fairfield County Foundation will also be there to share information about their scholarship opportunities. If you plan on attending, here are two more documents that may be helpful: Summary Help Sheet, FSA ID Sheet.
FAFSA College Board Assistance
College Board created Wyatt, “a free FAFSA-assistance chatbot that answers questions via text message” to help students and families complete the FAFSA. Click here to view a short video on how Wyatt works. “All seniors can now sign up for Wyatt using the link at the top of the Opportunity Scholarships homepage”
Additionally, College Board has created scholarships for completing college-bound activities, including FAFSA. To view how to earn scholarships for completing college-bound activities FAFSA, as well as earning other College Board scholarships, click here.
FAFSA Resources - ODE & ODHE
Ohio Department of Education and the Ohio Department of Higher Education
have developed a website devoted to all things FAFSA. You can apply for FAFSA, learn more about the FAFSA process, utilize their FAFSA checklist and more by visiting itsforyou.org.
FAFSA - Sallie Mae Webinar & Resources
Sallie Mae is holding two webinars this month for FAFSA. The webinar is titled “The first step to finding the money you need for college: Completing the FAFSA®”. To register for the Wednesday, October 6th at 7pm webinar, click here. To register for the Thursday, October 7th at 8pm weinar, click here.
NACAC Virtual College Fair
National Association for College Admission Counseling sets up free virtual college fairs students can attend. “The next NACAC Virtual College Fair is this Sunday, September 12 from 1-6 p.m. ET”! You can learn more information and register at virtualcollegefairs.org.
Hocking College Showcase
Hocking College is hosting a series of Showcase Events for students to explore all that Hocking has to offer. There will be hands-on program demos and campus tours. The Showcases will be held on October 13th and 23rd, 2021. To learn more information, check out this flyer. To register, click here.
Ohio University Lancaster - Financial Literacy Series
OUL will be hosting a free nine part series on the topic of Financial Literacy. The first session is “Student Loans'' and will be held on October 7th from 6:00-7:30. There will be light refreshments and coffee served. Each seminar will be in Brasee Hall Room 419. To learn more information and to register, click here.
Ohio Means Jobs Career Fair
There will be an Ohio Means Jobs Career Fair taking place on October 21st from 9:00-11:30 at the Workforce Center in Carroll. All students are welcome to attend the event. Registration is preferred and can be completed via the QR code located on the event flyer.
College Application Types
Quick review and reminder. Application types generally include: early action, early decision, regular decision and rolling admission. Keep in mind that early decision is binding; meaning if that college accepts your early decision, you are obligated to go to that college. To read about the details of each application type, click here.
FYI - Many early action deadlines are in November: e.g. Ohio State University’s early action deadline is is November 1st and Ohio University’s early action deadline is November 15th
College Applications | Planning & Quick Tips
Some of the steps to completing an application include: performing your own research & asking questions, requesting a copy of your own transcript, getting letters of recommendation, inviting Mr. Kelley to the Common App, filling the application out, etc. Each step takes time. Attempting to crank all of this out in a time period of a couple days let alone a couple of weeks, may result in your application not being completed in time.
Tip: Know when your application needs to be completed and expect it to take a lot longer than what you may think (a month is a good timeline for everything).
More on this topic in November’s Newsletter.
Requesting Transcripts
If you need a transcript for personal records or sent to a college, you can do that electronically by visiting Bloom-Carroll's website and clicking on "Forms" (or click here). Then, under "High School" you will see "Transcript Request-Current Students Only." You will need to complete the transcript request every time you want a transcript sent to a college. BCHS processes transcripts in one to two business days.
Note: You will most likely need a copy of your transcript in front of you when applying to college as many of the questions relate back to records that you will find on your transcript (GPA,Class Rank, etc).
Common App Transcript Request Exception: As long as you invite Mr. Kelley to your CA, then you do NOT need to complete a transcript request (for any school listed within your CA). However, it is still recommended that you complete a transcript request for CA because if something goes wrong (email address is spelled wrong within CA, etc) then the invite will end up lost electronically and the counseling office will not know about it. In short, completing the transcript request form AND sending an invite through CA is the best practice to ensure your CA is completed appropriately.
BCHS College Rep Visits
College representatives from various colleges will be coming to Bloom-Carroll. This is a great opportunity for you to meet with, learn and ask questions about colleges you may be interested in. You can view which colleges are visiting, when they will be here and sign up to attend session(s) by accessing the "BCHS College Rep Visits" google form (click here).
Here are a few things to note before signing up to see that representative: 1. Each visit will be one period in length. 2. If you miss a class during that period, you are responsible for making up any of the work you missed (tip-talk to your teacher in advance). 3. If you sign up for a session, on the day of that visit you will be called down to the office right before that period begins. 4. While most of the college rep visits are already scheduled, there may be a few more added so periodically check the google form for an updated schedule
College/Future Search
There are a ton of college and technical schools in the United States. You have preferences as to what you are looking for in a technical school: e.g. major, price, on-campus housing, etc. Trying to match all of your preferences to a college may feel daunting. Using college-matching websites can help ease the overwhelming feeling by making the computer do a lot of the work for you. Bigfuture is one college matching website to give a try : https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org
Similar to the college search, Roadtrip Nation can help match your interests with careers. Additionally, Roadtrip Nation maps a plan to obtain that career. Check it out: https://roadtripnation.com/
Caps and Gowns
If you have not already ordered your cap and gown you can do so online at Jostens website. This link will take you to the BCHS portion of Jostens website. If you are a student at the career center a Jostens representative will present the cap and gown information to you directly in November.