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College 101

A guide to college applications for rising seniors

Carroll Senior High School

Counseling Department

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CSHS Counseling Staff

Julie Presley

A-D

Trisha Uhler

E-K

Keri Bettencourt

L-Q

Misty Paul

R-Z

Office Staff	Position
Deidra Mulloy	Registrar
Ann Fore	Receptionist

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Topics/Agenda

Creating a College List
College Application Process Overview
Additional Steps After the Application
Next Steps
Questions

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SchooLinks

New Resource - Coming Soon!!!

(takes the place of Naviance)

SchooLinks - Ability to Search Schools based on student preferences

Ability to create a list of favorite schools

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Creating a College List

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Considerations

Find your fit with SchooLinks!

Cost and Value - Retention & graduation rates, financial aid & scholarships, return on investment (salary, placement, network), hidden costs (transportation, extracurricular)

Academics - Majors available, rigor, class size, learning style, culture, research opportunities, tutoring, advising

Campus Culture - Accepting of differences, political/social climate, religious affiliation, campus size

Student Life - School spirit, traditions, diversity, activities, sports, clubs, activities, social / greek life, recreation

Campus Life - Facilities, housing options, meal plans, safety, support services

Location - Proximity to family, travel costs, weather, urban vs. rural, access to career interest, amenities nearby, public transit

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Scholarships

Financial Aid

College-specific scholarships

Check with each college’s Financial Scholarship/ Aid office
Admission Application may include Scholarship Application
Department specific scholarships

Local/Community scholarships on Naviance
Scholarship search engines

Use net price calculators located on each college’s website to determine how much you will potentially pay

FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)

Opens in late 2025 for 2026-2027 academic year
State of Texas Graduation Requirement

Submit FAFSA or Opt-Out Form

FAFSA submission may be required by some schools for merit-based aid; always check with the university’s Scholarships/Financial Aid Office

Some schools also use a CSS Profile for additional information

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Balancing your College List

Happy to go to any of them

Balanced for academic, social, personal, and financial factors

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REACH

5-6

TARGET

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LIKELY

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SchooLinks

SchooLinks data provided for student’s final list

More detailed admission data to consider for list of schools

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Admissions Considerations

Institutional Priorities - What does the school need

Specific Criteria/Assured Admissions - Student stats

Holistic Review - Who is the student inside and outside of the classroom?

Fit to Major - How has the student shown authentic interest in their major

Not just about what you want, it is also about how they accept students/what they need. Here are different ways colleges admit students

Institutional Priorities. Building up a new major, tuba player, sometimes it has nothing to do with you.

Leadership priorities
Underrepresented backgrounds
Diversity -geographic, background, interests/majors
New or under enrolled majors
Special interests/talents/skills
Financial considerations
Improve data points
Special populations

Holistic Review

Academics - grades and rigor

Test scores

Extracurricular activities

Leadership

Volunteer and/or work

Talents/interests

Personal qualities/values

Special circumstances

Unique experiences

Trends over time

Opportunities at the high school

Major/interest exploration

Essays

Recommendation letters

Interest in the college

Fit to Major

How did the student explore their potential major interest?

Did the student take the courses needed for a strong foundation in the area of interest?

Does the student have the personal qualities needed to be successful in that major?

Does the student show true interest in the subject?

Is the student able to articulate his/her goals?

Major exploration is important to schools that admit by major and for competitive majors. There are many colleges that do not consider a student’s major at all - but they still want students to explore their interests!

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Admissions Considerations

In student’s control: �Holistic Review - Who is the student inside and outside of the classroom?

Fit to Major - How has the student shown authentic interest in their major��Out of student’s control:�Institutional Priorities - What does the school need

Not just about what you want, it is also about how they accept students/what they need. Here are different ways colleges admit students

Institutional Priorities. Building up a new major, tuba player, sometimes it has nothing to do with you.

Leadership priorities
Underrepresented backgrounds
Diversity -geographic, background, interests/majors
New or under enrolled majors
Special interests/talents/skills
Financial considerations
Improve data points
Special populations

Holistic Review

Academics - grades and rigor

Test scores

Extracurricular activities

Leadership

Volunteer and/or work

Talents/interests

Personal qualities/values

Special circumstances

Unique experiences

Trends over time

Opportunities at the high school

Major/interest exploration

Essays

Recommendation letters

Interest in the college

Fit to Major

How did the student explore their potential major interest?

Did the student take the courses needed for a strong foundation in the area of interest?

Does the student have the personal qualities needed to be successful in that major?

Does the student show true interest in the subject?

Is the student able to articulate his/her goals?

Major exploration is important to schools that admit by major and for competitive majors. There are many colleges that do not consider a student’s major at all - but they still want students to explore their interests!

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Application Process Overview

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Steps to Apply to College

Create Common App Account

Use a personal email address
Can complete information on the Common App tab before August 1

Profile
Activities
Personal Statement

Can’t complete College tab until August 1

College specific questions
Supplemental essays

Other applications

Use the Common App, when possible
ApplyTexas
College specific apps (MIT, UC, CSU, etc)

Everything in your app should work together and support each other, but not just repeat the same thing over and over.

Once you have a college list, you’ll want to start applying. We recommend using the Common App for every school that accepts it. You can make a Common App account anytime and you can apply to up to 20 colleges using the Common App. It is important that you use a personal email address for this since you will lose access to your school email at the end of senior year.

The Common App has a few different tabs on it. You can start entering information into the Common App tab before August 1 - this includes your profile info, your activities list, and your personal statement, or main, essay. However, you do not want to complete any information on the Colleges tab. This is because that information will be deleted when Common App rolls over on August 1. So, you’ll want to wait to enter that information.

Some colleges, such as MIT, Univ of California schools, and Cali State schools have their own applications. So, for these schools, you’ll need to use their app. Also, all public colleges in Texas and many private colleges accept the Apply Texas application. Although this application can be useful if you are only applying to colleges in Texas, it is not particularly user friendly so schools that accept it and the Common App prefer for students to use the Common App instead. For example, A&M and UT prefer Common App. UT’s website says use the Common App. A&M’s says “Prospective students should apply using the Common App. Students may also apply through ApplyTexas. “

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Activities List

Examples:

Art

Created art and organized club.

Founder, Art Honors Society

Organized and ran meetings, set up field trips, brainstormed and created group art activities, wrote and sent newsletter to members.

Member, Debate

Debated topics, attended tournaments, researched topics.

Member, Debate

I lead research and case writing, mentor younger debate students, organize mock debates, host an annual debate tournament. See Additional Information for Awards.

(examples from collegeessayguy.com)

Not all colleges accept resumes

Limited number allowed
Limited character count
Listed in order of importance
Should utilize all of the space given, when possible
Can include unofficial roles/tasks

An important part of any application is the activities list. You are able to list up to 10 activities on the Common App. Other applications have different requirements; for example, you can only list 4 on MIT’s app!

The activities list is a great time to show colleges what you have accomplished during high school. You should provide details about your activities as shown in the examples on the screen, but there is a character limit so you have to make sure you are being concise. You should include activities that you have done within the school such as athletics or clubs, outside of school such as any summer programs. Boys/Girls Scouts, jobs you’ve had (paid or unpaid) and religious activities, and personal activities such as instruments you play outside of school, family obligations you have like caring for a relative, or personal pursuits that you spend a significant amount of time on (especially if it is related to your major) such as if you spend your free time rebuilding computers or making YouTube videos or reading every Steinbeck novel in order.

Please note: there is a difference between what you do for fun and activities. For example, if you spend your free time scrolling through Instagram, you should not put that. If you want to major in exercise science and you have an Instagram account dedicated to providing health related information, you can put that.

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Resume

Example:

An activity note:

Captain of the XYZ soccer team 5hrs/wk 11, 12

An EXPANDED statement:

Captain of the XYZ soccer team 5 hrs/wk 11, 12

-Elected (or Assigned) position

-Arrive early and work with coach to get practices started

-Mentor new team members

-Assist with equipment

-Lead warm up drills

From : https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/plan2/prospective-students/application/resume.html

Some colleges will not accept a resume
UT Austin wants an expanded resume
Many honors programs, scholarships, internships, and other opportunities will want a resume so it is good for all students to have!

Many colleges do not require - or even accept - a resume. A resume is great to have, though, for the colleges that do want one and because many internships, summer programs, honors programs, scholarships, jobs and other opportunities will want one - and it’s a good life skill to have!

Out of the colleges that do want a resume, you only need to submit one if there is information that does not fit on the Activities List.

UT Austin wants students to submit an expanded resume. This is a resume that gives additional details not only about your activities, but also about skills you’ve learned and your impact. For example, if you are in debate, you would put that on the activities list. Then, on your resume, you would list additional information about the tournaments you’ve been to and how you placed at those tournaments. Or, if you are in a sport, you could provide additional context about games you’ve won, the position you play, and how you are the person who lifts everyone’s spirits after a loss.

It is acceptable for an expanded resume to be 3-4 pages.

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Essays

Personal Essay (Personal Statement)

Goes to most schools
650 words
7 prompts - choose any
Can start writing now!
Essay and App help - College Essay Guy

Supplemental Essays (Short Answer Essays)

School specific
Some schools do not have any
Lots of crossover
Typical topics include

Why this major
Why us
Activity
Community
Intellectual
Creative

Very important part of the application
Don’t repeat information on an application
Can edit an essay to fit another prompt
Plan enough time to write several drafts of each essay!

The essays may be the most important part of the application, for the schools that require them because this is the time when colleges really hear your voice and hear from you what is important to you!

The personal statement essay is up to 650 words. This tends to be the hardest, most time consuming part of the application process for most students because it is very different from essays that you’ve written before. It should be very personal, detailed, and in your voice. It’s an essay that nobody could write but you. You should not be using a thesaurus to make yourself sound better. They expect it to sound like it was written by a 17/18 year old.

Many colleges also ask for shorter, supplemental essays. These can be on a variety of topics, but here are some that many colleges ask. There is a lot of crossover, so you can use some of what you wrote for one school for another. However, you have to be very careful if you do this, to make sure you fully answer the prompt and that, if asked, you are providing details specific to that college!

Why this major - let them know how you got interested in the major and what you’ve done to build on that interest

Why us - they want to know you’ve done your research and their school is a good fit for you - provide details about why you want to attend (do NOT just talk about a “pretty campus” or “great location” or “highly ranked”

Activity - choose an activity you are proud of to discuss in more detail

Community - a community you belong to

Intellectual - something that sparks your curiosity

Creative - UChicago We’re all familiar with green-eyed envy or feeling blue, but what about being “caught purple-handed”? Or “tickled orange”? Give an old color-infused expression a new hue and tell us what it represents.

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Application Deadline Types

Rolling Admission

Review & Release until full

Early Action (EA) and Priority

Unlimited & Non-Binding

Early Decision (ED)

Limited to one at a time (Binding)

Restrictive Early Action (some Private Schools)

Hybrid between EA & ED; read university’s policy

Regular Decision
Deferred

2nd chance to be reviewed in the regular round

Waitlist

Admitted if space becomes available after 5/1 deadline submission of enrollment deposits

NACAC Understanding College Application Types

Colleges have a variety of deadlines. It’s important that you keep track of these and determine which ones are right for you. I suggest keeping a spreadsheet of colleges with deadlines and possible actions items to be sure you don’t miss anything.

Rolling Admissions - ex - Texas Tech, Univ of Kansas, Pitt. Great because know early that you are in somewhere!

Early Action - we suggest you meet this deadline so that you will hear back earlier

Early Decision - binding. Important that it is your #1 choice. May not get financial aid so make sure you’ve talked to your parents about the pros/cons. Typically a higher acceptance rate. Not every school has it. Most large public schools don’t. Again, it is binding and you are expected to withdraw all other applications if accepted.

REA or Restrictive Early Action - Stanford, CalTech, Harvard. Not many schools have this. Not binding but definitely want to read policy because it is different. EX: could be that you can’t apply to any other private colleges through EA.

Waitlist - typically low chance of getting off the waitlist. Love the colleges that loved you!

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Deadlines

Why apply early?

Reduce stress, receive decision sooner
Scholarship deadlines and housing preferences
More time to apply elsewhere if needed

Examples of deadlines include:

October 15

Texas A&M Engineering
Early Action for UT and various universities

November 1

Early Action for many universities

December 1 & January

Regular Decision for many universities

Whichever you choose….Watch your deadlines!!
Deadlines vary by institution and sometimes by program.

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Additional Steps After the Application

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Supplemental Documents

After completing your application, request additional required documents:

Transcript
Recommendation Letters
ACT/SAT Scores (through ACT/College Board)

Students are responsible for researching what is required for their application. Refer to university admissions websites, your applicant portal, and/or your Common App account.

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Transcripts

Initial Transcript = with application, includes all 6 semesters

Available August 1

Midyear Transcript = in January, includes Fall Semester Grades (sometimes required)
Final Transcript = sent after graduation

A Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR) may be required by some schools in addition to or in lieu of submitting an initial transcript

Example: Texas A&M University
You will need your transcript (available in Skyward Portfolio in order to complete a SRAR)

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GPA Questions

Only the cumulative, weighted GPA is on the transcript.
We do not report unweighted GPAs.
GPA is on a 100 point scale; you should not have to calculate it on a 4.0 scale.
If you do want to calculate it for any reason, there are many online calculators to assist you.

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Letters of Recommendation

Teacher Letters

Academic recommendation typically = junior year core teacher
Discuss with teacher before summer

Each teacher’s requirements may be different

Add request in SchooLinks

Instructions coming soon!

Not a current CISD staff member?

Type in the recommender’s email address and SchooLinks will send an email with instructions

Counselor Letters

Required by some private schools - check SchooLinks, college websites, and/or Common App
Submit Counselor Recommendation Form

Available in June 2025

Counselors do not begin writing letters until after the 3rd week of school
We will send a counselor letter if required by the institution, but only if the student has completed the request form

Required or not? Carefully read college’s website for application checklist!

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Test Scores

Test Optional

Student can choose whether or not to send score
Test score may be required for some scholarship packages
Placement test may be needed upon enrollment

Test Required

Must submit an SAT or ACT score
Example: UT, University of Florida, Georgia, MIT

Test Blind

Does not accept score
Example: University of California System

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Test Scores

Sending your scores?

Request official score report in College Board or My ACT account
Self-reported score

Some schools may not require official report until enrollment

Superscoring: SAT / ACT

Policy varies by university

Considerations

Research average scores of accepted students at the university
Does your score enhance or complement your transcript/grades?

While we cannot provide individual advice on whether or not you should submit your score, we do suggest you review universities’ academic profiles and make the decision that's best for you.

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Next Steps

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Next Steps…

Spring/Summer 2025 Checklist

Visit college campuses

College Visit form available at Attendance Office

Reach out to admissions reps and attend campus chats
Take SAT and/or ACT exams (if needed)
Reach out to teachers about recommendations before summer
Research colleges and finalize list
Determine application requirements and deadlines (on college websites)
Create resume and begin writing application essays

Common App Essay Prompts 25-26
College specific supplemental essays vary and are typically released over the summer or when the application opens

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Next Steps…

Common App will open for submission on August 1. Non-Common Applications will vary.

You can complete the Common App tab info prior to August 1

Expect emails from CSHS counselors in the summer with helpful information and instructions

Communication is key! Please be diligent in checking your school email throughout this process and to reach out to your counselor for help if needed.

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Application Workshop

08/08/2025

Time TBD

SAVE THE DATE

We will have college representatives here to help students with applications and essays.

Bring your essay drafts, your completed applications to be checked, and your questions!

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Helpful Tools & Resources

Bookmark these pages!

CSHS Counseling Website
College Application FAQs (coming in June via school email and CSHS counseling website)
SchooLinks
Common App AXS Companion
Campus Chats
College Fair - save the date Sept. 24

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Feeling anxious?

anx-i-e-ty

noun

a feeling of worry, nervous, or unease, typically about an important event or something with an outcome

“Our anxiety does not come from thinking about the future, but from wanting to control it.”

-Kahlil Gibran

Think about what you can and cannot control!

Remember your counselors are here for you

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Questions?

Email your counselor or stop by the CSHS Counseling Office! Students do not need an appointment to see their counselor.

Julie Presley A-D julie.presley@southlakecarroll.edu

Trisha Uhler E-K trisha.uhler@southlakecarroll.edu

Keri Bettencourt L-Q keri.bettencourt@southlakecarroll.edu

Misty Paul R-Z misty.paul@southlakecarroll.edu

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Questions?