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College Admissions Testing

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AGENDA

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  • College & Career resources
  • Supports & Opportunities
  • College Admissions Testing
  • Graduation Requirements

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Mr. Ferguson

A-Fl

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Mr. Crowell

Fo-La

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Mr. Pemberton

Le-Ra

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Ms. Brackett

Re-Z

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Who is your Counselor at Washburn?

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CREDIT RECOVERY

Missing Credits?

    • After School Credit Recovery (ALC)
      • Starting November 13
      • Session 1: 11/13-12/3
        • English 9/10 (Mon/Wed in Room 310)
        • US History (Tues/Thu in Room 003)
        • Biology (Tues/Thu in Room 013)
      • Session 2: 12/4-12/19
        • Geometry (Mon/Wed in Room 013)
        • English 11/12 (Mon/Wed in Room 310)
        • World History (Tues/Thu in Room 003)
        • Physical Science (Tues/Thu in Room 238)
      • Session 3: 12/16-12/20
        • Only Health and Fitness
    • Winter Break Academy (WBA)
      • December 26-27, 30-31
      • Period 1: 8:30-10:30
      • Period 2: 10:30-12:30
      • Deadline is December 9th

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Sign up with your School Counselor!

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The WHS CCC

WHS CAREER & COLLEGE COORDINATORS: �Hana Sato-Perry

Erin Kottke

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CCC Location: Room 107

HOURS: Monday-Thursday

8:00am-4:00pm

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CAREER & COLLEGE CENTER (CCC)

  • Open Mon-Thurs @ 8:00am-4:00pm in room #107
  • The CCC can help students with the following:
    • Create a post-secondary plan
    • Take inventories to increase self-awareness
    • Research careers/resume development
    • Scholarship search and assistance
    • Financial aid
    • College admission test information
    • Summer/community/volunteer/job opportunities/building resumes
    • Washburn college access networks (TRIO Upward Bound, Project Success & Genesys Works)

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CAREER & COLLEGE CENTER (CCC)

One stop shop for WHS Career and College Center is our WEBSITE!

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LIFE AFTER HIGH SCHOOL

Now is a good time to start exploring what is out there!

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WHAT IS THE ACT AND SAT?

College Admission Tests

    • American College Test (ACT) by ACT
    • Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) by College Board

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WHY DO COLLEGES WANT THIS?

  • National standard measure of ability
    • High School Variability
      • GPA measurements
      • Course offerings

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  • One of the only standard measures
    • Other options are typically content driven and not used for admission purposes
      • AP
      • IB
      • CLEP
      • SAT II (Subject tests) – required in the application process at some of the most selective colleges in the nation: MIT, Williams College, Harvey Mudd�
  • Likely still important for admission depending on other factors

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WHY TAKE THE ACT or SAT?

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  • Potential tipping point for acceptance to college
  • Academic placement
  • Scholarship opportunities

�NOTE: Colleges will look at transcripts, test scores, extra-curriculars, recommendations, and essays.

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WHICH DO I TAKE?

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SAT INFO

      • Reading�65 minutes; 52 questions
      • Writing and Language�35 minutes; 44 questions
      • Math�80 minutes; 58 questions

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Total score is between 400 and 1600

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ACT INFO

  • 2 hours and 55 minutes *
  • 5 sections
    • 1 English Test (45 minutes, 75 questions)
    • 1 Math Test (60 minutes, 60 questions)
    • 1 Reading Test (35 minutes, 40 questions)
    • 1 Science Test (35 minutes, 40 questions)
    • 1 Optional Writing Test (40 minutes)

Score range 1-36. Composite score is the average of the 4 subscores (not Writing)

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* It is a 5-hour “experience”

The ACT format will be changing April 2025

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ACT TESTING DATES

  • ACT for All @ Washburn on April 11, 2025
  • National Testing held at Washburn (fee-based)
    • Spots are limited, especially at Washburn, make sure to register soon!
      • Saturday, December 14 (late registration due Nov 22nd)
      • Saturday, February 8
      • Saturday, April 5
      • Saturday, June 14
      • Saturday, July 12
    • Fee Waivers available
    • If you think you are eligible for extra time (504, IEP, ELL), YOU must apply for accommodations on the website and FOLLOW the procedure as emailed to YOU

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EXAM REGISTRATION

  • April 11th ACT for ALL
    • Registration will be done at Washburn
    • Free
  • Any National Test Date registration
    • Self-registration at act.org (Watch deadlines)
    • $69 or $94 with Writing, unless you have a Fee Waiver
    • Fee Waivers are in the CCC
    • Mr. Schmidt is test coordinator
  • SAT
    • Self-registration at www.collegeboard.org
    • $68 unless you have a Fee Waiver
    • Blake and Edina are SAT sites

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TESTING ACCOMMODATIONS

  • Students with 504 Plans or IEP’s may qualify for extended time�
    • ACT for ALL: Washburn staff will put the request in to ACT for the accommodation�
    • National Dates: Student must specifically apply for accommodations through the website and follow all stated procedures.

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SHOULD I TAKE A TEST MORE THAN ONCE?

  • Many students do better the second time.
    • 57% increased their Composite score on the retest with no additional prep or practice
    • 21% had no change in their Composite score on the retest
    • 22% decreased their Composite score on the retest
  • Have a better feel for the time constraint.
  • Better preparation the second time around.
  • Colleges will always use your best score and throw out the others
  • Superscoring
  • Should I take the ACT 10 times?
    • NO. Scores pretty much settle after the 2nd or 3rd time.

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BEYOND 12TH GRADE

  • Community colleges and tech schools do not require the ACT or SAT for admission
  • Once students have earned about 24 credits (1 year) at a community college and want to transfer, the college or university typically does not ask for ACT/SAT scores or high school grades in their review process.

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How Can I Improve My Scores?

  • Free Prep Resources
    • ACT Prep Guides and Practice Tests
    • Hennepin County Library Free Online Prep
    • Khan Academy
    • McGraw Hill Online Prep
    • PrepScholar
  • Fee-Based Resources
    • Advantage Prep via MPS Community Ed
    • Kaplan
    • Princeton Review
    • NextDoor

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Questions on ACT or SAT?

Reach out to the WHS CCC or your counselor!

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XELLO

How do we get there?

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Next:

  1. Log-into Clever using your Microsoft (school) account

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  • Once you are in Clever, you will either use the search bar to find Xello or scroll down until you see it

Tip: click the heart on the corner to favorite it so it appears at the top of the list on Clever

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Task to Complete by the end of Class:

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Save 3 Careers

    • Go to EXPLORE in the middle at the top
    • Click CAREERS
    • Find THREE CAREERS you are interested in and HEART to SAVE

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Career Demand Module

    • Start on the Xello Homepage
    • Click LESSONS on left side
    • Click on CAREER DEMAND
    • Click GET STARTED
      1. Make sure to read the directions carefully for each question

Note: If you are not able to complete the lesson it will save your process and you can come back to it later.