�Junior Parent

Webinar

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Class of 2026

How to help your student prepare for a successful senior year!

GOALS FOR THIS PRESENTATION:

• TPHS/CSU/UC Requirements

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• Post Graduation Options

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• College & Career Research Tools

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• Building a College List

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• SAT and ACT Information

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• Letters of Recommendation

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• Financial Aid

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• Prospective College Athletes

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• What’s Next…

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Check the TPHS Counseling website often!

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Information, links, and resources are regularly updated to support

your student and their future plans.

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Students also receive regular announcements and updates from counselors in their “Class of 2026” Google Classroom.

TPHS/UC/CSU REQUIREMENTS

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UC/CSU and most colleges in general, consider a D grade in a required subject a "SUBJECT OMISSION"

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Students who have received a “D” grade in a required course need to repeat the course in order to be eligible to apply to a UC or CSU.

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HOWEVER…there are some exceptions for

Math & World Languages

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*Have your student see their counselor for specific information*

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“D” GRADES

LIFE AFTER HIGH SCHOOL

COLLEGE & CAREER RESEARCH INFORMATION

Resources for researching college and career information:

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• BigFuture by CollegeBoard: start exploring and researching college options, majors, and financial aid based on your student’s individual interests and goals.

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• California Colleges: provides students with an all-inclusive guide for their college & career paths at any California or Out of State college.

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• College Data: learn how to find colleges that are a good fit for them, develop their college search strategy and explore colleges with their “College Match” college search engine.

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• California Career Zone: a secure, web-based platform designed to help students explore, plan, and prepare for a career journey. Includes self-assessment modules, financial literacy tools, over 900 occupations and information on US colleges and certifications, and personalized pathway recommendations based on student exploration.

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For more resources visit the TPHS Counseling College & Career and

SDUHSD College & Career websites.

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COMMUNITY COLLEGE

• 116 California Community Colleges

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• Admission Criteria:
• Earned a high school diploma OR 18 years of age
• No specific course requirements
• SAT/ACT tests are NOT required

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• Variety of Programs:
• Earn an Associate’s Degree
• Transfer to a 4-year college/university (TAG Program)
• Pursue an applied career path/Certificate Program
• Some community colleges offer off-campus housing
• Earn Early College Credit at TPHS

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• Apply:
• Beginning of 2nd semester of senior year
• Free application
• “Promise Program” can offer free tuition
• Don’t forget to complete the FAFSA

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Our MiraCosta Ambassador is available to answer your questions!

Click HERE to make an appointment!

REASONS TO CONSIDER COMMUNITY COLLEGE

An affordable option for general education credits

You are not sure about college

You are not sure what kind of major you want to pursue

You want more time for academic growth and to build skills before transferring

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You are interested in a career-oriented degree, such as fashion-design, culinary, real estate or dental hygiene

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You work, or have outside commitments, and need a flexible schedule

CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITIES (CSU)

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• 23 campuses
• GPA grades 10-11 only
• Minimum GPA 2.5 (Some non-selective CSUs considering 2.0 min. for eligibility)
• “Test - Free” = NO SAT or ACT required
• Applicants must meet A-G requirements
• Service Area: CSU San Marcos
• No letters of recommendations or transcripts

required!

• CSIS ID # = SSID#: located on your transcript
• Application window:
• App opens: October 1st
• Submission: October 1st - December 2nd
• Apply online @ calstateapply.edu

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UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA (UC)

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• 9 campuses + 1 graduate campus
• GPA grades 10-11 only
• Minimum GPA 3.0
• Insight Questions: Choose 4 out of 8
• “Test - Free” = NO SAT or ACT required
• CSIS ID # = SSID#: located on transcript
• No letters of recommendations or

transcripts required!

• Application window:
• App opens: August 1st
• Submission: October 1st - December 2nd
• Apply online @ universityofcalifornia.edu

PRIVATE & OUT OF STATE COLLEGES

• Private schools are able to dictate their own entrance requirements and acceptance policies

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• Private school application TYPES and deadlines vary greatly; be sure to understand and adhere to EACH school’s policies

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• 900 colleges use the Common Application
• If a college provides the option to use another application service, we recommend Common App.

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• Most count ALL high school grades including 9th grade & Fall of 12th grade.

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COLLEGE ADMISSION TESTING

Testing policies look different across colleges. Many colleges/universities remain test-optional or test-free for the Class of 2026. Individual colleges are still determining if this will continue for future classes.*

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*It is best to check each college admissions website for specific testing requirements!

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If you do pursue taking a college admission test :

• Most 4 year colleges will accept either the SAT or ACT

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• Recommend taking either exam by the end of junior year, but testing in fall of senior year is still acceptable

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• Understand that test scores = More Data (may provide students with an advantage if scores are high)

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• Fee waivers are available for tests if certain qualifications are met

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• Over 1,900 “Test Optional” Colleges = No SAT or ACT required for College Admission

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Visit www.fairtest.org for more information

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SAT & ACT INFORMATION

• SAT exam is digital

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• 2 Sections: Reading & Writing and Math
• Time: 2 hours and 14 minutes
• Scored on a scale from 400-1600
• Register: www.collegeboard.com
• Test Prep:
• Free online exams with Khan Academy located on College Board.
• Princeton Review: SAT Prep Exams
• Practice exams with Revolution Prep

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• 5 parts: English, Math, Science Reasoning, Reading, and Optional Essay
• Time: 2 hours and 55 minutes (+40 min for optional essay)
• Scored on a scale from 1-36
• Register: www.act.org
• Test Prep:
• Free online exams for test preparation located on ACT’s website.
• Princeton Review: ACT Prep Exams
• Practice exams with Revolution Prep

When required, SAT & ACT “official scores” must be sent directly to each college you apply to from the testing agency. TPHS does NOT have access to test scores.

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Need help deciding between the ACT & SAT? Watch this video for tips!

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IF COLLEGES DON’T ACCEPT / REQUIRE TEST SCORES THEN WHAT ARE THEY LOOKING FOR?

CSU:

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• GPA
• Exceeding the minimum A-G requirements

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UC: COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW:

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• Your “Personal Insight Questions” are a valuable tool to help them learn about a circumstance, your personality, interests, and experiences.

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• Consider the “optional” questions to provide greater context

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• Students’ course selections - did they access the highest level of rigor in that subject area for their school?

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• Creative ways you still gave back to the community/got involved

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• Dual Enrollment in Community College courses - give context- as valuable as AP

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• AP scores = shows interest/strengths in the subject area

PRIVATE SCHOOLS: HOLISTIC REVIEW:

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• Curious Learner, Passion, Impact, Open Mind & Thoughtful
• 2 overall scores used for review
• Cognitive score (GPA, Rigor, Senior Schedule)
• Non-Cognitive score (recommendations, involvement, essay)
• Plenty of opportunities in the application to provide context

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DETERMINING THE RIGHT COLLEGE FIT

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Student perspective and expectations

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Realistic perspective and expectations

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VS.

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COLLEGE LIST CONSIDERATIONS

• For impacted or competitive majors, plan to have more safety schools

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• Research each college to find out if you can choose an alternate major for consideration if not selected for first choice

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• Keep your list manageable (8-12) and focus on what is right for YOU

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• Applications involve many specific steps and each item must be done carefully
• For example, MIT requests one evaluation from a math/science teacher, and one from a humanities, social science, or language teacher, in addition to materials from your counselor

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• Fees range from $45-$90 and applying to a large number of

schools can be time-consuming and expensive

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STEPS TO BUILDING A STRATEGIC COLLEGE LIST

Steps to Building a Strategic College List

#1

#2

#3

#4

Identify the fit factors that are most important to you.

Utilize a college search tool to generate a list of potential schools

(College Data, Collegeboard, etc)

Compare your credentials to admitted students to determine whether a school is a “likely,” “match,” or “reach.”

You may use College Data’s College Chance Calculator, College Transitions Dataverse feature, Collegeboard, and the college website’s* admitted class profile data to help.

*The most current, accurate data can be found on the college website. Admissions profiles and selectivity vary based on each year’s applicant pool. SDUHSD does not use Naviance.

ORGANIZING YOUR COLLEGE LIST

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• RESEARCH, RESEARCH, RESEARCH!
• A final college list typically consists of 8-12 schools
• Make sure your list includes schools from LIKELY/MATCH categories:

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*Click HERE to use Google sheets to organize your college list!

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THINGS HAVE CHANGED…

• There is no “magic formula” for getting into colleges! No single factor is the reason why a particular student is admitted/denied. The college is looking to fit its own criteria each year.

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• Supply and demand with available college seats. High school graduation rates are peaking and more students are applying to college.

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• Keep the college admission process in perspective. Many colleges could work for students in different ways. We remind them, they are not choosing a soul mate for life, but rather the place to start their higher education.

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• A study performed by the Higher Education Research Institute

found that 75% of first time applicants ARE accepted

to their first-choice college.

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• If your family chooses to hire a private college counselor, please note

that s/he is not affiliated with TPHS and cannot be endorsed by SDUHSD.

Your student MUST still follow the TP Counseling process

for application support (transcript, school report, recs).

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SO, WHAT’S NEXT?

ATTEND COLLEGE & CAREER EVENTS

• College visits: Visit the TP College Visits page to sign up for college visits happening on campus!

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• Virtual Tours: College websites offer virtual tours so you can see campus from the comfort of your own home!

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• Local College Events: Colleges will host local events in San Diego County. Check NACAC National College Fairs for upcoming events!

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• SDUHSD Fall 2024 Webinar Series: A series of virtual workshops presented by college representatives. Visit the SDUHSD College & Career Events page for more information.

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• SDUHSD College & Career Night 4/24: Will be held at Mira Costa College-San Elijo Campus!

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“CLASS OF 2026” GOOGLE CLASSROOM

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All college application resources, information and updates are

housed in the

“Classwork” tab.

All announcements and reminders will appear in the “Stream” tab.

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LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION

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• UC and CSU DO NOT require letters of recommendation or transcripts (students will self-report classes, grades, activities).

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• Students must verify if their Private and Out of State colleges REQUIRE letters of recommendation from school staff.
• Colleges that do have a requirement are often looking for evaluations from 2 teachers OR 1 teacher/1 counselor. Please confirm before requesting.

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• Encourage your student to finalize their résumés
• Organize extracurricular involvements, volunteer hours, internship/work, etc.
• This information is needed by counselors/teachers for recommendations, programs & scholarships, and your student will need it for applications, too.

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• More information regarding the letter of recommendation and college application process will be provided to juniors this spring through the Class of 2026 Google Classroom.

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FINANCIAL AID

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• Need-based aid in the form of scholarships, grants, work study, and/or loans
• Scholarship Types - local, national, and college scholarships- available now!
• Check the “Class of 2026” Google Classroom for scholarship announcements
• Register with www.fastweb.com for national scholarship searches
• FAFSA: December-ish – March 1
• Click HERE for latest updates on the “Better FAFSA!”
• Watch the SDUHSD Financial Aid Night Presentation from Dec. 2024 HERE

For more resources visit the TPHS Counseling Financial Aid & Scholarships webpage.

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WESTERN UNDERGRADUATE EXCHANGE

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• 160+ participating public colleges and universities provide steep nonresident tuition savings for Western students

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• Pay no more than 150% of that institution’s resident tuition rate (vs. 300% percent of resident rates)

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• There is NOT a separate WUE application. Interest for WUE located on university application or contact admissions

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• WUE financial aid packages are limited

• Northern Arizona University
• University of Arizona
• Arizona State University
• Portland State University
• Utah State University
• Boise State University
• Montana State University
• University of Nevada, Las Vegas
• Colorado State University

WUE UNIVERSITIES INCLUDE:

Click HERE

for more WUE information

PROSPECTIVE COLLEGE ATHLETES

PROSPECTIVE COLLEGE ATHLETES

• Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center by the end of the student athlete’s Junior year for Division I & Division II college academic eligibility: www.eligibilitycenter.org. This is required.

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• Ensure you are meeting the NCAA course requirements. See your counselor with concerns.

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• Not all classes at TP or off-campus schools/classes are NCAA approved. It is the student's responsibility to confirm that the courses s/he is taking are NCAA approved.

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• Request an official transcript to the NCAA Eligibility Center through Parchment by the end of 11th grade.

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2024 NACAC CONFERENCE TAKEAWAYS

• “College is not the end goal, it is the launch pad!”

- Founder, CollegeBound Academics

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• Read the mission statement of the college or university

you are applying to.

• Do your values align with the school’s?

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• Test-Optional Policies - Do not focus solely on this aspect
• Look to understand what each specific school is looking for in applications

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• “A good college essay makes you SEE a person” - College Essay Guy
• Focus on impact of experience → what did you learn? How did it impact you?
• It’s easy to spot a ChatGPT essay!

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• “Be prepared to fail and try again. Failing is ok. Failure = Learning” - CalTech

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• “A ‘Computer Science Major’ student needs to be prepared to solve problems that don’t exist yet!” - Pomona College

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• Students’ job optimism directly correlates with their college experience!
• Career paths are not linear and most employers do not care what your major is.

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*NACAC - National Association of College Admission Counseling

FINAL POINTS

• Frequent college-related updates and announcements are made through the “Class of 2026” Google Classroom. Your student must be enrolled in the classroom to receive them

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• Register your student for SAT/ACT tests as needed/desired

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• Take advantage of school, district, and community opportunities and events to support your student’s planning process

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• 2025-26 Course Selection will begin on February 3rd
• Senior year classes and grades are an important factor in many colleges’ admission decisions

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• Starting applications in summer is highly encouraged!!

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Please contact your student’s counselor with specific questions.

Natalie Seward A - CAR & AVID

Julianne Velasco CAS - FEN

Chanelle Lary FEO - JAC

Christina Hooton JAD - MAR

Toni Zurcher MAS - RAM

Jennifer Magruder RAN - SY

Sally Gervasini SZ - Z

Jan Daher Counseling Assistant

Visit our TPHS Counseling website and

the SDUHSD College & Career website for updates and resources!

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