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College Bound

A Step-by-Step Guide to Higher Learning

     Many parents believe the high-school system is intrinsically designed to prepare their kids for college, and they think that once their kids hit that senior year, their kids are perfectly equipped to apply for college. But that’s far from the case. College admittance, from fulfilling specific course requirements to qualifying for financial aid, requires careful planning, and guidance from the home front is essential.
     As you might suspect, it’s never too early to get involved in your children’s educational journey, especially when the goal is for them to keep on studying, well after they don their high school graduation caps and gowns. Here are some chronological tips to ensure that your students find the best match in terms of higher learning.

Start College Discussion Early
     Gail Kaufman, deputy director for the University of California, Berkeley’s Center for Educational Partnerships, works diligently to increase community awareness about college preparation. Kaufman suggests that talking regularly with kids at home about college can create an expectation of attendance at a very young age. It’s that sense of expectation she strives to instill as the norm for all the families she serves.
     “A child might decide college isn’t for them, and they want to do something else in their lives,” Kaufman says. “That’s great. It isn’t whether they will go to college, but whether they have the option to go.”
     This doesn’t mean elementary school children should be pressured to ace standardized tests or begin drafting their personal statements for college applications. Early on, the gist should be more about encouragement and support, since even the youngest learners benefit from acquiring good study habits and engaging in extracurricular activities that enrich their overall learning experience. Casual talk to your grade-schooler about college is fine.
     Fran Warmerdam, director of counseling at Bishop O’Dowd High School in Oakland, says elementary school may be a bit too early for intense college planning, but she says it’s a reasonable period to convey the notion that college is the next logical step beyond high school. More important, she says, is nurturing your child’s passions and introducing the concept of balance in their lives. “Work on developing a love of learning, not just a desire to get the best grades possible.”
     The same ideas carry on to middle school. Dina Levi, college counselor and diversity coordinator for De La Salle High School in Concord, says middle school students should do their best academically but that they should also devote energy to getting involved in activities they’re excited about.

High School Coursework
     Once students hit their freshman year in high school, it’s important for parents to pay attention to their kids' coursework. The college preparatory curriculum in California consists of 15 classes, also known as the “A to G” requirements. The A to G requirements use a letter of the alphabet to correlate with subject areas: A. History; B. English; C. Mathematics; D. Laboratory Sciences; E. Language Other Than English; F. Visual and Performing Arts; G. Elective.
     To meet the state’s college prep curriculum, a student must have: four years of English, three years of mathematics, two years of history/social science, two years of laboratory science, two years of languages, one year of visual and performing arts and one year of a college-preparatory elective course. Students must meet these requirements to be eligible for enrollment in a University of California (UC) or California State University (CSU) schools or to be competitive in a private school. Many UC schools and CSU schools recommend taking additional courses in math, science and languages.
     De La Salle High’s Dina Levi says every high school in the Bay Area should have those course offerings. However, that doesn’t mean students always know about them. Greg Smith, associate vice president for planning and enrollment management at California State University East Bay, advises parents to meet with their child’s high school counselor to assess the school’s college prep curriculum and to ensure their son or daughter embarks on that path.
     Students in schools without counselors may get advice from guidance counselors at local colleges or read up on college requirements on university websites. Other helpful resources include high school information nights and various college fairs and seminars.
     As they fulfill their high school curriculum, students who are not pushing themselves, Levi says, should work harder while challenging themselves appropriately. “Taking every honors and AP class is not necessarily going to look good if they can’t do well in them,” Levi says. “At the same time, they shouldn’t focus on getting a top GPA with no honors classes, because colleges are also looking for rigorous coursework.”
     CSUs accept students solely based on their grades, SAT/ACT scores and the numbers of applicants each year, but UC campuses, out-of-state public schools and private schools consider a number of factors, such as leadership, passion, consistency and growth.
      “So many applicants are stellar in terms of grades and test scores,” says Gail Kaufman, noting U.C. Berkeley’s comprehensive review process, “that doesn’t ensure they’ll be accepted. The school is looking for a diverse group of well-rounded students who have done things in the community, are creative, have faced challenges and have overcome them.”
     Bishop O’Dowd’s Fran Warmerdam agrees that depth and quality of extracurricular activities are critical. “You can be a football player for four years and look just as strong as a student who was in 10 clubs for a minute each. Clubs or experiences that support academic interests are also great, but it has to be activities that kids truly love, not just to fill out an application.”

Testing Requirements
     Most four-year universities require students to take one of two college entrance exams: the SAT Reasoning Test, which measures critical thinking and analytic reasoning, or the ACT, which measures skills in English, math, reading and science reasoning.
     Both UCs and CSUs will accept either the ACT or the SAT, but UCs require the ACT With Writing, which requires an additional fee and 40 more minutes of test taking. In addition, UCs recommend taking the one-hour SAT subject tests to show academic mastery in particular areas. These are usually subjects in which AP high school classes have been taken.
     Both SAT and ACT tests may be retaken; most students test once in their junior year and once in their senior year, and a third time is sometimes opted for to reach desired tests scores. The ACT costs $34 without the writing portion and $49.50 with the writing portion. The SAT Reasoning Test costs $49 and SAT subject tests cost $22 for basic registration, plus additional fees depending on the subject.
     The PSAT and PLAN tests are optional and are administered generally in the fall of sophomore or junior year; they help prepare students for the SAT and ACT, respectively. Encourage your child to take these when or if the school offers it. They’re good practice. Tests can sometimes be given for free; otherwise, fees are typically $11–$15.
     Levi strongly advices students to take both the SAT and ACT in the spring of their junior year. “So many studies show students are far more successful taking it then as opposed to sooner. They should retake in their senior year whichever test they did better on, because colleges will take their highest score, and many will take their highest subscore [for the writing section of the SAT Reasoning Test].”

Financial Aid Applications
     Given the opportunities for financial aid, paying for college shouldn’t be a barrier to attendance. Help your child complete the FAFSA, or Free Application for Federal Student Aid, anytime after Jan. 1 of his or her senior year, when tax information from the most recent tax year is available. This is also a good time to look into scholarships, grants, state funding through state higher-education agencies and other sources of financial aid.
     Based on your FAFSA evaluation, you will receive notice of your Expected Family Contribution, the amount you’ll be expected to pay from your own pocket for tuition and fees. Knowing this amount may help narrow down the list of potential colleges on a scale of affordability. Funding of Pell Grants, Stafford Loans or other need-based aid as outlined in the FAFSA award notice will be available once your child is already enrolled at his or her school of choice.

Seeing the Bigger Picture
     Ultimately, a college should be selected based on a student’s individual learning style and values. Levi points out an important reminder: There are more than 3,000 schools in the United States, and UC and CSU institutions make up about 32 of them. “Finding communities that are going to allow students to be more successful through academic and social engagement is far more important than a school’s name recognition,” she says.
     Therefore, take every factor into account, from the school’s focus to the classroom size. Does your child wish to be closer to home or get an out-of-state experience? Is a small liberal arts college preferable to a university focused on engineering or technology? Large public universities aren’t for everyone. CSU schools offer smaller classes and more individualized attention at a fraction of the cost of UC schools. Private schools offer the benefit of a distinctively personalized experience.
     Community college is also a great option for higher learning. “People don’t pay the kind of attention they should to the community college system and the kind of resource it is,” Kaufman says. “Community college is open access; that’s the wonderful thing about it. If you don’t have the grades to get into the UC of your choice, go to community college, do well, and transfer.”
     Sometimes, seeing the school can make all the difference, swaying students for or against a particular university. That is why visiting a campus makes so much sense.