Category: Financial Aid/Scholarships

This past October I made DC juniors and parents aware of the recent changes to the NACAC bylaws that would allow for colleges to “recruit” students more aggressively to attend their school. Here is an article in the Washington Post that explains these changes and how they can impact college admissions in the future. This is a very big shift in college admissions that will have a large impact on how colleges “recruit’ students in future years and offer them merit based scholarships.

Please keep in mind that there any many colleges in the United States and each will determine what approach to take as far as offering merit based aid. The perspective I am providing you in this post is an overall point of view based on national trends, feedback I have received from college admission professionals and have read in various news outlets.

Below are reasons why I think it would be advantageous to be patient when committing to attend a college. If you read the article above, you will see that one of the NACAC bylaws that was removed was that colleges should not recruit students if they have already committed to attending another college. So even if you decide to commit earlier to attend a college, another college that accepted you can come back to you with a different scholarship or financial aid offer.

1. Colleges are having a more difficult time meeting their “Yield”. The “Yield” is the number that colleges budget for based on the number of students that they accept vs. the number of students that choose to attend. Because of colleges not being able to meet their “yield”, when they have a better idea of who is going to attend (in April), and they see the gap compared to how many students they anticipated would attend, they may be willing to offer more merit or need-based scholarship money to students they accepted in order to encourage them to attend their school. If a student commits earlier (December or January) and pays their deposit, that college may not be as inclined to offer them more money because they know the student is already attending; therefore, they offer aid to other strong students who haven’t committed yet.

2. Colleges may not provide the “best” financial aid offer to a student hoping they accept the lower offer. This is strictly my opinion and not something I have read or heard. However, I know colleges today are spending a lot more money to get analytical data on “demonstrated interest”. Take out the students who applied and were accepted through Early Decision, because they have to attend if they were accepted. If the data a college has suggests that a student is likely to come if they are accepted, and they then accept them through the Early Action, Rolling or Regular Decision deadlines, then why wouldn’t they provide them a merit-based scholarship package that may be a bit lower than what they could have offered and see if that student commits to attend? If they do, and ask no more questions, they just got that student to attend at a lower cost to them. At worst, you may have to accept the fact that you will need to accept what was already offered. If you can be patient however, ask if you could receive additional merit and/or need based aid in April, then if the college hasn’t met their “Yield”, they may be more inclined to provide you with more merit or need based financial aid.

3. The control has shifted from the college to the student. One of the big reasons the Department of Justice “forced NACAC’s hand” to remove these bylaws is because they felt that the student should be recruited more and should have more control in their application and decision making process. If the student (and parent) can shift their mindset to understand that the “ball is in their court” more, then they should approach these colleges as businesses who have the ability to give them more money. If they do this, and the student has shown great demonstrated interest toward a school they would like to attend and are at the high end or above the college’s posted mid-50% test scores and/or GPA, then they should be a bit more aggressive in asking for more merit or need based financial aid.

One last point I would like to make is the importance of how you approach financial aid counselors when asking if it would be possible to receive additional financial aid.

1. You should have this discussion with a financial aid counselor at the school, not an admissions counselor. If the admissions counselor tells you that there is no more aid available or “this is our final offer”, ask if you could please speak with a financial aid counselor. They are the ones that have control over the financial aid “pot” of money.
2. At least talk on the phone but ideally try to meet in person. Emailing a request is not that personal and will be viewed as such. Making the conversation more personal is going to help. You should at least talk to the financial aid counselor over the phone but if you can have a face to face conversation that would be even better.
3. It would be best if the student was the one that asks. Parents, I know this may be tough to do, but have your senior be the one who initiates the conversation with the financial aid counselor. This lets the counselor know that the student is serious about coming to their school, is showing great interest in attending and is also showing great initiative and maturity which can also go a long way.
4. Do not ask for a certain amount of money. To go into a conversation with a financial aid counselor and say, “we need ____ more to attend (college name) or we’re not coming” is probably viewed as threatening to the financial aid counselor and will probably result in them denying your request.
5. Be honest about your financial situation. Sometimes parents don’t let the financial aid officer know where all their money is going or what other debts they have. If you are not upfront and completely transparent about your finances to the financial aid officer, you may not receive the most aid you could have in the end.
6. Make the financial aid officer know that you will be an asset to their school. Approach the conversation with the financial aid officer from the perspective of “selling” yourself to them. You want them to want you on their campus so therefore, they should “invest” more in you. Be polite, respectful, thankful for what you already have received, completely honest and the rest will take care of itself.

In the end, we are called by God to be good stewards of what He’s provided for us. Please make the best financial decision you can when deciding on where you will attend college. If you pray about your decision, are proactive and diligent in your communication and make wise choices, God will make it clear as to what college you should attend.

When students think about the college preparation and application process, they know that their grades, the courses they take and their standardized test scores will be very important when their applications are reviewed for admission to a college. I explain to juniors, when I meet with them and their parents, that these three factors (the “big” three) do make up the majority of a college admissions counselor’s decision. At certain schools (Private, less students, more competitive) these three factors could make up 50-60% of their decision, while at larger, public, state universities it may make up 80-90% of their decision because they don’t have the time to review other supplemental material. What would make up the other 50-60% of a college’s decision to admit a student? It varies at each school but typically it’s essays, letters of recommendation and extra-curricular activities. More and more, however, “demonstrated interest” is becoming a factor for admission at certain colleges.

What is “Demonstrated Interest”? It refers to the degree in which an applicant has made clear that he or she is truly eager to attend a college. Demonstrated interest has been around for a while now and certain colleges track it more than others. Nevertheless, more colleges are paying attention to and tracking demonstrated interest today because it’s becoming more difficult for some to reach their “yield”. Yield is the percent of students who choose to enroll in a particular college or university after being offered admission. Colleges want to get this “yield” correct because if they don’t, they are either going to over enroll and not have enough housing for students, or what’s even more common, under enroll and be out thousands of dollars that they budgeted on because they don’t have the tuition money from students they expected to enroll. How can they control this “yield”? Through tracking demonstrated interest and doing their best to accept students they know want to come to their school.

How do colleges track demonstrated interest? This is a good question and one that is tough to answer because there are many different ways they can track it and some that I may not be aware of. A lot of colleges who track it today even outsource it to other companies to track. Below are a list of ways colleges track demonstrated interest that are more widely known and understood.

1. Applying Early Decision (ED)
2. Visit the college
3. Well-written “Why Us”? essay
4. Attending admission information sessions in your area
5. Attending college fairs and meeting with admissions counselors
6. Meeting with admissions counselors when they visit your high school

Below are a list of ways colleges track demonstrated interest that are less known or understood.

1. Student emailing or calling the college admission’s counselor who will read their application to ask questions and express their desire to attend.
2. Opening emails that the college admissions office sends you.
3. Writing and submitting optional essays
4. Having an optional interview
5. Logging in to a specific college’s portal account to review status of application and whether you received a decision

In knowing all of these ways to express “demonstrated interest”, what then should seniors be doing and paying attention to when they apply to colleges?

1. You do not need to do all of these things to express proper demonstrated interest. You need to determine which ways to show demonstrated interest are best for your circumstances and for each school you are applying to. For example, Not many students apply ED to colleges because they don’t have a slam dunk #1 choice school and they would like to see their options (especially financial) before they make a decision on where to attend. Another is that some students do not have the means to visit every school they apply to until maybe they know they have been accepted and then they will decide to visit. Colleges understand each of these reasons.
2. You should complete as many ways to express demonstrated interest that are within your control. Writing a well-written “Why Us”? essay, attending an information session in your area or when a counselor from that college comes to your school, should be automatic things you should do for any college that you are applying to. These shouldn’t take much of your time but can go a long way in showing interest. Colleges DO NOT want “stealth” applications. These are applications that are submitted by seniors but they haven’t had that student communicate with them any other way.
3. The communication they receive by the student is very important. Parents, it’s great that you are involved and supportive in your child’s college application process, but your child needs to be the “driver” in the process and any communication that is made over the phone or through email by them is considered demonstrated interested. Communication made by the parent is not. Even if they are uncomfortable or resistant to contact a college admissions counselor please encourage them to make the contact. I tell seniors all the time that I am willing to help and assist them with this communication. Sometimes seniors send me emails that they want to send to an admissions counselor for me to look over and proofread before they send it. This is great! I love to do this and help them make sure their communication is appropriate well written.
4. Express demonstrated interest even for safety schools. This is one of the tougher things to do in the college admissions process because when seniors consider a college to be a safety school, they automatically think that “I’m going to get accepted because my grades and scores are above the mid-50% range that the college posts on their website so why should I tell them that I want to go there?” The important thing to keep in mind is that more and more schools in future years, who are paying more attention to their yield, will defer or deny more students whose grades and scores are above their posted ranges because they haven’t shown demonstrated interest in order to accept students who they know have a greater chance of attending their college. So it’s becoming more and more important that seniors treat their safety schools the same way they treat their top choice schools when it comes to showing interest.

I can’t believe that I have been counseling students through the college application process for 18 years and for the first time I am writing a blog post about this topic. At this time of year, each year, I get frustrated at the rush there is by seniors I work with to finish their college applications right before the November 1st early action or early decision deadlines that colleges have. However, I also understand that this is how many high school students operate because they can and still be successful in high school. I also understand that this is how many college students continue to operate with all-nighters writing papers and studying for tests. I do hear that there are people that “do their best work” when they are “under the gun” and complete something right before a deadline even though I find that hard to believe. I do also want to acknowledge that there are students who do not wait until the last minute and do work ahead, planning out their time wisely. So I don’t want you to assume I am saying everyone procrastinates.

Nevertheless, there are a number of downsides to waiting until right before a deadline to apply to a college. I define “right before” as not having an application complete at least a week before a deadline. I know that seniors would be disappointed and frustrated when they are denied admission to a college but I do not want it to be because of their own actions. If they rush to apply to colleges that are competitive or highly competitive admission wise, they are only hurting themselves. Below are four reasons why applying to college right before a deadline is a bad idea.

1. Accuracy of application– I have heard from college representatives in the past that if there are mistakes on an application, it’s an immediate red flag because the application is the first thing they read. If they are finding errors in an application, they are going to assume that there are most likely errors in their essays as well. When you are completing an application right before a deadline, you don’t have as much time to ask questions or make sure you are answering everything correctly and then you have to guess. This is not the best way to complete a document that you paid for to submit and that you are replying on as a possible future option after you graduate high school.
2. Can’t write well-written essays- I always tell my juniors that it takes two-weeks to write a good essay. It will take a couple days to write a rough draft, a few days for two people to proofread the rough draft, a couple days for you to edit and revise and then a few days for two people to proofread the final draft. One should never assume that if you give your essay to someone to proofread, and I recommend you give it to two people because one can catch something the other one didn’t, that they will return it to you the next day. I am not saying they won’t do this but you can’t expect it. Always give them a few days. If a college requires an essay, they are going to read it and you should assume that it will be important in their evaluation of your application.
3. Getting well-written letters of recommendation- At DC, juniors do the initial request for letters of recommendation in Naviance in the spring of their junior year. This is only the first part of requesting letters of recommendation. They also must approach each teacher they requested a letter from and confirm their request in person, answering any questions the teacher may want to ask them. This is typically done over the summer or right after their senior year starts. These steps are typically done well by juniors and then seniors. The frustrating part for seniors to understand however, is that teachers are busy people too and some teachers will complete letters of recommendation at different times than others. If a senior waits until the day before a deadline to apply to college, a teacher may have also waited until they knew they had to write their letter of recommendation and now the teacher is writing a letter at the last minute which typically doesn’t result in their best effort and work either. If students completed their application two weeks before a deadline, that gives the teacher plenty of time to write an efficient and effective letter of recommendation.
4. Transcripts and and test scores are sent later- This is something that seniors don’t anticipate and the one thing that frustrates me as a counselor the most when I know seniors have waited until the last minute to apply to colleges. I know that the week before November 1st is going to be a busy one and anticipate that I will be sending many transcripts and letters of recommendation at this time. I typically stay later each day at school and I have a sense of accomplishment at the end of the week that I have sent all the senior’s transcripts that have been requested before November 1st. I get frustrated though when a senior requests their transcript be sent late on October 30th, October 31st or November 1st and just expect that I will send everything in for them right away. Seniors should anticipate that it may take 3-4 business days to send their transcripts because sometimes I have to wait for letters of recommendation or there are other things holding up my ability to send their transcript and supporting documents. Moral of the story: things just don’t happen right away and every senior should anticipate this by making sure they apply at least a week before a deadline.
5. Prepared for the unknown- In my 18 years, there have been times when there was confusion on my end and/or the colleges end as far as what documents were sent, how they were sent, when they were sent, etc. Colleges get thousands of applications and it makes sense that every once in a while, something gets misplaced or even lost. I have seen two files created for one senior because they had different names (a nickname maybe) on their test scores than they did on their transcript. Students are confused as to whether they applied under a certain deadline (ED, EA, RD) or whether they applied test optional or not. In order to be prepared if this were to happen, seniors should make sure they get their applications in two weeks before the deadline and then confirm with the college a week later that they have everything they need.

Seniors, there are a number of aspects that go into an admissions decision at a college that are out of your control. You need to make sure you complete the aspects of the college application that are in your control as well as you can. If you wait until the last few days before an application deadline to complete an application, you are not completing it as well as you can because you have to rush to get it done. Make sure you plan ahead, organize each application, understand what needs to be done to put your best foot forward, and get everything done a week or two before a deadline so that all of the other people involved in submitting your application (teachers, counselor) can do their best work as well. You don’t want to look back after an admissions decision and regret that you should have done things differently. These applications are just another English paper or math test, they are the first step to a future at a college that you will grow in ways you never imagines, earn a degree and hopefully transition to a career that God has planned for you.

High school students who have an opportunity to complete an internship will have a greater perspective on what they would like to, should and should not major in when they apply to college. That’s if the internship is completed before the end of the summer before their senior year. There’s nothing wrong however, with doing an internship after senior year. You just won’t have the benefit of that experience occurring before you complete college applications. I am excited to begin Career Week at DCCS next spring. This will be a week long internship that is mandatory for every junior at DCCS to complete. It will take place at the end of their junior year which I think is a perfect time for a high school student to do an internship. Below are a few very important reasons why I think internships are very important for high school juniors to complete.

1. It gets them out of their comfort zone. More today than in the past, high school students do not learn the value of hard work and how to respond in situations that are difficult or unpredictable. I would encourage every parent to read this article by Alex Chediak. In the article Alex says, “Our wealth, technology, and digital economy have radically changed this pattern. We now emphasize the protection of our children rather than their productivity. While our kids may be safer, they’re also softer — more hooked on comforts like AC, their own bedroom, an Xbox, etc. They are unfamiliar with manual labor at a time when lifelong learning and flexibility are more important than ever in our disrupted economy.” I couldn’t say it any better. This isn’t true of every high school student but it is more common today than every before. This is why encouraging our teens to drive when they are able and encouraging but also making them get a job is critical for their overall emotional, mental and spiritual growth from a teen to an adult. In today’s society, because they live in more “comfort” than previous generations, they may not want to do these things, but it’s on the parent to push them. After working with 16-18 years olds for over 18 years now, I definitely see more maturity in the kids who drive when they are able and have a job.
2. They will understand more what they want to major in and also what they do not want to major in. When I coordinated Career Week with juniors at the previous school I worked at, it was great to see the perspective that they had once the internship was over. Some students were encouraged to keep pursuing the career field their internship was in, others didn’t want to rule out continuing to pursue that career field, but were exposed to some things that surprised them or were more difficult than they thought. Then there were some students that completed their internship and realized that they didn’t want to pursue that career field anymore. To get these perspectives while in high school before you apply to college is invaluable. This will allow seniors to get more specific when entering a major to pursue in their college applications and also write with more confidence about why they want to pursue that major in essays they will write when completing their applications.
3. They are beginning to establish connections and network. This is a very important aspect to career growth and having more future opportunities. If a high school student can begin networking then they are able to build on those connections earlier and have more connections when they are in college and beyond. I hope this internship may lead to working more with their supervisor in the summer. This is also helpful when they apply to college because now they can have their supervisor/boss write them a letter of recommendation to include with their application. We all know the phrase, “it’s not what you know but who you know”. While the “what” is still important, the “who” can be just as or more important depending on what major a student pursues and what opportunities they take advantage of to work for that “who” or who else that person knows while still in college. In Jeff Selingo’s book, There is Life After College, he calls these individuals “sprinters”. These people begin working while even still in college or get a job quickly right after college and their career earnings far exceed the two other individuals he talks about, the “stragglers” and the “wanderers”. I would encourage you to read his book.

I am looking forward to working with next year’s juniors as we prepare for the first Career Week at DCCS. I would encourage any high school student, however, to take advantage of an opportunity to intern, work, job shadow or any opportunity that get’s you to serve others and takes you outside your comfort zone. I understand we are more busy today than ever before but these are invaluable experiences that will give you new perspective, understanding and wisdom that you wouldn’t have had otherwise. God will use these experiences to grow you more and more into the person He wants you to be. I am providing links to two articles written by Alex Chediak that refer to vocation plans and choosing a major. I read through these articles with the juniors in my Career Stewardship class every year and they provide a great perspective on both of these topics.

I would like to address a topic that is getting more attention today than ever before because of the high cost of college. As a result of tuition prices continuing to rise, it will continue to be more and more important to take advantage of opportunities to earn college credit while in high school. First, before I get into dual credit opportunities, I want to emphasize that the best way to earn money for college is to do well in high school and achieve as high of a test score on the SAT or ACT as possible.

When it comes to earning credit for college while in high school, I am going to make you aware of what opportunities we have at DC, but also inform you of a few more ways that are available to you online or in our area that any high school student can take advantage of. If you can begin college with 15 or more credits you are already saving thousands of dollars on your college costs. Even just a few credits will save you money!

1. AP Credit

Taking Advanced Placement classes in high school are a great way to earn college credit. If you are recommended to take an AP course in high school, my advice is to take the course and see how you do. Don’t shy away from taking an AP course because you think it will be too difficult or you will not have time for other things. I understand these can be valid concerns, however, as a junior and senior in high school, you need to challenge yourself a bit more to see what you are capable of. Taking AP courses is also what competitive admission colleges want to see you take in high school because they like to see that you are taking the most rigorous courses your high school offers. Not every college will accept certain scores for credit. It may depend on the college and what major you end up pursuing that will determine if they will accept the credit. To know which colleges accept which AP test scores for credit, go to AP Score Check. You may also want to check specific college’s websites for the most accurate information on whether they will accept a certain score on an AP exam to earn college credit at their school.

2. Colorado Christian University (CCU) Dual Credit

Dual credit it a great option to earn college credit while in high school. It could save you $10,000-$20,000 or more if taken full advantage of. Click here to read my blog post on DC’s dual credit partnership with CCU.

3. CLEP Tests

The College Board’s College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) has been the most widely trusted credit-by-examination program for over 50 years, accepted by 2,900 colleges and universities and administered in more than 1,800 test centers. This rigorous program allows students from a wide range of ages and backgrounds to demonstrate their mastery of introductory college-level material and earn college credit. Students can earn credit for what they already know by getting qualifying scores on any of the 33 examinations.

While CLEP is sponsored by the College Board, only colleges may grant credit toward a degree. Not all colleges have the same CLEP policies—some colleges accept credit for a few exams, while others accept credit for all of them. A college often grants the same amount of credit to a student who earns satisfactory scores on a CLEP exam as it does for a student who successfully completes the related course. For more information about CLEP exams click here.

4. Community College Classes

Community College classes are offered continually at all campuses. You can go to the website for the Community College campus near you and look up the course directory for what will be offered in the fall, winter, spring and summer. I will say that these classes can be hit or miss as far as the experience you have. In my experience with students taking Community College classes, some enjoyed the experience and others thought the class was really easy and not challenging. Please make sure you do your research ahead of time to make sure the colleges you may or will be applying to accept the credit you are receiving after completing a class at a Community College.

5. Christian College Online Options

This is a great way to earn college credit either during the school year or during the summer even when you are away from home. I am providing a few links below to online college credit programs as Christian Colleges and Universities. Again, before you enroll in any online classes, make sure

• Cedarville University College Now
• Liberty University Online Academy
• Kings College
• Grove City College
• Taylor University Online Precollege Programs

6. Summer On-Site College Dual Credit Opportunities at Christian Colleges

• Messiah College
• Cedarville University
• Covenant College
• Taylor University
• Asbury University

7. Summer Pre-College/Summer Courses at Secular Universities

• Top Pre-College Summer Programs for 2019
• Top 50 Best Pre-College Summer Programs for 2021
• 137 Pre-College Summer Programs for High School Students
• 15 Best Value College Summer Programs for High School Students
• Landmark College- For College-Bound High School Students with Learning Disabilities