IMSA Fall Newsletter from the College and Academic Counseling office

College and Academic Counseling

Welcome to the Fall 2018 Quarterly Newsletter from the College and Academic Counseling team! We are off to a great start this school year and would like to share with you some important information about our work with the students this fall.

SOPHOMORE CLASS

Who is my student's College and Academic Counselor (CAC)?

Here is the breakdown of the sophomore class and the CAC who will work with your student from sophomore-senior year. You can also find this information on the IMSA/CAC website

Sue Speulda: Abdullah - Foes

Julia Husen: Gabriel - Kumarakrishnan

David McGovern: Leahy - Rivera

Kara Molenhouse: Rock - Zhu

Fall Sophomore meetings with the CACs

We are meeting with all sophomores this fall for two large group meetings in December and a small group meeting in January. These meetings allow us to get to know our students and to begin a conversation about their academic success and the college selection process. Our sophomore meetings include the following topics: identifying personal academic goals, defining academic success, completing a personal 3-year academic plan, exploring college admissions, and getting familiar with using Naviance.

JUNIOR CLASS

PSAT/NMSQT Test

The PSAT/NMSQT test will take place on October 10. Based on the tests results, students may qualify to become National Merit Semifinalists, which means they can attend some universities at little to no cost. However, the main purpose for taking the PSAT/NMSQ is for students to practice for the SAT they will take later in the year for the purpose of college admission.

College Selection Process The college selection process will officially begin on December 3 and 4 when we will hold Junior Class College Selection meetings. More information about the meetings will be sent out in November.

SENIOR CLASS

Individual college meetings with CACs

We are now meeting with seniors to finalize each student's college list and to talk about the logistics and dues dates of college applications. These meetings will be completed by October 5.

Fall College Visits
More than ninety colleges signed up to come to IMSA to meet with our seniors during the months of September and October. You can find out which colleges are visiting by checking the college lists on Naviance Student.

College Application Process

We will start sending students' college documents via Naviance on October 1 . Please regularly check your student's "Colleges I am Applying to" on Naviance Student to see the status of submitted documents by your student's CAC.

The 2019-2020 FAFSA and the CSS Profile will be available on October 1. These forms must be submitted if your student is interested in being considered for a financial aid award. We recommend that you submit these forms no later than December 1. The FAFSA should be sent to all colleges on the student's list. The CSS Profile should be sent to those colleges that require it.

INFORMATION ON TESTING

Standardized Testing:
IMSA is an SAT national test site for the 2018-2019 school year on November 3, December 1, March 9, and May 4.

IMSA is an ACT national test site for the 2018-2019 school year on October 27 and February 9.

Students must register directly with the College Board HERE or with ACT.org HERE to take the tests at IMSA.

CAC WEBINARS

"Financial Planning" webinar for Sophomore and Junior parents was held on September 5. You can view it HERE if you were not able to join in.

"FAFSA Completion - Line by Line" webinar for Senior parents will be held on 10/10. Log-in information will be sent a week before the webinar's date.

"Standardized Testing" webinar for Sophomore and Junior parents will be held on 10/16. Log-in information will be sent a week before the webinar's date.

"Did My Child Apply to College Yet?" webinar for Senior parents will be held on 11/6. Log-in information will be sent out a week before the webinar's date.

"College Admission 101" webinar for Junior parents will be held on 12/11. Log-in information will be sent out a week before the webinar's date.

SPECIAL TOPIC SPOTLIGHT

Since our seniors are working on their college applications now, we have decided to share with you an article "What Colleges Want in an Applicant (Everything) by Eric Hoove, that was published in the New York Times last November. The author does an excellent job explaining the intricacies of the college admission process.

You can read the full article HERE.

Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy
College and Academic Counseling
1500 Sullivan Rd., Aurora, IL 60506-1000 | Tel: 630-907-5056 | www.imsa.edu