Class of 2020 Newsletter
We look forward to seeing everyone at the College Counseling Office's Senior & Parent Breakfast on Tuesday, August 27, beginning at 8:15 a.m. Students are required to attend; parents are encouraged to attend. We will begin with breakfast in the Lumen Center, followed by a program featuring Whitney Soule, Dean of Admission and Financial Aid at Bowdoin College. At the conclusion of Ms. Soule's presentation, seniors will participate in an application workshop; please bring your laptop or tablet. That workshop will conclude at noon. Please RSVP for the breakfast with Ms. Jones: aejones@gilman.edu.
Summer Checklist
Seniors should already have completed the following:
Before the start of school, please:
Monthly Focus
Drafting Application Essays Creative writing professor Rachel Tool offers this tip when brainstorming a topic for your college essay: "Choose a topic you really want to write about. If the subject doesn't matter to you, it won't matter to the reader." As you begin to work on your essays, read Tool's insightful and instructive New York Times article, "How to Conquer the Admission Essay." Likewise, make use of Gilman's own College Essay Guidebook. Most importantly, we strongly encourages seniors to start and submit a draft of their Common App and/or Coalition App essay to their college counselor before the start of school. We are looking forward to reviewing essays and providing feedback, and the earlier you begin this process, the more time we will have to work with you.
Following the breakfast and presentation by Bowdoin's Whitney Soule on Tuesday, August 27, seniors will convene as a class for an application workshop. During this time, seniors will review information needed for various sections of the Common and Coalition Applications, match their Naviance and Common Application accounts, and draft an academic and extracurricular resume to accompany their applications. Please be sure to bring your laptop or tablet with you. The workshop will conclude before noon.
Throughout the fall, Gilman will host over 100 college admission representatives who come to campus to meet with interested students. These visits take place at 1:45 and 2:30 p.m.. A schedule is available on Naviance, in the college counseling office, on the CCO website, and on the main Upper School bulletin board. These meetings are a great way for you to gather more information, ask questions, and (usually) meet the admission representative for our region, who will likely be responsible for reading your application. Whether you've already visited the college or have not, plan and schedule to attend rep visits from schools to which you will apply.
College Fairs We will also be hosting two college fairs on October 3 and October 17 from 2:30-3:30 p.m. in the Lumen Center Dining Hall. We will share a list of colleges who will be attending closer to the event. Please plan to attend these fairs, as they will be an efficient way to collect information from numerous colleges in one place at one time.
A large number of seniors have registered for a fall standardized test. For many, that will be the final time you sit for a standardized test! Please be aware that most colleges will expect an official score report from the College Board and/or ACT. An Important Note: Gilman does not and cannot send official standardized test scores. You will need to login to these sites to request that your scores be sent to the colleges you are applying to. Instructions for sending SAT scores to colleges can be found at the link provided. Instructions for sending ACT scores to colleges can be found at the link provided. Plan to order scores in early October, at least three to four weeks prior to application deadlines. We will likewise review this procedure during fall Form Meetings.
Standardized Testing Dates
SAT 8/24 ACT 9/14 SAT 10/5
For Your Consideration
"The key indicator that an individual is ready to begin this transition [to college] is the emergence of a new level of personal responsibility," writes clinical psychologist Mark McConville in this article for the New York Times, "How to Help a Teenager Be College Ready." Ready or not, college is just a year away. Read more about how to be better prepared above.
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