Junior/Senior Checklist
It is time to begin considering life after high school!! There are some very important deadlines and suggestions that both Juniors and Seniors and their parents should be aware of. Below are some of the most important:

Juniors:
* Take the ACT test as many times as possible as you will run out of chances to take this test your Senior year because of application deadlines. Fee waivers are available to students who meet certain financial guidelines. Students who qualify may use a fee waiver twice to take the ACT for free.
* Begin seriously considering your field of study beyond high school as well as career opportunities if you do not plan to attend college.
* Visit colleges and universities you are interested in attending.
* Determine eligibility requirements for programs of study and the colleges you may enter.
* Begin building your resume of community service and leadership positions.
* If you are interested in the military, begin talking with recruiters.
* Begin checking Mrs. Archer’s counselor webpage to familiarize yourself with scholarship and college opportunities.


Seniors:
* Take the ACT test in October and December. These will be the final two test dates that scores will be accepted for acceptance and scholarship purposes. (If you plan to attend a four-year university such as UAB, UNA, Auburn, or UofA, you should have achieved your final score during the June test date as the October test date may be too late to be considered for scholarships.)
* Apply as soon as possible to any four-year university in order to be considered for scholarships. (Minimum ACT score to be considered for scholarships at any four year school is 24-25. Very few scholarships are available based solely on leadership.)
* Attend any visitation days to colleges that you are interested in applying for admission. (Only one school day will be excused for this purpose. Many colleges have these on the weekends.)
* Communicate with the counselor to learn of any community-related scholarship opportunities. Visit Mrs. Archer’s website at www.winstonk12.org to see scholarship updates throughout the year.
* Fill out the FAFSA (Financial Aid form) as soon as your parents receive their tax information in January. This form can not be completed until 2007 tax documents have been received by your parents. I will be happy to complete this for you and will walk you through the entire financial aid process.
* Apply for admissions and for scholarships at Wallace, Bevill, Northwest-Shoals, and any other community college you may be interested in attending in January-February. I do not receive applications for these schools until then, therefore I will let you know when I receive them.
* If you have not passed all the portions of your graduation exam, focus on that first. All of the above is irrelevant if you have not passed your exam!!!


You should be realistically thinking about your interests, abilities, etc. as you consider potential career choices. I can not stress how important your ACT score is in determining your eligibility for programs of study as well as for scholarship possibilities. If your score is in the 14-18 range, you need to find out what programs will accept your score. Sometimes, if you have a score in this range, there is a placement test that may or may not allow you to enter certain colleges and programs of study within a college.
I have most applications for colleges in the state of Alabama and these are available to you at your request. It is very important that you are responsible and take care of your own business where life after high school in concerned!! I am here to make the information available to you and to assist you with your educational and career planning needs, not fill out the information for you. Please come by my office ASAP so you can get the information you need.


Mrs. Archer