Weekly Rundown: October 31 - November 7, 2015

We hope you enjoyed your 4-day week this week. We are now in the 2nd 9 weeks of the semester so make sure you get those grades up and keep them up!! If you struggled the 1st 9 weeks, now is your chance to redeem yourself!

There's a lot going on next week...

Counselors will be in the computers lab assisting students Monday - Thursday for College Application Week. College Application Week (November 2 – 6) is a statewide program to provide seniors the opportunity to apply to college online through CFNC. To participate you must have an updated and accurate CFNC.org account. (See your counselors to find your username or rest your password.) Also, research colleges and universities prior to the event to find out what schools offer the “best fit.” For more assistance, see the downloadable document, “Updating Your CFNC.org Account,” on the CAW Seniors page. Students that qualified for Fee Waivers through the SAT College Board programs are available to students electronically through their College Board Account. This year, all 110 NC colleges and universities have agreed to accept the College Board fee waiver for students who are eligible. Additionally, some schools have decided to go above and beyond and outright waive their application fees for all students applying during CAW. If you do not qualify for a fee waiver, you will need to pay the application fee to submit your application unless the fee has been waived by the college you are interested in. Seniors, if you are interested in applying to colleges through this program next week, please sign up for a morning or afternoon session. Sign-up sheets are available in the Counseling Office. You will receive a pass to come to the media center the day you choose to participate. For additional information, please visit the CFNC College Application Week Website or see your counselor.

Also...

Saturday, October 31st:

• Coca Cola Scholars scholarship deadline (info in October's Senior Newsletter)

Sunday, November 1st:

• Champions for Christ scholarship deadline (info in October's Senior Newsletter)

Monday, November 2nd:

• All completed Governor's School packets are due to Mrs. Mullen by the end of the day. We will NOT accept late packets. Packets must include: 2 page application, 2 page experience form, 2 essays, 2 SEALED recommendation letters. If you have a question about the packet, see Mrs. Mullen prior to to ensure your packet is complete. 

Tuesday, November 3rd:

• Prudential Award scholarship deadline (info on our Announcements page on our Counseling website)
• Jack Kent Cooke scholarship deadline (info in October's Senior Newsletter)

Thursday, November 5th:

• Registration deadline for the December SAT

Friday, November 6th: 

• Registration deadline for the December ACT 

Saturday, November 7th:

• November SAT test date. HHS students more than likely registered to take the SAT at Lenoir-Rhyne. Make sure you have your admission ticket and are on time!! 

Seniors, make sure you're turning in admissions letters and copies of any scholarship money you're getting. We want to celebrate you! 

Have a good weekend,

Your HHS Counselors

Weekly Rundown for Week of October 5-11

• Apex tutorial will be Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of next week. Apex progress reports will be sent out Monday morning before SMART Lunch. If your progress report says you are NOT on target, then you will be required to come to 3 lunches of your choice before the end of SMART Lunch on Wednesday. 
• Wednesday, Oct. 7th is the due date for the AES Engineering Scholarship, found in October's Senior Newsletter. 
• AES Engineering Services (not just for Engineering Majors): Our belief is that achieving a high grade point average should not be the only criteria for determining who deserves to be helped. For that reason, a scholarship is awarded based on the basis of character, as determined by evaluating essays that are submitted. Visit the website http://www.aesengineers.com/scholarships.htm to apply.
• Wednesday Night is our information night from 5:30pm to 7:00pm for parents of juniors, seniors, International Baccalaureate (IB) students, and Advanced Placement (AP) students. There will be information shared about the college application process, financial aid, the IB program, and the AP program. Parents of underclassmen who are interested in learning more about the college application process, IB program, or AP program are also invited to attend. This is the first of several events that HHS will have this year to communicate with parents about the AP and IB programs.
• Junior information will be presented from 5:30-6:00 in the mall.
• Senior information will be presented from 6:00-7:00 in the mall.
• AP/IB information will be presented from 5:30-7:00 in the library to be available before or after your information session.
• Friday, Oct. 9th is the last day to register for the November SAT without paying a late fee. Remember: if you think you qualify for a fee waiver, see your counselor. You will be able to register late with a fee waiver, up until Oct. 27th for the November SAT. 

Next week (Oct. 14) is the PSAT. If you signed up to take the PSAT, come get your student guide from Mrs. England ASAP so you can know and do all you need to prior to taking the test. 

Have a happy long weekend! 

Sincerely,

Your HHS School Counselors

College Board (SAT, PSAT, AP) Updates!!!

Mrs. Mullen & Ms. Lovelace spent a day at UNCC yesterday learning all College Board wanted to teach us about the redesigned SAT, AP, and financial aid. We learned SO much information that feel you just NEED to know. A separate blog post on financial aid will be coming soon.

Info on the redesigned SAT (March 2016 & beyond) that we thought was cool:

• The essay is now optional and if you opt to take it, it'll be the last part you take on test day instead of the first. 
• If you are not sure if the college you are applying to requires the essay, ask them! The information may be on their admissions page on their website. If you're ever in doubt, just take the essay. Currently, College Board is reporting that public UNC system universities are not requiring the essay for the redesigned SAT; but, for example, Duke University is. 
• In addition to your total score, you'll now get subscores in your score report. This will let you know which areas you may need to work on for future test dates. Right now, College Board is reporting that most colleges in NC are unlikely to use subscores for admission or placement purposes. They wish to obtain more data on these subscores before they begin to require minimum subscores for things. 
• Students taking the March 2016 SAT should receive their scores in early May, and will have access to their scores online prior to receiving their scores in the mail. 
• ANYONE (students, parents, counselors, teachers, administrators) wanting info on the redesigned SAT (starting March 2016) may visit collegereadiness.collegeboard.org.
• Visit www.khanacademy.org/sat for free SAT prep help for the redesigned SAT (March 2016 & after).

Info on the PSAT/NMSQT (we are offering at HHS Oct 14th):

• The PSAT this year is aligned with the redesigned SAT (available March 2016). Visit collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/psat-nmsqt-psat-10/practice to get study materials.
• The redesigned PSAT's scores align with the redesigned SAT. Therefore, whatever you make on the PSAT will be a good indicator of what you would make on the redesigned SAT. 
• Students will have access to an itemized report (online) to show them what areas to work on improving. 
• Online scores will be available before your paper scores are available. It may take 8-9 weeks before scores are available. 
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Things for everyone to know:

• When registering for accounts, whether it's College Board, CFNC, FAFSA, or whatever, please make sure you always use the same name (preferably your formal name) and the same email address when signing in. If you can't recall your username or password, try to retrieve it or contact customer service to reset. Duplicate accounts can potentially be a problem!! 
• Note: If you need access to your CFNC account, see your counselor. We can give you your username & reset your password if need be. 
• Make sure you view your Student Report on CollegeBoard.com after you take your PSAT or SAT. It gives you so much info, such as: consolidated view of all assessment scores, projected score ranges on next assessment, percentile rankings, tallies of correct & incorrect answers, detailed explanations of current college readiness skills, steps to improve to become more college-ready, and many others.
• After you take the PSAT, you can receive personalized practice through Khan Academy via College Board. It transfers your data/scores to Kahn Academy and recommends where to focus to improve your scores. It gives you practice questions catered to your needs and gives you up to 4 additional PSATs to take to practice for free. 
• Note: This is also available to students who have not taken the PSAT.
• When registering for tests, it may ask you if you wish to supply your personal information to the STUDENT SEARCH SERVICE. If you say yes to opt in, you will receive numerous mailings from colleges and programs that may be catered to you. But more importantly, you will be connected with over 1,400 scholarship opportunities as Student Search is now paterned with five additional major scholarship programs: Hispanic Scholarship Fund, United Negro College Fund, Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund, and the American Indian Graduate Council.  These scholarships provide nearly $180 million in scholarships. 
• If you qualify for free or reduced lunch, or if you believe you may otherwise qualify for a fee waiver for the ACT or SAT, or any other service, please talk to your counselor. Students taking the SAT with a fee waiver will be given access to four college application fee waivers their senior year. 
• Visit collegeboard.org/waiver-colleges to view a list of colleges who accept the college application fee waiver. Most, but not all, colleges do.
• North Carolina WILL BE paying for your AP Exam fees this year! Thanks NC!! 
• College Board has created one new AP course that will be offered Fall 2016 & beyond. It is AP Computer Science. If you want to see that course taught at HHS, talk to your CTE teachers!! 

Seniors:

• If you are still studying for the SAT, you can visit this page to get free SAT prep help for the current SAT (through the January 2016 date).

We hope you found this information helpful. Please let us know if there's anything we can do to help you!

Sincerely,

Your HHS School Counselors 

The Upcoming Redesigned SAT

In Junior Conferences, juniors were given a good bit of information on the SAT & ACT tests. Their handout includes:
-the testing schedules for 2015-2016
-what websites to go to to register for each test
-the costs of each test
-what to do to get a fee waiver if you believe you qualify for one
-the HHS free ACT date (March 1, 2016)
-info on the SAT changing in March
-info on some free SAT & ACT-prep books located on our website

You may have a lot of questions about the changing SAT. College Board completely redesigned the SAT & the new version will roll out on the March 5, 2016 SAT test date.

UNC-Chapel Hill has given us a list of their Redesigned SAT Frequently Asked Questions. These were very helpful in determining how they will view the new vs. the old SAT for up to fall 2017 applicants. This is a good start to determine what colleges are thinking/doing regarding the redesigned SAT. If you have specific questions about a particular school you are applying to, it's always best to talk to an Admissions Counselor at that school to be sure.

College Board has also given us counselors a FAQ page regarding the redesigned SAT. Click here to see what College Board has to say.

Click here for an informative article for the graduating class of 2017 in regards to the redesigned SAT titled, "Class of 2017 SAT Guide: New SAT or Old SAT?" Definitely check out the bottom of the article where it says "Ask A Question Below" to see what specific questions students and parents are asking and getting answered.

And as always, College Board should be a great resource for the most up-to-date info on the redesigned SAT.

Happy testing!

-HHS School Counselors

Weekly Rundown for September 28 - October 2, 2015

Can you believe we have already completed five weeks of school?! Time is flying!!

Next week there's a few important counseling-related things you need to know about...

• Junior conferences are still taking place. Students will leave with a handout for future reference.
• Apex tutorial will be Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Mrs. Mullen will be in a workshop on Tuesday. You should get your Apex progress reports on Monday morning and if you are not on target, complete 3 SMART Lunch tutorials by the end of the day Thursday. 
• Mrs. Mullen & Ms. Lovelace will be out of the office on Tuesday at a workshop.
• Wednesday is the deadline for the OMG Scholarship. Info is located in the September Senior Newsletter. 
• Friday is NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS. 
• Friday is also the last day to register late for the October ACT date. You may be charged an extra fee for registering late. If you need a fee waiver, see your counselor. 
• Saturday, October 3rd is the October SAT. Make sure you set your alarm, get lots of sleep, and get there on time!! See Mrs. Mullen for a real-life story on why NOT to take your cell phone into the building. 

Have a great weekend!! 

-Your HHS School Counselors 

Weekly Rundown for September 21-25

Monday, Sept. 21:

• Apex progress reports go out to all students taking online courses through Apex. Tutorials will be assigned for students not on target to finish their courses on time.

Tuesday, Sept. 22:

• Last day to register late for the October 3rd SAT. If you have a fee waiver, you will not have to pay a late registration fee. If you don't have a fee waiver, you will have to pay an extra fee to register late.

Thursday, Sept 24:

• Deadline to register for the PSAT. It will be held at HHS on October 14th. See Ms. England in the Counseling office to register. Students who are currently in Math II or who were in Math II in the spring 2015 semester, can take the PSAT for free. However, they still need to come to the counseling office to register. All other students must pay a $15.
• College Fair at CVCC from 6:00 - 8:00 PM. Representatives from numerous colleges and universities in NC will be in attendance to give you info and answer any questions you have. Make sure you come check them out! 

Friday, Sept 25:

• Deadline for the John Hoyle Chapter of DAR scholarship. See September's Senior Newsletter for more info. 

Counselors should have finished their senior conferences this week. (There may still be a few pending.) Parents, talk to your senior about what was discussed. Seniors, make sure you review the materials given during your senior conference. 

Junior conferences are next on the counselors' to-do list. Junior parents, be on the lookout for junior conference info coming.

Quick heads up: Governor's School info is coming soon!

Also, if you are interested in the NC School of Science and Math, please see Mrs. Guill in the front office for info on an upcoming presentation. 

Make sure you are following your HHS Counselors on Facebook & Twitter for up-to-date info. We don't want you to miss anything! 

Facebook: Hickory High School Counselors

Twitter: @COUNSELINGatHHS

Have a great weekend,
Your HHS School Counselors

Weekly Rundown for February 16-28

Wednesday, February 18:

• Create A Greeting Card Scholarship Contest Deadline (info in December's Senior Newsletter)
• Catawba County Retired School Personnel Scholarship Deadline (info in February's Senior Newsletter)

Friday, February 27:

• No school for students
• Buick Achievers Scholarship Deadline (info in February's Senior Newsletter)

Saturday, February 28:

• FAFSA Day

Upcoming Deadlines:

• March 1st: NC State USBC Youth Scholarship Deadline (info in February's Senior Newsletter)
• March 3rd: Late registration deadline for anyone wanting to take the March SAT

Today's Deadlines & a Reminder about Saturday's SAT

REMINDER: This Saturday is December's SAT. Make sure you have your admission ticket printed and you arrive ON TIME for the test. If you need to print your admission ticket, see your counselor for assistance. Your admission ticket has a list of reminders and things to bring. Make sure you follow the directions!

Need last-minute SAT study guide help? This SAT study guide is also located on our Useful Links and Documents page. It contains info about the test, SAT test-taking strategies, a verbal skills review, a math skills review, a practice test with answers and explanations of the answers, and a list of additional resources. Definitely check it out!

...and Seniors, here is a last-minute reminder of some scholarship applications that are due today.

• Boston University's Trustees Scholarship deadline is today.
• Clemson's scholarship deadline is today.
• UNCG's Teaching Fellows Scholarship's priority deadline is today. 

Info on these scholarships can be found on previous Senior Newsletters, which are located on our Counseling website.

For future reference: HHS' website --> Staff --> Counselors --> Useful Links and Documents --> Senior Newsletters 2014-2015

Mrs. Kummer should be getting December's Senior Newsletter out this week.

We hope you had a great Thanksgiving break. Three more weeks until Christmas break! Stay focused!

-Your HHS School Counselors

Weekly Rundown for Week of November 3-9

Monday, November 3rd

• Ms. Kummer's Senior Newsletter for November is now available. Seniors and their parents have been emailed the newsletter and it has been added to our website's Useful Links and Documents page. Email Ms. Kummer at kummerra@hickoryschools.net to add your email address to the group to get future Senior Newsletters. Hard copies are available in the Counseling office.

Tuesday, November 4th (TODAY!)

• Prudential Spirit Award Scholarship Deadline

Thursday, November 6th

• Last day to register for the December SAT without having to pay extra fee

Friday, November 7th

• Last day to register for the December ACT without having to pay extra fee
• Lenoir-Rhyne University Scholarship Day

Saturday, November 8th

• November SAT date! Be there on time and ready to do your best!

Coming up next week...

• CFNC's College Application Week - Click here to see what colleges are waiving their application fee that week
• Monday (11/10): Info on graduation caps & gowns in the mall 
• No School on Tuesday (11/11)
• Saturday (11/15): Robertson Scholarship deadline, Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship deadline, GA Southern Application deadline, Reception for anyone interesting in LR's Teaching Scholarship 

See previous Seniors Newsletters for info on individual scholarships or other events listed above.

Have a great week,

Your HHS School Counselors 

SAT tips from BrainWorks

Students at Hickory High had the opportunity to participate in a BrainWorks SAT prep class for three days after school in April. The following were some tips provided by BrainWorks staff that we would like to give to all of our students in hopes that it will help them when they take the SAT. 

1. Guess when you can confidently eliminate one answer choice on the multiple choice questions.
2. Predict your answer before looking at the answers. 
3. Math:  you will have 3 math sections.  They are all multiple choice except for the 10 grid-in questions.  There is no penalty for getting a grid-in question wrong.  Math problems are presented from easiest to hardest, so pace yourself accordingly.  If you don’t know how  to do a problem, skip it and move on.  You get the same point value for the easy ones that you do for the hard ones.
4. Review geometry formulas
5. Reading comprehension:  make notes as you read the passages.  Words to notice:  descriptive words, opinions, differing opinions, repeated words, contrast words.  Often the main idea will be followed by an illustration of the main idea.
6. Reading comprehension:  eliminate answer choices.  There is usually a ‘good’ answer that is the trap.  You are seeking the ‘best’ answer.
7. Every word counts:  sometimes just one word in an answer choice can make it wrong, it may sound great, but that one word makes it invalid or incorrect.
8. Vocabulary:  make your own predictions before looking at the answer choices!!!
9. Vocabulary:  use word charge, sentence tone, contrast/agreement words, punctuation, and prefixes/roots/suffixes.
10. An intro + 2 supporting paragraphs + conclusion = strong essay
11. Intro:  remember the ‘magic’ sentence:  Two distinct examples of this idea are ----------------- and -----------------.
12. Supporting paragraphs need to contain at least 3 facts – who/what/when/where
13. Organization and logical flow of ideas are critical
14. Do:  vary your word use and sentence structure.
15. Don’t:  use contractions, slang, abbreviations, repeated word use.
16. Grammar:  remember the hierarchy of errors  (verb, pronoun, etc.)
17. Memorize the correlating conjunctions:  either/or, neither/nor, as/as, not only/but also, just as/so, both/and
18. Comparative and Superlative forms of words:  
1. Comparative when comparing two things: "er" ending (ex: happier, fuzzier). Also use "better" and "more." 
2. Superlative when comparing three or more:  "est" ending (ex: happiest, fuzziest). Also use "best" and "most." 
19. Know when to use:  fewer (countable) vs less (non-countable), between (comparing 2) vs among (comparing more than 2)
20. And most of all  RELAX! Remember to breathe. Practice deep breathing to promote relaxation and reduce stress by breathing deeply, pushing out your diaphragm, holding it for 5 seconds, then exhaling for 5 seconds. 

BrainWorks offers one-on-one SAT tutoring and various classes throughout the spring and summer. Check out their website (http://www.brainworkslearningcenter.com) for more information.

See your counselor if you need assistance registering for tests. Also, if you believe you would qualify for a fee-waiver, please see your counselor to assist with test costs.

You have been preparing for these tests for a long time and should be prepared. Try not to stress too much.  We wish you the very best when taking your tests!

Sincerely,
Your HHS Counselors