College Counseling Newsletter
October 2024
From Mrs. Myrick
SENIORS: This section is very long, but all of it is important and timely information for this month!
SENIOR PARENTS: Please be reminding your kids to meet these deadlines. Letters and transcripts cannot be guaranteed to be uploaded by deadlines if they are requested late.
With November 1 Early Action and Early Decision deadlines coming up, this is the busiest month of the year for me. If you turn things in or request things after the deadlines I have listed below, I cannot guarantee that all items will be uploaded before the November 1 deadline.
1. Make sure you download the PDF below "Common App Guide" so you get step by step instructions on how to set up your Common App account, add schools to apply, and adding me as the counselor to ensure transcripts are sent correctly to each school. You must select which application deadline (Rolling, Early Action, Early Decision, Regular Decision) you are using for your applications so your recommenders have the deadline in Common App to reference. That helps them plan accordingly and ensures letters are done and submitted on time!
2. Keep working hard on your college essays and applications! I am more than happy to help edit or look over any essays you would like. Either share the Google Doc with me or you can set up an appointment for us to go over them.
3. If you need a counselor letter of recommendation make sure you email me directly. If you have not requested a counselor letter of recommendation by October 11 (for a November 1 deadline), I cannot guarantee you will have a completed letter of recommendation for your deadline. PLAN ACCORDINGLY! If you have not submitted your After Grad Packet you must submit that before I (or Ms. Belisle or Ms. Grebe) can write any letters of recommendation. Please turn those in ASAP! You can email the packet directly to me at kelli.myrick@stemk12.org
4. Current Teacher letters of recommendation: You need to have requested a letter of recommendation on Common App (or any other application portal) by October 11 (for a November 1 deadline). If you do not have the request in, it is not a guarantee that the letter will be completed and uploaded by November 1.
5. If you have a letter of recommendation you are asking for that is NOT a teacher or counselor (think principal, boss, coach, mentor, etc.) you will request that letter in Common App under "Recommenders and FERPA" as an "other recommender". You will just need to add in the email address of the recommender and an email will be sent directly to them to upload their letter. If the schools you are applying to are not on Common App, come see me and I can tell you your next steps depending on the portal you are using!
6. Colorado Free Application Days are coming up this month! They are October 15-17, which is of course fall break for us :) Happens every year. These are the dates you need to SUBMIT your applications to not pay the application fee. That does not mean that your transcripts and letters of recommendation must be completed by this date unless otherwise stated in their instructions. Those are still not due until the regular application deadline. Please make sure you are not nagging teachers over fall break to turn these in - they've still got a few weeks! 🙂
7. Please make sure you are completing the below form when you start receiving college acceptances!!!!
Juniors: Now is the time to start thinking about where you want to go to college! Go to as many college fairs as possible, speak with all different types of schools, and sign up to get on the mailing lists for those colleges.
I will be hosting as many colleges as possible throughout the semester. If there is a college coming that you are interested in, come to the High School Counseling office to meet with the college admissions representative. Make sure you bring any questions you may have!
As always, feel free to come by and chat, email me, or schedule an appointment if you have any questions!
- Mrs. Myrick
Letters of Recommendation and Transcripts
Teacher Letters of Recommendation: Once you have spoken with your teachers, you will simply add in their contact information to the application portals. The teacher will receive a notification to their email that they need to upload a letter of recommendation for you.
As a reminder, not all schools allow or require letters of recommendation. Please make sure you are reading the requirements for each school you are applying to!
Transcripts: Adding in my name and email address to application portals under the counselor section will allow me access to send your transcripts to universities.
College Fairs Fall 2024
NACAC Virtual College Fairs: October 13 and November 3, 2024; 1:00-6:00 pm
Updates to Testing Policies for Graduating Class of 2025
Required:
Brown University
CalTech
Cornell University - students starting in Fall 2026
Dartmouth University
Florida International University
Florida State University
Georgetown University
Georgia College and State University
Georgia Tech University
Harvard University
Iowa Wesleyan University
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Midway University
Morehouse University
Purdue University
Spring Arbor University
South Dakota State University
United State Air Force Academy
United State Merchant Marine Academy
United States Military Academy West Point
United States Naval Academy
University of Central Florida
University of Florida
University of Georgia
University of South Florida
University of Tennessee
University of Texas at Austin
Test Flexible, but at least some testing is required:
Yale University (more information here)
Optional with Restrictions
University of Mississippi - recommended for students with less than a 3.2 unweighted GPA
Auburn University - required for students with GPA below 3.6
College Visits at STEM
College visits will run the same this year as they did last year. We are only offering visits during the last portion of access periods on Wednesdays and Thursdays in the High School Counseling Offices. College visits will also be listed in your Access class on Canvas.
Check on this section as much as possible to have the most up-to-date calendar of colleges visiting. I will also send out a reminder email each morning that we have a college coming to campus.
October
Wednesday, October 2: University of Rochester
Thursday, October 3: CalPoly SLO
Thursday, October 10: Texas A&M University
Wednesday, October 23: Creighton University
Thursday, October 24: University of Denver
Wednesday, October 30: Worcester Polytechnic Institute
November
Wednesday, November 6: Colorado School of Mines - IN MRS. GRAHAM'S ROOM.
Thursday, November 7: University of Wyoming
Wednesday, November 13: South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
