MHS School Counseling Newsletter

We are so excited to start the 2024-2025 school year! It has been great seeing the building filled with students over the past few weeks. We are looking forward to supporting students this year and helping them grow academically, socially, and with their career goals.

We know that the transition back to school can be a challenging one for some students. Please don't hesitate to reach out to your child's school counselor if they need any extra support. We are happy to help in any way we can.

We are so excited to welcome our new 9th graders to MHS! All of our 9th graders are enrolled in the freshman rotation classes which consist of PE, Health, Intro to Capstone, and Academic Literacy throughout the year. We had the opportunity to visit all of those classrooms over the past couple of weeks to introduce ourselves to the 9th graders. We discussed the main differences between middle school and high school, graduation requirements, and the role of the high school counselor and how to make appointments with us.

Save the date! We are offering the PSAT on Tues. Oct. 22nd. The test will begin at 7:45am and will end before lunch time.

All juniors will be able to take the test free of charge and do not need to register. Sophomores will be able to opt in for $20. School counselors will be going into 10th grade English classrooms this week to talk to them about the importance of the PSAT and encouraging them to sign up. The spots for sophomores are first come first serve and the deadline to sign up is Oct. 4th. Sophomores will need to fill out this Google form (only open to those with a MPS email address) to sign up and will also need to pay the $20 fee to either Ms. Lucas or Ms. Ray in the main office. If the $20 fee poses an issue, please contact your school counselor.

This past week, school counselors went into all of the Senior Project classrooms to talk to students about the college application process and other post-secondary plans. Students had the opportunity to work on their Common App, MEFA Pathway, and their resume while we were with them in class. We covered what to expect this fall while getting those applications done and getting ready for the next step after high school. We want to encourage every senior to set up a meeting with their school counselor about their plan for next year. Students can sign up through the appointment links that we shared on the Class of 2025 Google classroom, by emailing us, or by signing up on the appointment sheets outside of our offices. If students are applying early action or early decision with a Nov. 1st deadline or earlier, please reach out to your school counselor ASAP to set up a meeting! Caregivers are welcome to be part of these meetings!

Brag Sheet for Counselor Recommendation - please fill this out in as much detail as possible so that your school counselor has all of the information to write a great letter of recommendation! **counselors will need this to be completed at least two weeks before the first deadline**

Caregiver Brag Sheet - a questionnaire for parents to fill out in case they want to provide us with some additional background information that would be helpful for us to know for the letter of recommendation, optional but appreciated!

Teacher Letter of Recommendation Form - this is a form that students can fill out and give to the teachers who are writing their letters of recommendation. Teachers may want some additional information from students in order to write their recommendations

Transcript Release Form - in order to send any students' transcript to a college or scholarship program, we must legally receive permission to do. If under 18, a parent must also electronically sign

Many colleges are still test optional for the 2024-2025 admissions year cycle. For a full list of schools with test optional admission policies, please visit fairtest.org. Make sure to check the schools' websites to see if standardized test scores are required.

If you are still interested in taking the SAT or ACT, here are the upcoming test dates:

SAT (register through collegeboard.org)

- Oct. 5th, last day to register without the late fee is Sept. 20th, late registration available until Sept. 24th

- Nov. 2nd, registration deadline Oct. 18th

- Dec. 7th, registration deadline Nov. 22nd

ACT (register through actstudent.org)

- Oct. 26th, last day to register without the late fee is Sept. 20th, late registration available until Oct. 7th

- Dec. 14th, registration deadline Nov. 8th

If you need a fee waiver for either of these tests, please see your school counselor

**The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) will become available this year in December instead of October as in previous years**

MEFA (Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority) Webinars

MEFA is offering a handful of different webinars related all aspects of the financial aid process throughout the fall. Here are some in particular to consider attending:

Financial Aid 101 - will provide information and clarity on the entire college financial aid application process, offered many times throughout the fall, for dates and times see event details here

**We strongly recommend that all families and students attend the Financial Aid 101 webinar. Prior to the pandemic, these workshops were held in person in our auditorium. Now they are conveniently offered online so families can participate from the comfort of their home!**

What to Know about the CSS Profile - will introduce the nuts and bolts of the CSS Profile, a financial aid application required by approximately 250 colleges, universities, and scholarship agencies across the country. Thurs. Sept. 26th from 12-1pm sign up here

Ask an Expert All Your CSS Profile Questions - a Q&A webinar about the CSS Profile with expert financial aid administrator Mike Goodwin, Assistant Director of Student Financial Services at Williams College. This will be particularly helpful to answer questions after you have begun completing the form. Wed. Oct. 23rd from 6:30-7:30pm sign up here

Scholarships

Similar to college applications, the timing of scholarships becoming available is cyclical. Scholarships typically pick up during the second semester, but there are some larger scholarships that students can apply for in the fall. Whenever we learn of a scholarship available to students, we will post it on the Class of 2025 Google classroom. Every year in February, the local Maynard Scholarship Application will open up and we will come into the senior English classes to talk to students about the importance of applying.

In the meantime, please check out this Scholarship Handout which has information about scholarship search engines and where to get started on your own.

NEACAC (New England Association for College Admission Counseling) Fairs

- Wed. Sept. 25th from 9am-11am at Mount Wachusett Community College

- Mon. Sept. 30th from 9am-12pm at Salem State University

- Sun. Oct. 6th from 11am-1pm at Worcester State University

These fairs are free to attend! For more information and to see which schools will be at the fair please view this website - https://www.neacac.org/fall-college-fairs-2024

College Admissions Representative Visits

Visits from college admissions representatives have begun! These are open to junior and seniors. These visits are done by the admissions representatives who typically read applications for our high school, so please attend! Sign up sheets are available a week in advance for the colleges that are visiting in the career center. Please continue to listen to the announcements and check out the Class of 2025 and 2026 Google classroom to see which colleges have scheduled visits. The entire fall schedule for the visits can also be found here.

In order to attend a visit, students need to sign up in the career center at least 2 days in advance. Students must alert their teacher that they will miss class and they are responsible for any missing work.

Thinking of Playing a Sport in College?

If you are considering playing a sport in college, please check out the NCAA Guide for the College-Bound Student-Athlete.

This guide covers everything for a college-bound athlete, from academic requirements to compete to what to expect once you are a collegiate athlete.

Curry College presents their annual "Navigating the College Search for Neurodivergent Students' Workshop" on Tuesday, October 1 from 6-7:30pm on campus.

By attending 'Navigating the College Search,' students and families will receive critical information to support their college search process as they pursue institutions with the proper academic support to help them succeed.

For more information and to register for this event, please click here.

Congresswoman Katherine Clark is holding her second annual Service Academy Day.

When: Saturday, October 12, 11am-1pm

Where: Malden Senior Center

Any students interested in the possibility of seeking a congressional nomination to apply to the service academies should plan to attend.

For more information, click here and see the attached flyer.

The Bridge to the Future Mentorship Program is an immersive program where Black/African American High School students, grades 9-12, participate in hands on STEM activities and personal development on Boston Scientific's Marlborough Campus. The program is designed to complement classroom learning by allowing students to explore real-world engineering challenges and gain career preparation from industry professionals. The program consists of one Saturday session every month, covering topics such as Computer-Aided Design, prototyping, programming, 3D printing, professional development, and more.

In order to be eligible students must:

- Identify as Black, African American, etc.

- Be in grades 9-12

- Have the ability to commute to and from Boston Scientific's Marlborough Campus

- Have availability one Saturday a month

Application is due Sept. 30th at 5pm. See attached flyer for instructions as well as the application. Any questions? contact bridgetothefuturema@bsci.com

Nicole Fernald nfernald@maynard.k12.ma.us (978) 897-8891 ext. 3209

Dana MacPhee dmacphee@maynard.k12.ma.us (978) 897-8891 ext. 3105

Amy Petroskey apetroskey@maynard.k12.ma.us (978) 897-8891 ext. 3210