SENIOR GUIDANCE UPDATE-OCTOBER, 2011

Please check the BCHS website for continuous and up-to-date information. We are here to help, so as always, please direct any questions or concerns to your child's guidance counselor.

COLLEGE REPS AT BCHS

Did you know college representatives from as far west as San Diego and as far east as Washington D.C. have visited or will visit Bishop Chatard this fall?

Some of these visits are still available this fall. Sign up is in the guidance office, and rep visits are updated regularly on the website. Please encourage your child to attend a variety of college rep visits, especially if he or she is still undecided on which college might be a good fit.

COLLEGE VISITS

Nothing helps students and families more in the college search process than making an official college visit to schools of interest. Many college visits can take place on non-BCHS school days, but there are times when it is necessary to take a day off of school. Seniors are allowed one additional visit day. Please adhere to the following policy to be sure that your child's college visit day is excused:

• Call the attendance line at 251-1451 in the morning and state that your child will be on a college visit
• A parent must accompany a student or a small group of students on any college visit where a day off of school is taken.
• Students must bring back to the attendance office proof from the college that they attended an official college visit on the day of the absence in order for that absence to be excused.

COLLEGE FINANCIAL AID NIGHT

A representative from the Butler University Office of Financial Aid will be at BCHS on November 29 at 7:00 PM to help families navigate the FAFSA and answer other financial aid related questions.

COLLEGE ACCEPTANCE LETTERS

Congratulations to those who have already received acceptance letters! Universities and colleges all have different decision turnaround times, with some not happening until early winter or even in the spring. Please visit the individual college admission websites for information on the length of time between the application and a decision. Also, please remember to bring all acceptance letters to the guidance office. We will copy them and return the original to the student. You may also forward admission decisions to the guidance office via email.

SCHOLARSHIPS

Please visit the BCHS website under Guidance to view a regularly updated list of scholarships. Below is just a sample of available scholarships. Check this list often, as the scholarships will increase in number as the year progresses. Also, the individual college websites are excellent resources for scholarships that are offered by that particular school. Contact Mr. Mooney with questions.

Fireside Essay Scholarship

Deadline December 19, 2011. Fireside Catholic Publishing will recognize outstanding Catholic High School seniors who are daily "putting their faith into action." Five winners will receive $1,000 cash awards for writing a 750-word essay on how their religious education is influencing their lives

Richard G. Lugar Minority Scholarship Program

Deadline: November 1st. In May, 2012 two students will be presented with a $20,000 scholarship and eight with a $4,000 scholarship. To be eligible students must be a minority high school senior (African American, Hispanic or Native American), intend to enroll in an Indiana college or university, have a minimum combined critical reading and math SAT scores of 1000 or ACT composite score of 22 and have a "B" average or higher.

SAT/ACT

Seniors still have the opportunity to take/retake the SAT/ACT in the fall. Please visit the BCHS website for test dates and registration deadlines. Make sure to send any scores directly to the colleges, especially once a transcript has been sent from BCHS.

IU UPCOMING DEADLINE

The deadline for Automatic Academic Scholarship and Selective Scholarship consideration for IU is November 1. All application materials for admission must be submitted online or postmarked by November 1. Students who meet the November 1 deadline may submit updated SAT or ACT scores by January 15th for reconsideration for Automatic Academic Scholarships.

IU is now super scoring the ACT! For students entering fall 2012, IU admissions will combine the highest scores for each subtest from different exams for a new ACT composite. They will also consider the highest critical reading and math component scores of the SAT.

Fireside Essay Scholarship

Guidance Contact Info:

Jamie Marx, Director of Guidance Students with A-C (last name initial) 251-1451, Ext. 2246 jmarx@bishopchatard.org	Aaron Mooney, College Advisor Students with D-F (last name initial) 251-1451, Ext. 2262 amooney@bishopchatard.org
Catherine Welch, Guidance Counselor Students with G-M (last name initial) 251-1451, Ext. 2257 cwelch@bishopchatard.org	Mary Wheatley, Guidance Counselor Students with N-Z (last name initial) 251-1451, Ext. 2258 mwheatley@bishopchatard.org
Mary Ann Ackermann, Guidance Assistant 251-1451, Ext. 2227 mackermann@bishopchatard.org