HOW TO APPLY FOR COLLEGE

1. Create an account on the Common Application
   
2. Fill out the application.
   
3. It is the student’s responsibility to completely fill out the application for college. School Counselors are available to assist students and answer any questions but they can not complete applications for students.
   
   For paper applications: bring the completed application to your School Counselor with a STAMPED envelope. When you have completely filled out the application return it to your School Counselor in an envelope addressed to the college.
   
   
4. All APPLICATIONS for colleges and/or scholarships should be turned in to your School Counselor no later than 10 days before the deadline. Applications must be complete and include a STAMPED envelope. At NO TIME can a student have an Official Transcript. All applications should be submitted by Thanksgiving to be eligible for scholarship consideration.
   • Please DO NOT use the SUNY application. Please use the Common Application 
   
5. What if I want to apply ON-LINE ?
   Most colleges will now accept applications over the Internet.  Colleges will not process your application until they receive an official transcript from our school. You must provide the counselor with stamped envelopes to send transcripts even if you do all your applications over the computer.
   
   Application Deadlines
   It is the student’s responsibility to know the specific deadlines for each college he or she applies to. Early Admissions deadlines can be as early as October. Make sure turn in your completed application at least 10 days prior to the deadline. As a rule of thumb, REGULAR ADMISSIONS APPLICATIONS SHOULD BE SUBMITTED BY THANKSGIVING OF YOUR SENIOR YEAR.

FAFSA 

The main form that every student should fill out is the FAFSA. The FAFSA is used to apply for all of the various types of financial aid. 

Sign-up for live help with the FAFSA

You and your parent will first need to create an FSA ID to login to the FAFSA

TAP

TAP is aid granted by New York State. To be eligible you must attend a college in New York State. 

SAY YES

You must complete the Say Yes application to be eligible for the scholarship. You must also complete both the FAFSA and the TAP

Scholarships

SCHOLARSHIPS:
Scholarships are monies awarded by private foundations or schools. They are competitive and usually require an essay, letters of recommendation in addition to the application form. There are literally millions of scholarships available. Students should research and apply to as many as possible. Some students win scholarship money simply because they are the only person to apply. 

Other useful sites:
•    www.scholarshipcoach.com
•    www.studentaid.ed.gov
•    www.collegeview.com
•    www.finaid.org
•    www.fastaid.com
•    www.scholarship-page.com
•    www.scholarships101.com
•    www.collegeboard.org (Go to “Paying for College”)


CAN I REUSE A SCHOLARSHIP ESSAY?

Yes, absolutely!! While it would be unethical to submit the same paper to two different classes, there is no rule against submitting the same essay to several scholarships. If the scholarship has a specific essay topic you must submit that topic.

Scholarship applications:
    
Scholarship applications are available in the Guidance Office and can be picked up before or after school.