Senior Year Checklist and Resources

• Review your career plans and decide which type of postsecondary school is best for you.
• Save money from your summer job for college.
• List your top college choices.
• Request admissions information and school catalogs.
• Go on college visits.
• Obtain registration materials and test dates for the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and/or ACT assessment.
• Compare costs of each school that interests you by contacting the colleges by phone, mail, or via their websites.
• Visit Going2College for information about career, college, and financial aid resources in your state.

• Mark your calendar with registration, admissions, and financial aid deadlines and fees. Determine if the schools that interest you have online admission applications. If not, request them by mail now.
• Meet with school representatives who visit your high school.
• Look at virtual tours of college campuses online.
• If you haven't already taken the SAT and/or ACT, register for the test(s).
• Attend college planning and/or financial aid information nights and college fairs.
• Ask employers, teachers, and guidance counselors for letters of recommendation to accompany your admissions applications.

• Take the SAT and/or ACT.
• Work on your admissions essays.
• If you haven't already done so, attend college planning and/or financial aid information nights and college fairs.
• Visit your top school choices.
• If possible, make appointments with faculty, staff, and students.
• Complete applications for every scholarship for which you may be eligible.
• Meet with your guidance counselor to develop a college admission and financial aid application plan.
• Make a folder for each of your college choices.
• Contact the schools' financial aid offices to determine which forms they require. Some schools may require special forms.
• Finalize portfolios, audition tapes, writing samples, or other evidence of talent if required for admission.

• Complete admissions applications by their deadlines.
• If you haven't already done so, attend college planning and/or financial aid information nights and college fairs.
• If necessary, register to retake the SAT and/or ACT.
• Request financial aid forms and applications. Double check the deadlines for submission.
• Follow up to ensure your employers, teachers, and guidance counselors send letters of recommendation.

• Sign up for a PIN, to complete your FAFSA online. (Also let your parents know that they will need a PIN.)
• Finalize admission applications.
• Urge your parents to file their taxes as soon as possible after January 1.
• This will ease the financial aid process.
• Research and apply for other financial aid, including grants and scholarships.
• Watch for early admissions notices (they tend to arrive in December or January).

• As soon as possible after January 1 and when tax forms are complete (they don't have to be filed until April 15; you can use estimates), complete your FAFSA online (or go to www.studentaid.ed.gov/fafsa to download a PDF version of the FAFSA).
• Keep copies of all documents, including your PIN, in a file.
• If you can't attend financial aid nights, ask if you and your parents can borrow a video of an event from your counselor.
• Contact the U.S. Department of Education at 800-4-FEDAID for assistance completing the FAFSA and/or plan to attend a College Goal Sunday event (free FAFSA advice) near you.

• Be mindful of deadlines. Always submit information on time.
• Research Advanced Placement (AP) or College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) exams. Watch for the e-mail notice indicating your Student Aid Report (SAR) is ready. Review your SAR for errors and make any corrections as indicated.
• Rank your top school choices. A
• ttend a College Goal Sunday event.

• Check with the financial aid offices to ensure your paperwork is complete.
• Submit tax forms if they request them.
• Narrow your school choices and make campus visits.
• Be on the lookout for acceptance letters.
• Start looking for summer jobs.

• Compare financial aid award letters.
• Make your final school decision and mail deposits, as required.
• Check with the school you've chosen about returning financial aid award letters.
• Notify the schools you have chosen NOT to attend.
• Plan for registration, orientation, and housing, and mark your calendar with important dates.

• Be aware of any summer orientation sessions that you must attend at the school in which you will enroll, and make plans accordingly.
• Finalize your summer job plans, and make a plan for saving a portion of your summer earnings. Prepare a realistic student budget.
• Follow up with your high school to ensure the counselor forwards your final school transcripts to the college.

• Plan for college transportation.
• Notify your high school guidance office of your college selection and any scholarships received. Follow up with the financial aid office to ensure all paperwork is complete.

• Save money from your summer job.
• Send “thank you notes” to everyone who helped you plan and prepare for college.
• Make copies of your financial aid forms, health forms, etc for your files to aid in resolving future issues.

Congratulations! It's time to get ready to start college.