Juniors! Schedule your Virtual Meeting with College Counselors!

JUNIORS!!

Here are some important reminders for your considerations as you begin or delve deeper into your college planning process in what is a most unusual semester, to say the least.

I-Schedule your Meeting with Your Assigned College Counselor! They may be working remotely, but are still conducting college counselor meetings by phone/video conferencing. It is important that EVERY junior “meet” with their assigned college counselor before the end of the spring term. You’ve received emails about scheduling these appointments several times this semester and we’ll send them out again. If you don’t know how to schedule, just send a quick email to your college counselor:

Ms. Wilson (Homerooms A-JA): jwilson@stuy.edu

Mr. Makris (Homerooms J-Q): jmakris@stuy.edu

Mrs. Hughes (Homerooms R-Z): ehughes@stuy.edu

II-Request Two Teacher Rec Letters This Semester

Your teachers will not write or submit rec letters until the fall…but we want you to know which teachers will write for you before summer. A few things to keep in mind:

• Ask for ONLY two teacher recs unless you are applying to a specific program that requires more than that (like the Sophie Davis program)
• Teacher rec letters are written on a voluntary basis. This is NOT a job requirement for our teachers, so when they write, they are doing so entirely of their own accord as a favor to you. Please keep that in mind when you make your request…be polite, include in your email a few things about why you enjoy(ed) their class, and provide anything they might ask you for to help them write. THANK THEM IF THEY AGREE TO WRITE FOR YOU AND DO SO AGAIN NEXT YEAR!
• 10TH GRADE TEACHERS ARE FINE! You are NOT limited to 11th grade teachers, especially at schools like Stuy, and even more so now that the pandemic has closed schools across the country for what may well be the rest of the school year. If you had great relationships with 10th grade teachers from major subjects, those could be great recommenders for you!
• If a teacher you hope to ask has already shared with you their specific process for requesting a rec letter, please just follow their instructions accordingly

III-What’s Up with the ACT and SATs?

You probably heard that the June SAT has been cancelled. The June ACT is still on as of the writing of this email, but that of course could change by the time you actually read this. Stay on top of emails you receive from ACT and/or College Board, and follow their latest announcements on the respective websites:

ACT

SAT

In short, while both companies plan to offer make –up dates and to increase testing opportunities for all students, it is possible that test sites will not be able to accommodate all of the students who attempt to register to test this summer or fall. If you are hoping to take one of these exams, register as soon as registration opens. We’ll share fee waiver information when that is shared with us.

IV-Creating Financially Safe Options is More Important than Ever

We’ll discuss the financial aid process in detail next fall, but for now please remember that while many families are facing serious financial obstacles as a result of the pandemic, so are many colleges and universities. This is absolutely going to affect the financial aid budgets of many institutions. To be safe, you MUST include lower cost options on your college lists next fall, such as NY public institutions in the CUNY or SUNY systems. You can get a great education in both systems, and having this financial safety net in place could be critical for your family.

V-Will Colleges Know How Stuy Was Affected by COVID-19?

Yes…that’s part of our job in the College Office. Colleges are going to be very flexible with applicants next year on many levels as they are living through this just as we are. Admissions officers have their own families and children/relatives struggling with school closures, remote learning, etc. We’ll be communicating to our admissions reps exactly how Stuy was affected through multiple modalities so that they fully understand how our entire school community was impacted, including the additional challenges our socioeconomically disadvantaged students have been facing. We have already been in touch with many of these representatives and we’ll continue to be.

And yes…we’ll be explaining the whole “physics thing”. You don’t have to worry about that, either.

We know this may seem overwhelming. But keep in mind that in the end, you’re going to get through this. You have a very bright future ahead of you along with an exciting and fulfilling college experience, and that hasn’t changed.

Use the support of your college counselor if you need help with any of this moving forward.