Fall College Rep Visits at Biotech

Throughout the fall, admissions counselors from colleges throughout the country will be visiting Biotech. These are excellent opportunities for you to learn more about prospective colleges and for them to learn about you.

To view our schedule of visits: log into Naviance and click on the "Colleges" tab. On the right, under "My Colleges" you'll see a list of upcoming visits --> click on "view all upcoming visits"

Important: Lunch time visits in the MPR do not require sign up. However, you must sign up in advance to attend visits scheduled during the school day or after-school.

Here are the September visits that juniors and seniors can sign up for:

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology - Thursday 9/24, 12:30 pm, Guidance
• Tufts University - Friday 9/25, 8:45 am, Guidance
• Northeastern University - Tuesday 9/29, 2:15 pm, Reading Room

To sign up for visits, go the page in Naviance with all of our upcoming visits and click the "sign up" link next to the school's name, then click on "sign me up."

We hope that you take advantage of the many opportunities that will be available to you this fall to speak with college admissions counselors!

Summer Guidance Updates for Seniors

Updates and reminders from the Guidance Office that will help make the start of your senior year college application process successful and stress-free!

Summer To Do List

• Building Your College List (Research, Visits & Interviews) - By the end of the summer, you should have finalized your list of fit schools to apply to, with 2 to 4 schools in each category: Reach / Target / Safety.

• Applications & Forms - Remember that the 2015-16 Common Application becomes “live” on August 1st. Try to have the majority of the Common App completed before school starts. Also, don’t forget about the Rutgers Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR). If you are applying to Rutgers, you must complete the SRAR (takes about 1 hour).

• Essays - Continue working on your drafts of the Common App Essay / Personal Statement & identifying the supplemental essays for the colleges you’re intending to apply to. 

• Test Preparation - SAT, SAT Subject Tests and/or ACT (if testing in the fall)

• Extended Essay Draft 1 

• Creativity Action Service 110 Hour Checkpoint 

Mark Your Calendar - Important College Dates

• August 1: 2015-16 Common App Available 
• September 12: ACT (register by Aug. 7) 
• October 1: CSS Profile Available 
• October 3: SAT & SAT Subject Tests (register by Sept. 3) 
• October 22: College Financial Night at BTHS, 6:30 pm 
• October 24: ACT (register by Sept. 18) 
• November 7: SAT (register by Oct. 9) 
• December 1: Rutgers Application Deadline* 
• January 1: FAFSA Available 
• May 1: Commitment / Decision deadline

*You must apply to Rutgers by December 1st in order to be eligible for scholarship consideration

In addition to the dates above, take time over the summer to get organized with the dates and requirements for the schools you are applying to. Organization = key for college application success! 

Enjoy the rest of your summer! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us with any questions or concerns that you may have. We are looking forward to seeing you back at Biotech on September 8th!

Parent Brag Sheets ~ Class of 2016

Parent Brag Sheet ~ Class of 2016
For Guidance Counselor’s Letter of Recommendation
Must be completed in Naviance
Due: May 29, 2015

Over the course of the last three years, you’ve had a front row seat for your child’s progression from high school freshman to (almost) senior. Now it’s your time to brag about how wonderful they’ve become!

The Parent Brag Sheet is your opportunity to share your insights, experiences and observations of your child to assist us in developing a positive and detailed letter of recommendation in support of their college applications. No one knows your child like you do, and the insights you share with us can help positively affect their college decisions next fall.

We encourage you to be candid, accurate and detailed in responding to the brag sheet questions. Please know that all personal information shared will remain confidential.

Also note regarding challenging circumstances: if you feel that your child’s academic performance and/or extracurricular involvement may have been significantly impacted by any challenging circumstances, feel free to describe this to us in depth either through the survey or phone-call/meeting.

Accessing the Survey:

• Click here to login to your Naviance Account
• To access the survey, click on the "About Me" Tab. Then click on "Parent Brag Survey" link (top left)
• Your login name is your email address. If you forget your password click "forgot your password?" to reset it.
• If you’re unable to access your Naviance Account, please email your child’s counselor.

Completing The Survey:

• As you are completing the survey, be sure to save your answers periodically.
• You can complete the survey in multiple sittings, Click on “Save & Return Later” (bottom of the page) to save your progress
• To submit your final survey, click on “Save & I’m Finished” (bottom of the page)
• Once you submit the completed survey, you won’t be able to edit your responses.
• Naviance sessions expire/time-out after one hour - so be sure to save your responses within an hour.

Exploring Educational Excellence

When:
Wednesday, June 3, 2015 at 7:30 PM

Where:
West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North
90 Grovers Mill Rd
Plainsboro, NJ 08536 

What:
Join Brown, UChicago, Columbia, Cornell and Rice for an information session for prospective students and their families. Sessions include a brief overview of each institution, information on admissions and financial aid, and a chance to speak informally with admissions representatives. You must register to attend

Click here to register for Exploring Educational Excellence

Exploring College Options

Exploring College Options 

When:
Tuesday, May 12th at 7:00 pm

Where:
Hilton East Brunswick
3 Tower Center Boulevard
East Brunswick, NJ 08816

What:
Exploring College Options is a special recruitment program sponsored by the undergraduate admissions offices of five of the country's leading universities: Duke University, Georgetown University, Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Stanford University. During the spring or fall of each year, the Exploring College Options group will visit all 50 states, Puerto Rico, USVI and the District of Columbia. At each event, representatives from the five universities will conduct brief slide presentations about their institution and answer your questions about the sometimes-mystifying world of college admissions. You will learn what distinguishes one fine university from another, what competitive colleges look for in the selection process, and what you can do to enhance your college application. The programs start promptly at 7:00pm, so we suggest arriving 15 to 20 minutes beforehand to complete the sign-in process and find a seat. Programs typically last one and a half hours. Please feel free to bring your parent or guardian to the program, and if you have a friend who you think might be interested, please direct him/her to this website for registration information.

Click here to register for Exploring College Options