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Gwinnett County Public Schools
Get Ready for College
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Get Ready for College!

     While GCPS observes Georgia Apply to College Month in November, the best time is now for students to access the resources supporting their college research and postsecondary planning.  Across all GCPS high schools, our students are participating in opportunities to prepare them for bright futures and the careers of their choice.

Let’s take a closer look at how our schools are preparing students to pursue their college and career goals.

 

Norcross High School

“We have two intervention periods each Thursday where students can receive extra help in classes,” says Norcross High School Counselor Victoria Brooks. “We have used that time to schedule college rep visits (that we know are popular choices), college application workshops, and FSA ID workshops. It's been fantastic because we don't take up class time. I use Naviance to pull data on student interest in a particular college and then send personal invites to students to sign up in Naviance. Colleges also schedule in Naviance to visit our lunch periods.”

 

Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology

“We share a lot of information through advisement,” says GSMST Counselor Amy Burke. “Some advisement lessons we have created and presented include Pathway to College (10th grade), Lesson on College Fairs and Rep Visits (11th grade), and FAFSA lesson (12th grade).” GSMST also hosts a 10thh/11thh Grade Family Night and College Fair in alternating school years.

 

Parkview High School

“At Parkview High School, we provide information to our students at a ‘Financing your college education night’, ‘FAFSA workshop’, and a ‘Virtual Senior Parent night’, along with Senior Advisement lessons and our Senior Information webpage,” says Parkview High Counselor Katie Mehlhorn.

 

Paul Duke STEM High School

“College fly-in programs are highly competitive college visitation programs for underrepresented students,” says Paul Duke STEM High School Counselor Leslie Patel. “Institutions fly students in to stay at their campuses for two or three days, allowing students—who might not otherwise get a chance to visit—to get a feel for the college and campus.”

In most cases, the college covers costs, including transportation and room and board, or offers to reimburse the student for some of the expenses associated with visiting the college’s campus.

Patel adds, “Most colleges just fly in admitted students, but this list only includes colleges who offer fly-in to prospective students.”

 

Peachtree Ridge High School

Peachtree Ridge High Counselor Abby Youngblood shares the following timeline with her students, and recommends the same information for all students and families:

Senior Year Timeline: Planning for College

  • Fall:
    • Watch Senior Advisement videos from Pride on Peachtree Ridge HS Counseling Office eCLASS page
    • Attend Senior Night and Financial Aid Night
    • Complete and sign Senior Graduation Application with your counselor
    • Finish visiting colleges of interest --visit campus virtually if needed
    • Finalize the list of colleges you will apply to. It is recommended that you apply to 3-5 schools, including a safety school, match school, and reach school.
    • Gather admissions requirements for each school, such as application deadline, required test scores and GPA, essay questions, etc. Remember, every college will have different deadlines for merit-based scholarships, so check websites early if you plan to apply.   
    • Begin filling out college applications (if necessary, based on deadlines)
    • Finish taking SAT and ACT tests (college entrance exams) or ACCUPLACER test (technical colleges)
    • Request transcripts and letters of recommendation (if required).

 

 

  • Spring:
    • Apply for scholarships
    • Review Award Letters/Financial Aid offers from colleges you have been accepted to (may be shared via student’s email or online application portal)
    • Graduate!

Youngblood also shares the following reminders with students:

Things to Remember:

  • Transcripts: Colleges require a transcript for admission. Most transcripts will be requested through your Naviance account. There is a one-time $5 processing fee on mypaymentsplus.com for electronic transcripts. For in-state colleges, you may also request free transcripts electronically at gafutures.org. You MUST have your social security number on file at your school in order to have this option available. For out-of-state schools, you may request paper copies of your transcript on mypaymentsplus.com. Paper transcripts are $5 each and are ready within 2 school days. It’s the student’s responsibility to pick up documents and mail them to the college.
  • Counselor Recommendations: Plan ahead! If schools you are applying to require a counselor letter of recommendation, complete the Student Information Sheet (available in eCLASS;  students should contact their school’s Counseling office for more information) and email it to your counselor. Letters of Recommendation must be requested at least 10 days in advance of the application deadline. If the deadline is over Winter Break, you should submit your request before Thanksgiving Break!
  • Test Scores: An SAT or ACT score may be required for admission and must be sent electronically from the student’s SAT or ACT account.
  • HOPE/Zell Miller Scholarships: You can access your Preliminary HOPE/Zell Miller Scholarship GPA by creating an account at gafutures.org. Also, you MUST have your social security number on file at your school in order to be eligible for the HOPE Scholarship or to access your preliminary HOPE Scholarship GPA.

 

Special thanks to Maxwell High School of Technology Counselor Dr. LaVonna Groce and Peachtree Ridge High Counselor Abby Youngblood for sharing the following list of websites. Every GCPS student should make their school’s website one of their first stops for college and career planning and scholarship information:

Researching Colleges and Careers:

  • Naviance- Gwinnett County students can access the college and career site that is currently the go-to site for college and career information available through their eCLASS portal.
  • Common Application- www.commonapp.org
  • Black College Common Application- https://commonblackcollegeapp.com/ - students can fill out one application for various Historically Black Colleges and Universities, instead of completing multiple applications for all HBCUs.
  • GAfutures- www.gafutures.org
  • CollegeBoard- www.collegeboard.org - register for SAT test (college entrance exam), Find out dates and registration deadlines of SAT, find college and scholarship information also on this website
  • Big Future- https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/ - College information and resource search website, created by College Board, for all sorts of college resources.
  • College Confidential - collegeconfidential.com - Explore careers, compare colleges, and learn about financial aid.
  • Technical System of Georgia (TCSG) - www.tcsg.edu - Information about Technical Colleges in Georgia; students can research a list of technical colleges in Georgia.TCSG also gives students information on grants and financial assistance like the HOPE Career Grant- https://www.tcsg.edu/for-students/paying-for-college/https://www.tcsg.edu/free-tuition/
  • College planning guide, especially helpful for first-generation students. admissions.gsu.edu/bachelors-degree/first-generation-students/
  • See how you compare to students admitted previously to the college of your choice. collegedata.com
  • Compare colleges against the national median on net price and average debt measures. collegescorecard.ed.gov
  • Virtually tour hundreds of campuses; free scholarship search and financial aid resources. ecampustours.com                                             
  • For dates and locations of local college fairs visit gaprobe.org
  • Filter your preferences in various areas such as location, size, extracurricular interests, sports, and major to find good college matches. princetonreview.com/college-search
  • Wanting to explore careers? O*NET (Occupational Information Network), sponsored by the US Department of Labor, is the nation's primary source of occupational information. onetonline.org.
  • Interested in starting your career and building your skillset through apprenticeship?  Apprenticeship Finder: apprenticeship.gov

 

Scholarship and Financial Aid Information
 

Testing /College Entrance Exams

  • SAT- CollegeBoard- www.collegeboard.org- Students can register for SAT test (college entrance exam), find out dates and registration deadlines of SAT, and also find college and scholarship information.
  • ACT - www.actstudent.org-register to take the ACT (college entrance exam)
  • Accuplacer- college entrance exam for Technical colleges in Georgia, register and find out locations to test: https://accuplacer.collegeboard.org/

Undocumented student college information:

 

More Scholarship information

 

Community Organizations that can help in college access for all students, also for international and undocumented students: