Scholarship Gold Consulting- Helping students prepare for college and compete for scholarships
                                             Elizabeth Hartley, coach/consultant/author 
December 2012Vol 2, Issue 1

"College Wise"

 a free monthly newsletter by Elizabeth Hartley,  

ScholarshipGold.com

 

 

Personal Note        

Hi college bound friends- 

 

 I hope this finds you winding up a productive semester and looking forward to a relaxing and joyful Christmas.

 

Already many of my seniors are receiving admission and scholarship offers and preparing for upcoming scholarship interviews.  Such an exciting time!

 

For all students, it is important to make this final push to score well on your semester finals and finish strong.  If you have any borderline grades, ask your teacher if there are any opportunities to do last minute work for extra credit and confirm what grade you might need on your final exam or project to bump your grade to the next higher letter grade.  Sometimes the fact that you're willing to talk with them about it and show the extra initiative to do a bit more work will incline them to round up in your favor.  

 

Some good topics in this newsletter- I hope you enjoy.  If you know of anyone else who may benefit from this information, please feel free to forward so they can sign up to get future editions.

 

Have a blessed and meaningful Christmas!

 

  Elizabeth  

  color head shot
 
 
Practice Interview Question of the month 

Essays, admission interviews and scholarship interviews involve addressing questions that require reflection and self-awareness. Each month I provide you with a commonly used question for you to consider.  How would you answer this one?

"Leadership comes in many forms.  How have you personally demonstrated leadership?"


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Video Bonus- Enjoy this short video that will introduce you to Mercer University in Macon, GA.  
 
Mercer University Admissions Video
Mercer University Admissions Video
 
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ALL 2012/2013 SAT test dates  


Register 4-6 weeks ahead on www.collegeboard.com.
$49 to register, $75 if late
  
Jan 26th      register by Dec 28th
Mar 9th       register by Feb 8th
May 4th       register by April 5th
June 1st      register  by May 7th
 
Not sure which test to take?  Take one of each and compare your scores.

ALL 2012/2013 ACT test dates
  (Yes, take the writing portion.)
 
 Register 4-6 weeks ahead on www.actstudent.org.

Feb 9th*     register by Jan 11th
April 13th  register by March 8th
June 8th    register by May 3rd
 
*Also Elizabeth Hartley's birthday- celebrate in your own special way.

  

Helpful Websites

 

Free Courses through the Ivy Leagues!

 
 

Thanks to the vision of two Stanford professors, a new website called www.Coursera.com offers live, free classes online through 33 of the nation's top universities.  While the classes aren't for credit, they can be an enriching way to pursue areas of interest from some of the nation's leading professors.  So, go online and check them out!  

This new type of open access to higher ed classes is part of a new form of classes called MOOC (Massive Online Open Classes).  You can also do an online search for other MOOC opportunities.  Great for parents and even grandparents to enjoy as well.  You're never too old to enjoy learning!


Are you being a good record keeper?

 
 

As any of my current seniors can attest, your future college applications will all ask for a detailed list of your activities throughout high school, including how many hours spent on that activity each week and how many weeks per year.  This information is difficult to accurately conjure up as a senior if you haven't kept thorough records all along.

I strongly recommend that you keep a notebook throughout high school in which you record all of your clubs, honor societies, awards, athletic involvement, volunteer activities, summer programs, educational travel, leadership roles and any other pertinent events that you find noteworthy.  Keeping this list up to date (along with having a place to keep all certificates/awards) will make sure you accurately and completely fill in your applications when the time comes.

Book list-  More schools than ever are also asking that students upload a list of all of the books they have read in the last one or two years, including ones required by school and ones read recreationally.  I recommend that you go ahead and keep a running book list so that it's complete and ready when you need it.



Special Event!  
College Bound Essentials Class and Middle School Essentials Class coming to High Point Univeristy Jan. 26th!
AND Special Campus Tours  just for us

 


high point
New Classes Set up for High Point University!
   
 I often receive requests to teach these two workshops out of town and will gladly do so when I have a contact in that town to help coordinate a venue and related details. A mom from Greensboro suggested I bring the workshops to her area and was then inspired to arrange to hold the events on the gorgeous campus of High Point University, just to put the students in a college environment and add to the excitement of the day.  Fabulous idea! 
 
The Admissions staff at High Point has been incredibly gracious and receptive to the idea and has even offered to hold a custom tour for all interested families and has even offered to provide lunch for everyone.
 
The details of each event are provided below- Please share with any friends you think would find these workshops helpful! The workshops are $75/student but parents are strongly encouraged to come along at no charge.  The tour and lunch are free, provided by High Point University.
________________________________________________________
 
 
Middle School Essentials class- 9:00-noon- read details and register here.
Followed by an optional free lunch on campus and a special tour at 1:30
 
College Bound Essentials- 1:00-4:00-  read details and register here
An optional special tour is available at 10:00 a.m., followed by a free lunch on campus before the 1:00 workshop starts.
______________________________________________________________________
The College Bound Essentials class will:

 

  • Teach students how to get full ride offers to over 200 schools with just one test
  • How to build a transcript that will result in the best admission offers
  • How to go to Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Brown, MIT and more for FREE (really)
  • Teach them how to find their best college fits
  • Cover basic interview skills
  • Teach students how to tour and evaluate a college as it relates to the student's interests
  • Identify the best and least expensive ways to increase SAT and ACT scores
  • Encourage them to take "ownership" of this next stage in their lives, to be proactive, organized and serious about this decision and help them strategize a game plan to get their best results!
  •  
    The Middle School Essentials class will cover :
     

    - Why they should go to college

    - Differences between colleges & universities, state schools vs. private schools

    - What it takes to get into a good college (grades, SAT's, extracurriculars)

    - How to tell if a college is a good one or not

    - How to start exploring career ideas

    - The different type of scholarships and when/how to get them

    - How to start applying for (and winning) scholarships as early as 7th grade.

    - How to add that extra "punch" to your record through the Congressional Award Program

    - The essentials of how to effectively communicate and interview

    This event will be fast-paced, humorous and will use multimedia to keep the students engaged and focused.  A great choice for getting a student into that college-bound mindset!

     

    I'm very excited about this event and look forward to holding these sessions in such a gorgeous venue.  For those hoping to get their students inspired and excited about what college may hold for them, High Point is a wonderful school to give them the motivation they need!
     
    So, please spread the word and let's enjoy an exciting and informative day at HPU!

    Lake Wylie -College Bound Essentials and Interviewing classes on Sunday, Jan 27th

     

    Interview Skills Class- Jan 27th- 12:30-3:30
     
    Since February is the most common month for scholarship interviews, I will be offering a dynamic and interactive workshop covering all elements of effective interviewing on Sunday, Jan 27th at my office in Lake Wylie, from 12:30-3:30.

    Interview Skills and Effective Communications will cover:

    - How to articulate thoughts meaningfully and insightfully
    - How to prepare for the top 60 most common interview questions
    - Proper and positive body language
    - What to wear (and what NOT to wear)
    - What questions you should be prepared to ask
    - Interactive practice exercises during class to apply your newfound skills

    ......And much more!  For details and to register, click here.  

    College Bound Essentials- Jan 27th, 4:00-7:00

    Also, on that same day, I will be offering College Bound Essentials- the absolutely critical class all college-bound students and their parents should attend.  Appropriate for motivated 8th graders through 11th graders.  (See description in the block above for details.)    For more details and registration, click here
    That's all for this edition!  I hope this information will help you navigate your college admission and scholarship pursuits a bit better.  If there is a topic you would like me to cover in an upcoming
    newsletter, please e-mail me at HartleyGold@yahoo.com and let me know!  
     
    I work with schools, districts, homeschool groups and individual students with respect to being fully prepared for college admission and scholarship competition.  Visit my site at www.ScholarshipGold.com anytime to review my credentials, services offered and events planned.
     
    If your organization or students would like to discuss these services, please e-mail me at the address above for availability and rates.  It's your future-- make it remarkable!
                                                                       

    Elizabeth Hartley                 

    Scholarship Gold Consulting                                         

     

    704-608-1807
     HartleyGold@yahoo.com                                                  www.ScholarshipGold.com 

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