Preparing for COLLEGE

The College Search Process

We realize how daunting the college search and application process can be. You can find many sources of information regarding this process in bookstores, on the Internet, from independent counselors and from people who have recently completed this process themselves.

Applying to College

The Common Application

The Common Application is the recommended form for 299 selective colleges and universities for admission to their undergraduate programs. Many of these institutions use the form exclusively. All give equal consideration to the Common Application and the college’s own form. 

SUNY Application

Apply to multiple SUNY campuses and submit any additional required documents all in one place. While there is no official deadline for applying as a regular decision applicant to SUNY, it is encouraged to submit your application as soon as possible. When campuses or particular academic programs are full for a certain semester, no further applications will be accepted. The sooner an applicant applies, the less likely he/she will be closed out of a program at a particular campus.

College Testing

ACT

The ACT is a standardized achievement examination for college admissions in the United States produced by ACT, Inc. It was first administered in Fall 1959 by Everett Franklin Lindquist as a competitor to the College Board’s Scholastic Aptitude Test, now the SAT Reasoning Test. Some students who perform poorly on the SAT find that they perform better on the ACT and vice versa. 

The ACT test has historically consisted of four tests: English, Math, Reading, and Science reasoning. In February 2005, an optional writing test was added to the ACT, mirroring changes to the SAT that took place later in March of the same year.

All four-year colleges and universities in the U.S. accept the ACT but different institutions place different emphases on standardized tests such as the ACT, compared to other factors of evaluation such as class rank, G.P.A., and extracurricular activities.

PSAT

The Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) is a standardized test for high school students in the United States. The PSAT is owned, published, and developed by the College Board, a non-profit organization in the United States, and is administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS).

SAT

The SAT Reasoning Test (formerly Scholastic Aptitude Test and Scholastic Assessment Test) is a standardized test for college admissions in the United States. The SAT is owned, published, and developed by the College Board, a non-profit organization in the United States, and was once developed, published, and scored by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). ETS now administers the exam.

Collegiate Athletics

• NCAA Clearinghouse Information
• National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
• Signing Dates

Research

• eCampus Tours
• CounselorCommunity.com
• New York State Private Colleges and Universities
• U.S. News & World Report: America’s Best Colleges
• College Board
• Princeton Review
• Embark
• College Net
• SUNY Schools
• Virtual College Tours
• National Association for College Admission Counseling
• Going to College.org
• National Honor Society

What you may not know about Financial Aid and FAFSA

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) determines eligibility for federal student financial aid programs, such as Pell Grants, federal student loans and federal work-study. Learn more about FAFSA “Dos and Don’ts” before you fill out an application. 

Scholarship Resources

• GoodCall – GoodCall has the largest scholarship database in the world.
• FastWeb – Free Scholarship search engine. Over 1.3 million scholarships are available to apply for on the website.