College Planning Tips for the Week of:

Sunday September 07, 2008

Finalize Your College Search and Selection It’s time to review your college search and narrow your selection down to those schools that meet your career objectives. Meet with your school’s guidance counselor to discuss your decision. Your Search Categories Include: search list of 2-3 schools that you could definitely get in search list of 4-5 schools that you could probably get in search list of 7-8 schools that you would like to get in Budget how much you can afford for application submission. If the submission costs for 16 or more schools is too high, narrow your search to 3-3-3. Take a final look at your schools to make sure they meet your career requirements. Add or remove schools from your list. Make sure you meet the school requirements (GPA, transcripts, exam scores, etc.). No sense wasting application fees on schools where you don’t meet requirements. Contact those schools that made your final cut. Request an application and other information such as deadlines, required fees, financial aid, etc. Find out if they need your official transcripts at the time you send in your application. College and University Search: Finalize Your College Search : — universities by State — community colleges by State — career schools by Type — online schools by Academic link to: college search directory Keep a track of your college list using our FREE download tool: click here  What should you look for in a school: private or public size location type of curriculum quality of education cost admission requirements help with financial aid housing resources nearby facilities campus life security lifestyle

More information available: view our complete college planning calendar for September

Tags: College Planning, college planning calendar for September, college planning for high school students, collegeg guide

nBuy Associates, the owner of SayCampusLife.com, has announced that its ten-year old college information portal, OfftoCollege.com, has been over overhauled. The revised site, featuring a summarized financial aid section, comprehensive tools set, as well as a refreshed step-by-step guide for first-time students, is now live and ready for use.

OfftoCollege.com was founded in September 1998 with a mission to educate prospective and current students and their families, by providing them relevant and current information about colleges and how to pay for their education. With college costs rising twice as fast as the rate of inflation, OfftoCollege.com has kept pace with changing financing trends to help families find ways to pay for college.

The centerpiece of the modified site is its Financial Aid Guide which offers walk through advice on financial aid steps, aid options, and helpful tools such as an aid map, aid book, and budget planning tips. The site offers free downloads of its e-books and tools which can be accessed by anyone who has free portable document reader (*pdf) software installed on their computer (certain comparative tools require spreadsheet software). Adobe Reader software is available for free at www.adobe.com.

The step-by-step guide for new students is particularly helpful for high school students who are looking for a road map to help them through the college search process. Five steps in that process are explored including college prep, college search, college admittance, paying for college, and getting ready to leave for college.

Families with freshmen and sophomore high school students can find the guides to be quite useful with an emphasis on helping high school juniors and seniors complete the steps necessary to transition to college. Additional guides and tips are also available for current college students who are exploring their educational options beyond their undergraduate studies including grad school and continuing education programs.

nBuy Associates is based in Glen Allen, Virginia and is accredited with the Better Business Bureau’s BBBOnline Reliablity Program.

Tags: college aid, College Planning, college portal, college prep, student lending, website