Students and Parents of the Class of 2017,
Periodically, we will send out an email titled GLC NEWSLETTER. We will include news and notes about DBHS, planning for after high school and much more. We will also post these issues on the Diamond Bar High School website under GUIDANCE and The Class of 2017 pages. The GLC NEWSLETTER will be in addition to the GLC Quarterly which is sent out 3-4 times each school year.
THIS IS THE CLASS OF 2017 GLC NEWSLETTER #2
REMIND TEXT MESSAGE SYSTEM: If students or parents are not receiving periodic text message reminders, please sign up with our system. Go to our Class of 2017 Web page (Text Message Remind System) for directions on how to register for this helpful REMIND Text Message system.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Southern California College Fair-Wednesday, October 7, 2015 (See www.dbhs.org Guidance/GLC/Class of 2017)
UC Day-UC Virtual College Fair-Thursday, October 8, 2015 (See www.dbhs.org Guidance/GLC/Class of 2017)
CAHSEE-CALIFORNIA HIGH SCHOOL EXIT EXAM
At this time, the California High School Exit Exam has been suspended per California Senate Bill 172, and therefore will NOT be a graduation requirement. There will still be the usual state testing in the spring.
HIGH SCHOOL YEARS-TIPS FOR PARENTS AND EDUCATORS
This is a regular newsletter that offers great tips and advice for parents and educators. You will find both the September and October 2015 issues on our school website www.dbhs.org Guidance/GLC/Class of 2017. A must read for parents of teenagers!
COLLEGE ADMISSIONS INFORMATION
WUE-Western Undergraduate Exchange Program allows students who are residents of WICHE states to request a reduced tuition rate of 150% of resident tuition at participating two- and four-year college programs outside of their home state. This is a great program if your student is looking at attending an out-of-state university. It may result in a tuition cost savings for your student. Check out the website and you can also find information on our school website, www.dbhs.org go to GUIDANCE/GLC/CLASS OF 2017.
SENIOR BULLETIN
Every year the senior class has access to very informative Senior Bulletins. The Senior Bulletin is loaded with information about the college admissions process, community college etc. We are posting these Senior Bulletins to our Class of 2017 page on the school website. We believe you may find the information helpful this year as well.
INFORMATIVE WEBSITE
I have had students share with us an informative/helpful website as they research universities, community colleges etc. Check it out: www.unigo.org
PSAT-OCTOBER 14, 2015
Many of our Class of 2017 Juniors will be taking the PSAT-Practice SAT next Wednesday, October 14th here on our campus. This PSAT is the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test for our Junior Students. If your student registered for this exam, he/she will receive confirmation information by the end of this school week. This information will include a Test-Prep. booklet and information on arrival time and location of the test for our students.
PSAT Testing Sites
Please report to the testing site for your LAST name according to the chart below. You should plan on arriving no later than 7:45 am on Wednesday, October 14th.
Last Names A – K: GYM
Last Names L: Aerobics/Wrestling Room (next to gym)
Last Names M – Q: LINC
Last Names R – U: Golden Horseshoe
Last Names V – Z: Rooms 558-559 (Multipurpose Room)
Students who fail to arrive on time will NOT be allowed to test, will NOT be excused from their classes, and will NOT receive a refund. Be on time.
COLLEGE VISITS
Juniors should be taking the time to visit with university representatives as they visit our campus. Students should check out the school website ACADEMICS/CAREER CENTER for the up-to-date schedule of visits. This is a great way to gather first-hand information from college representatives.
INFORMATION FROM PREVIOUS CLASS OF 2017 GLC NEWSLETTER…
POST HIGH SCHOOL PLANS:
Interest Inventories/Searches: We encourage all of our students to take steps to find out what areas of study and/or career interests best fit them. Students may access Interest Inventories (Simple tests/questionnaires which help direct students to careers/college majors that may match their strengths etc.) via our school website www.dbhs.org. On the Guidance Page, students should look at the right hand side of the page for several available links. The link titled Careers will guide them to some of these Interest Inventories. In addition, we strongly recommend our students create a free account on the following websites:
These websites have tremendous resources available on helping students look into different career opportunities and college majors.
College/University Searches: During our summer meeting, each Class of 2017 student received the Student/Parent Information Handbook. This is also available on the Class of 2017 webpage. In this handbook, you will find a 2-page College Search Process. Please encourage your student to begin the process of creating a list of colleges/universities which may be a good fit for them after high school. As Grade Level Coordinators, we want our students to eventually move on to a college or university setting which is a great “fit” for them. Students and parents need to put aside only looking at “prestigious name” universities and open up to consideration, universities which will provide the environment that will allow their son or daughter to flourish, to be happy and content as they pursue their career interests. “Happy Students are good students!” The student’s list of potential colleges/universities may be quite large at this point; however, as the year progresses into next summer, your student should begin narrowing the list down. If your student begins this process now, he/she will have plenty of time and opportunities to research the school, ask questions, visit the campuses etc. prior to the senior year beginning. The final list of colleges/universities to which your student will eventually apply should be established by next August/September. Encourage your student to have fun with this process and to tell friends and family of their interests.
SAT/ACT-
If a Class of 2017 student is looking to start their college experience at a 4-year university, he/she will need to take the SAT or ACT. In addition, some universities will require SAT Subject Tests as well. Go to www.collegeboard.org (SAT) and/or www.act.org (ACT) to create a student account and to register for tests. We recommend these tests be taken during junior year. Students may be able to retake the tests the first 2-3 test administrations of their senior year, but don’t wait until senior year to take them for the first time! Another factor to consider is when to take the SAT as a junior. Generally speaking, if a student is currently in Geometry or Algebra II then it may be wise to wait until the last 1-2 SAT test administrations this school year. This will allow these students to have as much Geometry and Algebra II math instruction completed.
SAT Subject Tests: Many private universities will require (2) SAT Subject Tests as part of their admission’s requirements. UCs and CSUs do not require SAT Subject Tests; however, some UC campuses “recommend” students taking (2) SAT Subject Tests. Some universities, if they require SAT Subject Tests, may accept any (2) subjects. Some universities, if they require SAT Subject Tests, may specify specific test subjects for certain majors. For example, a student majoring in a Science or Math related field or Engineering may be wise to take the SAT Subject Test Math Level II and a Science SAT Subject Test. To be sure, a student should research individual university admission requirements. In addition, if possible, students should arrange to take an SAT Subject Test in the spring time which could coincide with their preparation for an Advanced Placement (AP) exam. For example, if a student plans to take an SAT Subject Test in Chemistry and is also enrolled in AP Chemistry here at DBHS this school year, he/she should take the SAT Chemistry Subject test in the spring. Students should go to the Class of 2017 Web page to look under FILES for the document titled: UC Campuses and The SAT Subject Tests. This file will give you information on what UCs recommend the SAT Subject Tests and which ones!
MISCELLANEOUS TOPICS:
EXTRACURRICULAR OPPORTUNITIES FOR LEADERSHIP & COLLEGE PREPARATION ETC.: Another great resource for our students. Go to our Class of 2017 Webpage and look for this heading. Students will be able to find extracurricular programs under this heading. These will include College Fairs, Summer Workshops, and Internship Type Programs etc.!
CHECKING THE DBHS WEBSITE OFTEN! The class of 2017 should check our school website www.dbhs.org often for school announcements, opportunities, deadlines etc. Once on the school website, our students should go to the GUIDANCE LINK AND THEN TO THE CLASS OF 2017 WEBPAGE. Students who do not check this information often are missing out on important announcements and opportunities.
LEGAL NAMES USED FOR SAT/ACT, COLLEGE APPLICATIONS- Reminder!! When students register to take the SAT or ACT, they should use their legal name. This legal name should match the name used here at DBHS on their academic transcript. It should also be the same name the student will use during the college/university admission’s process next year as a 12th grader. Using different names (nicknames etc.) may result in the student’s academic records never matching up and resulting in the student missing important requirements for the admission’s process.
Student Email Addresses: We advise our students to be careful when selecting an email address. It may be wise for students to create an email account specifically for the upcoming admission’s process. Using “cute or silly” email addresses for the admission’s process doesn’t give a positive first impression. We suggest very simple, straight-forward email addresses such as First Initial of First Name and last name or some combination of this.
Kevin R. Patterson & Jack Galeener
Grade Level Coordinators
Class of 2017
Diamond Bar High School