Niles High School

I need to do more research on colleges and I'm not sure how to do that? Do not wait until your senior year to research schools, college requirements, and financial aid options!!

• One option is to go back to Career Cruising and use the tools there. Go to the internet website www.careercruising.com. Ask for help in the Guidance Office about how to navigate this site. You will need your student ID and a password. These should be the same as your log in to the school computers.
• Look at our College-Related Links page under the "Guidance/College Info" tab on our NHS website. There are several helpful websites for college research.
• Go to several college websites in Michigan. (i.e., www.wmich.edu). Colleges have loads of helpful information on their websites - from average ACT scores of their current freshman class, to the number of students attending their college, to different majors presently offered, to class offerings. The more information you gather about the college admissions process, the better informed you will be.
• Visit college campuses!!! Visits allow parents and students to "picture" the possibility of the student actually attending the college one day. See our College Campus Visit Checklist page under the tab "Guidance/College Info." on our NHS website.
• Talk to people in your community about what their job responsibilities are. Ask about their educational background, what they enjoy about their job, and what challenges them about their work.
• Volunteer in the community wherever and whenever you can. Even the shortest amount of volunteer experience gives you a wealth of information about an organization, who works for them, and job details. Volunteer experience is looked at closely on college applications, job applications, even 'club' applications.
• We encourage students to keep track of their grades, volunteer experience, activities including athletics, and work experience. Students and parents can keep copies of report cards and can chart awards, honors, and activities, including dates. These important documents can be kept in a folder, in a filing cabinet, or desk drawer. Even better, keep it logged all in one place like Career Cruising, and create an Academic Resume.
• When students get to the point that they are asking teachers/others for a letter of recommendation, give the person a copy of your Academic Resume. That way, the person writing the recommendation for you has a visual picture of your accomplishments besides having known you. You can pick up a template of an academic resume in the College and Career Center from Mrs. Busby.
• Don't be afraid to explore colleges that may not be "highly visible" among your friends or family. Just because a college is small, or you have never heard of it before, does not mean it would not be a good place for you to gain information about. You will leave yourself open to more possibilities for a college that may be a great fit for you.
• Speaking of being open-minded...know yourself, know your strengths and weaknesses (academically, socially, emotionally) when going through this college process. Both parents and students need to be honest when considering the characteristics necessary for success at the college level.