PHS College & Career Corner

Longer days, lots of time outdoors! Spring is a time to clean up and organize, plan for the future, and take action. Take time to intentionally prepare the next steps towards achieving your goals.

Seniors: It's time to review your applicant portals and checklists. Make sure you followed all necessary steps to receive your financial aid information on time, deposit/enroll, and hold your place on the waitlist, if applicable. CHECK YOUR EMAIL! Important information is coming from colleges and missing it might mean missing your access to an opportunity. Apply for scholarships! It's not too late. Check the Schoology folder for new scholarship opportunities - the end of March and mid-April are popular deadlines. If you aren't sure what your next steps are, schedule an appointment with Ms. Allen TODAY to talk about what you would like to do after graduation: Click here to schedule an appointment with Ms. Allen. Also, attend some of the career speaker visits, including one coming up next week!

Juniors: Welcome to the start of your busy season! It's time to start attending college and career fairs and visits, planning for summer job or internship opportunities, reviewing college requirements, creating your Common App account, taking the SAT/ACT, and building portfolios or updating NCAA Portal information. Please use the checklists on Schoology and given to you during your junior meeting to stay on track!

Sophomores: Now is an excellent time to explore careers, start your postsecondary search, and attend college and career fairs. Don't forget to complete your career tasks on Naviance to learn a little more about yourself and look at experiences that can help guide your next steps! Get involved, volunteer, and dedicate your energy to activities you enjoy.

Freshmen: As we prepare to end the 3rd marking period, now is the time to make sure you are committing yourself to finishing the year on a positive note! Your grade point average, or GPA, will be calculated at the end of this year for the first time. This GPA sets the foundation for your transcript. See below for more information about the GPA. Also, check out our job opportunities folder if you are interested in working for the first time! Applications for working papers can be found in the main office. See here for all documents necessary to obtain them: Working Papers

Your school year GPA and cumulative GPA will be calculated in June. Please see pages 4 & 5 of the GUIDE to ACADEMIC PROGRAMS 2024-2025 1.25.24.pdf to review Penncrest's GPA scale.

How do you calculate GPA? See here for general information about calculating your GPA: How to Convert (Calculate) Your GPA to a 4.0 Scale – BigFuture It's simple math that has to do with the quality points you have earned divided by the number of credits taken.

Does it really matter what my GPA is? Yes! The rigor of the classes you take and the grades that you earn in those classes are two of the most important factors in college admissions. See here for an article that explains why it matters: What Students Should Know About the GPA Scale | Best Colleges | U.S. News.

Colleges recalculate GPAs? Yes, some do! See an example of how from UGA:Calculating a UGA GPA - UGA Undergraduate Admissions

Remember to do your best and seek help and support when you need it (prior to the end of the marking period)!

If you are seeking summer employment or looking into careers after high school, please check out these opportunities! We have Granite Run Buick GMC coming to visit Penncrest this week to discuss careers in the automotive field, including service and technicians, but also sales and marketing. Come see if this is a good field for you.

Deadline: April 15th, 2024

Amount: 15 scholarships at $5000 each

Website to apply: https://learnmore.scholarsapply.org/dunkinphilly/

***Please register for these wonderful opportunities to meet representatives from colleges across the country and the world (including Canada and the UK).

1. Virtual NACAC Fair March 24: Register online to attend and see participating schools.

2. College Fair | Neumann University: April 17th - in-person event with daytime & evening hours

3. Main Line Villanova College Fair: May 22nd - in-person event with evening hours (can register online)

• Thinking about playing sports in college? You can register starting in your freshman year to track your progress towards being eligible to participate in athletics in college (see details about which type of account you should create and when). For recruitment purposes for Division I & II teams you should register with the Eligibility Center.
• Review details here:
• NCAA Eligibility Center
• Division I & II Worksheet
• NCAA Guide for the College-Bound Athlete

Email: callen@rtmsd.org

Website: Penncrest High School
Phone: 610-627-6212