Wagner College

Spring is in the air!

Spring is a beautiful time of year on campus. Check out what the Staten Island Advance had to say about the first nice day this spring at Wagner:

 http://www.silive.com/northshore/index.ssf/2010/03/spring_can_boost_spirits.html

Making the Final Decision

As May 1^st approaches, I’m sure you are all agonizing over which college to choose…picking that all important “right school.” Here are some pointers on how to find the best fit for you!

Start with some introspection

What is your end game? Do you want to graduate college with a 4.0? Do you want to be involved in 836 clubs? Do you want to travel abroad four times? Do you want to build a giant snow fort on the oval and live there during the winter of your junior year? How about all of those things? As corny as it may sound, I would make a list entitled, “In the next four years, I want to . . .” If you really think about it, you will compile a list of things that you want out of your college experience.

Check out the classes

First, check the website for a pdf version of the Course Catalog, which lists pretty much every course the college offers and a description of each. This way, you can see what types of courses you will have to choose from, for both your major and general requirements. Before I chose my college, I knew that I would loathe my lab science requirements, so I looked at the Course Catalog and saw that I could take Psychology and Astronomy as lab science requirements. Since those seemed a little quirky and fun, I realized that lab sciences were not such a huge obstacle.

Then if your schools offer class visits, like Wagner does, I would recommend sitting in on one. Clearly, sitting in on a class is the best way to discover if you would enjoy the type of classes each school offers. Before or after class, you can riddle the professor with your questions about additional academic endeavors.  Frequently, you will also get a free lunch with a current student so you can find out the dirty truth.

Get Specific Contact Info

Admissions Counselors are like encyclopedias, we know small amount of information about every topic on campus. When you need more than the brief overview from the encyclopedia, you need to ask for permission to use Lexis-Nexis. . . otherwise known as “other departments.” Perhaps you are very interested in the workings of the Student Government? Ask for the contact information for the advisor and shoot him/her an email.

Attend the Accepted Students’ Days

Most colleges have these Accepted Students’ Days in the spring. These are generally more comprehensive than regular open houses. Another bonus, as you children of technology have probably already realized, other accepted students attend these events! You can find those Facebook friends! We definitely encourage meeting other accepted students, you need to be sure that you’ll mesh with your peers.

Finally!!

A wise friend of mine was once terribly torn between two colleges. One of her high school teachers said, “Flip a coin.” She did. The teacher then said, “Are you disappointed with the result?” Realizing that she was not at all disappointed, but actually pretty excited, her choice was made.

Also, just keep in touch with Admissions. We want to help you make an informed decision.

Until next time, “I believe that vampires are the world's greatest golfers but their curse is they never get a chance to prove it.” – Tracy Jordan

Kelly

Financial Aid Quickie (part 2)

Loans vs. Grants

There are two different types of aid that have one HUGE difference. First, loans. You will want to determine if loans have been included within your financial aid package. While many students and families are willing to borrow money to pay for college, you do need to know exactly how much you will owe upon your college graduation. The last thing you want is to be buried in debt when you graduate. A Financial Aid Office can help you to determine how much you would owe and when the repayment of your student loans would start. Next, grants. A grant is a type of aid that typically does not need to be repaid. Grants can be offered by the federal government (known as a Pell grant) or offered by the college.

Work Study

Work study is federally funded aid that is provided to each school. The college then determines an estimated amount of money a student would be eligible for if the student was to have an on-campus. Students are paid minimum wage for their on-campus job. Since the amount of work-study aid offered can differ from college to college, be sure that you understand how many hours you would need to work to earn that amount of work study money. For example, at Wagner, we will estimate that a first year student can work approximately 8-12 hours a week without negatively affecting their education. If a student was to work an average of 10 hours a week, they would make approximately $750 per semester.  Some colleges will estimate that a student could make as much as $1,000-$1,500 per semester with a work study job, but that means a student would need to work 15-20 hours per week to earn the money set aside. Please note that a student will only receive their work study aid if they actually work on-campus.

External Options

Another option in financing a student's education include scholarships and grants offered by foundations/organizations and are not school specific, meaning the award amount could be applied at most any college. You can search for these types of scholarships and grants online by visiting reputable scholarship clearinghouse websites, such as www.scholarships.com or www.fastweb.com. You can also ask your High School Guidance Office for assistance in identifying scholarships and grants offered in your own community.

If you have questions about a financial aid package that you have received, you can contact the college's Financial Aid Office or your Admissions Counselor. A staff member would be able to guide you through the aid being offered to you. If you would like to speak to a Wagner College Financial Aid staff member or your Admissions Counselor, please call us at 800-221-1010. We are here to help!

Krissy

Director of Admissions

Financial Aid Quickie (part 1)

It is the time of the year when high school seniors are receiving decision letters and financial aid packages from colleges. Understanding the financial aid process can seem overwhelming, but if you ask the right questions and know what to look for, you can better understand the various financial aid packages that you will receive. In part 1, of a two part series, we will talk about what different types of aid are available and how they are awarded.

What is it, and how do I get it?

Financial aid works in conjunction with your family's financial resources so that a financial aid "package" can be assembled on your behalf. Your package will detail any scholarships, grants, loans or student employment for which you may qualify. The first step is determining your EFC (Expected Family Contribution), which is formulated by the federal government using the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid, available online at www.fafsa.ed.gov). Your EFC will be the same amount, no matter the cost of attendance. What can vary from school to school is the kind of aid offered by each school.

What are the different types of aid?

Scholarships awarded from a college can be need based aid (determined by an EFC) or merit based (looking at a student's academic profile, including a grade point average, standardized test scores, etc). Some colleges can offer both need based aid and merit based aid. It is important to determine what your actual costs will be at each college you are considering, based on each school's fees. Be sure to consider all expenses, including room & board costs if you plan on living on campus, estimated costs of books, and other additional required fees, which could include a student activity fee, student health insurance or a parking fee. After reviewing their financial aid package, some students and their families discover that attending a private college can be as affordable as attending a public college because of the amount of aid being offered.

Stay tuned for part two, the specifics. Try not to get too excited!

Krissy

Director of Admissions

College Fair Comportment

Last night I was at a college fair and noticed that students really need a manual called Do's and Don'ts of College Fair Behavior.

So here it is-

Do's and Don'ts of College Fair Behavior

DO.
Obtain a list of colleges in attendance. Research a bit about these colleges and ask intelligent questions.

DO.
Sample Good Questions: What types of internships would I have as a Business major? What is your admit rate? What is the average freshman class size? Do you have (insert name here) club?

DON'T
Sample bad questions: What does your college do? How's your English program? Can you tell me a little bit about your college?

Worst scenario:
Student approaches table and peruses pictures
College rep: Hi. Can I answer any questions for you?
Student: Umm...no.
College rep: Ok.

Best scenario 1:
Student approaches table: Hi. I am a junior and I am interested in Physics. What type of research opportunities would I have as an undergraduate Physics major?
College rep: Since we are a small school, you will have the opportunity to do one-on-one research with a professor in your early years and then your own research in your senior year. Here is my card, email or call me and I can get you in contact with a Physics professor so you can get a better picture of specific opportunities.

Best scenario 2:
Student approaches table: Hi. I am a junior but I am undecided. I am looking for a small to medium size school, with easy access to a city, and I think I would like to participate in Student Government.
College rep: Great! It's fantastic to have those specifics. We have [X number] of students, so your average class size would be X. Our students take a train to the city and it takes about X minutes. There are many options of student government: class representative, executive board, etc. etc.

Notice the pattern? The student approaches the table with a small introduction for themselves and/or asks a specific question.

It is ok to approach a table without a specific question, but if you do that, then give the college rep a bit of autobiographical information. This way, you two will have something concrete with which to start a conversation.

DON'T.
Do not have your mom or dad speak for you. Throughout the college process, the student should be the point person. The student should approach the college fair table, email/call the college rep, set up their own interview appointment and overall just do all their own talking. It is beyond obnoxious when a mom approaches a table and says, "Andy is interested in playing football." While Andy stands there like a robot. It is the student that is attending college, so it is the student that should drive this search.

DO.
Something that college reps really like is when a student has a list of questions and takes notes during your conversation. That is awesome.

DO.
Arrive early. College reps like to leave about 30 minutes before the fair is over. Anything over 90 minutes and we get antsy.

DO.
Fill out the card. College reps sometimes judge a fair based upon how many cards they collect. Personally, I don't because I wouldn't want to fill out 10 cards either. The best thing to do is print out a mailing label with the following information: Name, Address, Phone, Email address, Name of High School, Graduation Year, Academic interest, Extracurricular interest. Then you can just stick the label on the card. So simple!

Do.
Treat the college rep like a person. We like to have conversations, make jokes, and we are there to help you. We hate standing at a college fair for two hours and not talking to anyone because it makes the time dragggg.

Ok. I think that's all for now, but I'm sure that one of us will have more comments about college fairs.

Kelly

College Summer Open Houses

The information you receive from colleges is like an inverted triangle, you start with the general (size, location, academics, etc.), but as you move forward with your college search, the information you want gets increasingly more specific.

Campus Visit Days (or Open Houses) are a great visit option because it is an extremely comprehensive look at the college. At this event, you will be able to interact with admissions counselors, students, faculty and other administrators.  Through panel discussions, a question and answer session, campus tour and reception with faculty members, Campus Visit Days (CVDs) will meet the needs of first time visitors who need general information, and visitors seeking more specific information.

After attending a CVD, returning to campus during the school year for an individual visit will provide you with a detailed conversion about your particular interests. If you meet a professor at a CVD, you can later schedule a personal meeting with this person during the school year.

 At Wagner, the CVDs will be held on July 15^th and August 6^th. If you would like a schedule for the day and a link to register, please visit:  http://www.wagner.edu/admissions/cvd.

 Until next time, "I love how [coffee] makes me feel. It's like my heart is trying to hug my brain!" - Kenneth the Page

 Kelly