Tips for attending College Fairs in the Dayton/Cincinnati areas

High school sophomores, juniors, and, perhaps, seniors will want to take advantage of the upcoming college fairs happening in the Dayton and Cincinnati areas. There are several college fairs with a broad array of colleges and career representatives:

Monday, March 5 – Greene County College & Career Fair at Greene County Career Center

Tuesday, March 6 – Centerville High School College and Career Fair

Wednesday, March 7 – Princeton High School College Fair

 

Given the number of representatives and families, these fairs can feel a bit overwhelming. These tips, however, can make for a more pleasant and productive experience:

  1. Set a game plan of which college representatives you want to meet before attending the fair. Going without a plan can be a headache ready to happen!
  2. Prepare questions beforehand that you can ask college representatives at the fair. It’s OK, if a few of your questions are the same for every college you visit.
  3. Bring pre-printed labels with your contact information. This will save you time. If there’s a long line to talk to a representative, you can still provide your information and follow-up when you visit the campus in-person.
  4. Surprise yourself and visit with a college representative that’s not busy. Some of these representatives travel from far distances to meet new students. This can be a great, low-risk way to learn something new. You may be pleasantly surprised by what you learn. This new contact can inform your perspective on other campuses.

via Tips on getting the most of College Fairs.

Which fairs are you visiting this Spring?

 

Ohio students average “3” on AP tests

The score range for AP scores is 1 to 5. When students score either a 3, 4, or 5, they can sometimes receive college credits and/or course equivalents. I say “sometimes” because each college has a different policy around how credit is granted for AP scores. For example, at The Ohio State University, students who score a 3 or 4 on the AP Physics B exam can earn 5 credits for the undergraduate Physics 111 course. However, at Bowdoin College, students who score a 4 or 5 on the AP Physics B exam must earn a C- or better in an undergraduate physics course before earning one credit. Brown University has department-specific policies for whether a credit is granted or not. Now, I must mention that there are a number of colleges that do not grant AP credit regardless of your score.

Whether Ohio students are taking AP courses for the learning experience or future college credit, their 2011 scores were mostly 1, 2, or 3, with an overall average score of 3.05. Twenty-two percent of AP test-takers earned a 4, while 17% earned a 5. The chart below shows the number of test-takers and the score earned:

About 60% of Ohio students scored a 3 or lower on AP tests in 2011

Welcome to the Compass College Advisory Center Website

Hello and welcome to the new Compass College Advisory Center website! We just opened our new center in the Kettering, Ohio area to serve college-bound families through southwest Ohio. Although our center is new, college-bound families in this area have been clients of our affiliate firm, Compass Education Strategies.

Our mission is to be the go-to resource for college-bound families throughout the Dayton and Cincinnati region.

Why college-bound families “Go to” our center

College-bound families can benefit from our services both online and off-line.

  • On-line – Families can visit our website for trusted, relevant information on college readiness and admissions. Let’s face it, there is so much information on the internet, that it can be overwhelming to know where to start and what information to trust. This blog and our Facebook page will post trusted information to support the success of college-bound families all the way to college completion. Throughout the year, our firm is listening to college-bound families, researching best practices in college readiness, studying trends in college admission, and visiting college campuses. This is all we love doing and our college-bound families value that commitment.
  • On-line – Families can sign-up for our monthly newsletter. The newsletter features tips and insight on K-12 and college admissions. Plus, each issue features a boarding school, summer enrichment program, and college. Our newsletter community enjoys hearing news they don’t get anywhere else. You can sign up for your newsletter issue here!
  • Off-line – College-bound families can visit our center for one-on-one advisory sessions with our consultants. In the upcoming months, we will host parent talks (‘seminars’ sounds too formal) and our popular, College Apps and Essays Retreat, for rising high school seniors.
  • Off-line – College-bound families can browse our library of viewbooks from colleges and boarding schools around the country.

Please contact us today to learn about this great new resource in your community.