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College Information

The Fairhaven High Guidance Department takes a very active role in supporting our students as they search for and apply to college. In February and early March we sponsor a series of breakfasts for juniors and their parents/ guardians. We follow this with an evening presentation. The focus of these presentations is to explain and explore the college search and application process. Please look for a mailing in January with dates and times. Space is limited for the breakfasts so sign up early!

At the very beginning of senior year we meet individually with all of our seniors (parents are welcome to attend this meeting). Highlights from this meeting include:

• To do a resume. We give them a form. (If you attended either the breakfast or the evening presentation last year you would have gotten this then.)
• To ask teachers for letters of recommendation ASAP. (We also have a form we give them.)
• To sign up for the SAT's to take the October test.
• To visit colleges.
• To download applications and/or to begin filling them out online.
• To have their parents sign a transcript release form.
• To get working on a college essay.

When all this is done we meet with the seniors and assemble a packet that includes most of the above as well as an Official Transcript, their first term report card, a class schedule, a School and Community Profile, a check for the application fee (from home), and anything else the college may require for admission. We have a check list that we use to ensure that the packet is complete before we mail. Your son or daughter initials it before we mail it. FHS will pay for the normal postage of college applications unless there are unusual circumstances. We do not over night applications for example.

IMPORTANT! Before your son or daughter attends this meeting, please make sure they have checks for the application fees. Please look over every application and sign them if they require you signature. Some Massachusetts state colleges and university require you to sign two times because of an additional residency requirement. You also should have signed the transcript release form we gave them during our initial senior meeting. (You can download this form it is called College Application Transcript Request/Release.)

General Information

• Most 4-year colleges require 2 consecutive years of a foreign language and that you take either the SAT's or the ACT's.
• Many 2-year colleges do not have the above requirement.
• Bristol Community College is a very good choice for many students including young men and women who have not done as well as they would have liked academically in high school or young men and women who need to stay close to home for financial or other reasons. If you maintain a 3.0 GPA at BCC and then transfer to another Massachusetts state college or university, your tuition remains the same as what it was while you attended BCC!
• You should visit a college before you decide to attend. It's a good idea to visit before you apply, but it's not as important as doing so prior to making your decision. Check our College Visit Link for further information.
• Even if your family is pretty comfortable financially, you should still complete a FAFSA in early January of your senior year. This will enable you to qualify for Federal Direct Student Loans, which have the lowest interest rates. Check our Financial Aid Link for further information.
• Colleges have become very competitive. There is no substitute for doing well academically. Take the most difficult courses you can manage, keeping in mind your stress level. Melting down in the middle of the year because you are in over your head is much worse than a moderately leveled course or two. By the same token taking mostly moderately leveled classes and getting all "A's" and a "B" or two is a sign to colleges that you may be underachieving.
• Get involved with the FHS community. Play a sport, join a club, sing, dance, play in the band and stick with it. Give back to your community by taking advantage of opportunities to perform acts of service not only for your school, but for your community at large.

SAT Info

The Fairhaven High School code is 220770

• We encourage students to take the SAT Reasoning Test and/or the ACT in May or June of the junior year and to take it at least one more time in the fall of their senior year. Some colleges also require the SAT Subject Tests. Check the websites of the colleges that you are thinking of applying to or speak with your guidance counselor. SAT Subject tests are usually taken in the fall of senior year. You can sign up for the SAT's using a paper application (we have them in guidance) or you can go online to collegeboard.com. (Link) Make sure you get your registration submitted on time. The late fees are pretty expensive. Students on free or reduced lunch or facing other financial hardships may qualify for an SAT fee waiver. See your guidance counselor for further details.
• You can send your scores to 4 colleges for free. So if you have a pretty good idea where you are going to apply, you should send your scores to these schools using your 4 free passes otherwise you will have to pay for each school you send your scores to.
• The ACT is another standardized test that is accepted at most colleges and universities. (Check with the colleges you are thinking of applying to in order to be sure.) It's a little bit different from the SAT and sometimes students who do not do well on the SAT do better on the ACT. Students can take the ACT in June of their junior year and/or in the fall of their senior year.

Scholarship Information

Starting in November or December a monthly scholarship list is published and each senior receives a copy in homeroom. We will also now publish this list on this webpage.

SAT/ACT Information

• We encourage students to take the SAT Reasoning Test and/or the ACT in May or June of the junior year and to take it at least one more time in the fall of their senior year. Some colleges also require the SAT Subject Tests. Check the websites of the colleges that you are thinking of applying to or speak with your guidance counselor. SAT Subject tests are usually taken in the fall of senior year. You can sign up for the SAT's using a paper application (we have them in guidance) or you can go online to collegeboard.com. Make sure you get your registration submitted on time. The late fees are pretty expensive. Students on free or reduced lunch or facing other financial hardships may qualify for an SAT fee waiver. See your guidance counselor for further details.
• You can send your scores to 4 colleges for free. So if you have a pretty good idea where you are going to apply, you should send your scores to these schools using your 4 free passes otherwise you will have to pay for each school you send your scores to.
• The ACT (ACT.org) is another standardized test that is accepted at most colleges and universities. (Check with the colleges you are thinking of applying to in order to be sure.) It's a little bit different from the SAT and sometimes students who do not do well on the SAT do better on the ACT. Students can take the ACT in June of their junior year and/or in the fall of their senior year.