BEST GRADUATION RATES

Top 5 Schools With The Best 4-Year Graduation Rate 

 

Most students go to college with the intention to finish in four years but changing or adding majors, or taking time off for personal reasons can extend your stay at a school to 5 years or more. This may be costly since your tuition and fees will be enhanced. In spite of these factors the following schools have the highest graduation rates for students who finish in 4 years.

 

  1. Pomona College in Claremont, CA 92%  Pomona College has around 45 majors and offers a 8:1 student-faculty ratio. Pomona students can also take classes at the other six colleges in the Claremont Colleges consortium. More than half of Pomona students study abroad through the nearly 50 programs Pomona offers in approximately 30 countries.

 

  1. Davidson College in Davidson, NY 90% Davidson offers more than 20 undergraduate majors. In 2007, Davidson became the nation's first liberal arts college to replace loans with grants in all financial aid packages with its initiative called The Davidson Trust, giving all students the chance to graduate free of debt. With more than 200 student organizations on campus, there are a variety of ways for students to get involved.

 

  1. Georgetown University in Washington, DC 90% Georgetown comprises several undergraduate, graduate and professional schools. There are numerous traditional residence halls, and freshmen and sophomores are required to live on campus. Other students choose to live in the townhouses and apartments surrounding campus. Notable alumni include former U.S. President Bill Clinton, actor Bradley Cooper, journalist Maria Shriver and Hall of Fame basketball player Patrick Ewing.

 

  1. University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, IN 90% Notre Dame is located in South Bend, Ind., just 100 miles outside of Chicago. Only freshmen are required to live on campus, but most students choose to remain on campus in one of the 29 single-sex residence halls. Notre Dame is divided into eight schools and colleges, the largest of which is the College of Arts and Letters. Notre Dame’s graduate and professional programs include the highly ranked Mendoza College of Business and Law School in addition to a well-regarded School of Architecture, which offers undergraduate and graduate programs.

5. Boston College in Chestnut Hill, MA 89% Boston College, located just outside downtown Boston, was founded by the Society of Jesus and has maintained its Roman Catholic Jesuit religious affiliation. The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching classifies it as a university with high research activity. The school competes in nearly 30 NCAA Division I varsity sports in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and the BC Eagles have one of the highest graduation rates for student athletes in the country. Students can join more than 200 clubs and organizations, but there is no Greek system on campus.


Need-blind Colleges

Need-Blind Colleges

 

Not every school needs to know your financial status when considering admitting you onto their roster. This makes it so all you have to worry about is the application process. Need-blind schools will either cover the financial part of the application process depending on how you meet the criteria or consider you for admission regardless if you can afford the costs.

What is a benefit for Attending a Need-Blind College?

 

One of the benefits of a need-blind school is that it can provide significant financial aid to students with need, as determined by FAFSA and other financial aid applications. If a student meets 100% of the need based criteria the they will be granted a significant bonus but this doesn’t mean college is completely free. Although the school will provide a generous financial aid package that will cover your expenses; you will have to pay some of these loans back.

 

What is a Drawback?

 

Most colleges and universities cannot afford to offer financial aid to all students and many will admit students on a need-blind basis but cannot offer them sufficient aid to meet their need. Many schools who admit all U.S. citizens or resident aliens without regard to need do not extend this policy to international students or to transfer students. Therefore, schools tend to be much more selective as they have relatively more applicants than other similar schools.


USEFUL MAJORS

Three of the Most Useful Majors

 

Nursing

Nursing is a great major with one of the lowest unemployment rates with earnings that range from $48,000 for recently graduated to $64,000 for experienced. This process takes four years at a college or university.

 

Mechanical Engineering

 

With a mechanical engineering degree an experienced grad can make $86,000 and a recent graduate can make about $58,000. It takes at least 4 years of undergraduate education to become an entry-level mechanical engineer. A master's degree in mechanical engineering will take an extra2 to 4 years. A Ph.D. may take another 4 to 7 years to complete.

 

Electrical Engineer

An electrical engineer can earn between $57,000 to $90,000. It takes three or four years depending on which university you go to. In the Caribbean, an Electrical Engineering degree takes 3 years or if you decide to stretch the time, you can add an additional year to make it 4 years. In countries like the USA, Canada and the UK, the standard is about 4 years.


What is SuperScoring?

 

What Is Superscoring? 

 

When a school scores the ACT test they give each subject section a score that ranges between 1 to 36. These scores are then averaged to get your composite score which is also 1 to 36. When a test is superscored  the highest Math, Science, Reading, and English scores that a student achieved on any of the dates the test was taken are averaged together for a new composite so that the student will end up with the highest possible composite score.

 

What Is The Drawback Of A Super Score?

 

While superscoring means that students are much safer when it comes to retaking the test many times, there is still a cost to be considered  Many super scoring schools will be able to see your test-taking history which can affect how they view the applicant. For example, if you took the ACT more than six times and your scores were not consistent, admissions officers might wonder how seriously you're taking the test and whether your results are a true measure of your skills.

What Are Some Schools that Allow Superscoring?

Austin College, Boston University, Colgate University, Duquesne University, Eckerd College, Florida State University, Georgia Tech, Wheaton College, and many more colleges all practice superscoring amongst many others.


FAFSA MISTAKES

FAFSA Mistakes That You Must Avoid 

 

Here is a list of mistakes that can be costly on your financial aid form. Avoid these mistakes and you should be okay! Just follow the directions and ask questions.

  1. The most frequent mistake made on the printed form is leaving a field blank. If the answer is zero or the question does not apply to you, write in a zero. If you leave a question blank, the processor will assume that you forgot to answer.

 

  1. Use the 1040 federal tax return for income reporting and reporting taxes paid. If you use your W-2 and 1099 forms, compare them with the previous years income tax return to make sure you did not overlook any source of income.

 

3.Don’t forget to report all the required sources of untaxed income. These include veterans’ noneducation benefits, child support and workers compensation or disability income.

 

  1. Report your correct marital status. If you plan to file as a married student, you must be married on or before the date that you sign your FAFSA.

 

  1. Include yourself in the household size. Even if you didn’t live there during the previous year, you should always include yourself as part of your parent’s household.

 

  1. Don’t forget to sign the application. If you’re filing as a dependent then both you and your parents must sign. If you file online, you and your parents can sign the form electronically using your FSA ID. this is very important and failure to do this will impede your award.

 

  1. Finally, remember to file on time! Do not procrastinate and hold off on filling out a Financial Aid form. The sooner you do it the sooner you will receive your aid.

Subject TEST

SAT Subject Tests 10-17

SAT Subject Tests are 20 multiple-choice standardized tests given by the College Board on individual subjects. They are usually taken to improve a student's credentials for admission to colleges in the United States. These are tests that can show how you have mastered specific subjects and help you stand out to the college of your desire.

Why Should I Take a Subject Test?

Unlike other tests in this particular exam you can choose what subject you want to be tested on. If you have mastered a specific subject this is the perfect time to show how good you truly are. It also shows that you are interested in a specific major and showcase why you qualify.

Some Colleges Require Subject Tests

Not all require subject tests but many of them do. Some colleges will require or recommend at least one SAT Subject Test as part of the application or for course placement. And if a college “recommends” them, then you know other applicants are taking them you don’t want to be at a competitive disadvantage by not supplying scores when others are.

You Can Get College Credit

Some colleges also will grant you course credit if you do well on your SAT Subject Tests, allowing you to test out of a remedial class in an area where you excel. Along with AP scores, good SAT subject test score could help you earn college credit while saving on college tuition. So not only are you showing your strengths you are also gaining college credit and saving.