• Senior Calendar


    August
    • Senior interviews with counselor will begin the second week of school and run through September.
    • Register for the SAT/ACT October test date for any senior still attempting to improve scores.
    • Start a folder of college material received.
    September
    • Regular deadline for October SAT is September 7. Deadline for October ACT is September 28. Attend senior meeting on Friday, September 14 during period 3. SAVE all handouts!
    • Senior order day with Herff Jones (announcements, rings, gear) September 20th.
    • Meet with college/military reps as they are in the building.
    • Begin to sort through college literature, develop a plan for college visits in upcoming weeks. Turn in requests for pre-arranged absence to attendance office.
    • Begin making college campus visits (allowed 1 excused college day absence per semester your senior year.  pdfPick up forms in counseling office or download and print here ). Forms due back one week before visit.
    • Listen to morning announcements for scholarship information. Visit Available Scholarships on the counseling page of the BNL website, and check it regularly.
    • Use free online practice tests and tutorials for the SAT and ACT.
    • Create personal summary of extra-curricular activities, awards, and community involvement for college applications and scholarships.
    •    pdfComplete senior questionnaire , and have  pdfparents complete the parent questionnaire . This will be used when writing recommendations.
    • Ask several teachers who know you well for letters of reference.
    October
    • Take or re-take the SAT on October 6, if necessary, to get or improve scores. ACT is offered in Bloomington October 27.
    • Regular deadline for November SAT is October 5.
    • Parents and students attend meeting on October 1 at 6:00pm (PAC) for information and distribution of the FAFSA. This is used to determine your federal and state aid in the form of grants, scholarships, loans, and work study. All college-bound students should apply. The FAFSA must be completed yearly (KEEP A COPY). You can apply online at www.fafsa.ed.gov
    • FAFSA may be submitted beginning October 1.
    • Continue to meet with college reps as they are in the building.
    • Wrap up college visits.
    • Send in college applications! Apply to your top 3-5 colleges. This should be done by late October as some schools have a November 1st deadline.
    • Search for scholarships on your own. Fastweb.com is an excellent resource for national scholarships online.
    • Continue to check scholarship list in counseling for updates.
    November
    • Regular deadline for December SAT at BNL is November 2.
    • If a student has any thoughts of attending college, admissions applications need to be submitted to the College / University no later than Thanksgiving!
    • Continue to check scholarship list in counseling for updates and upcoming deadlines.
    December
    • Students will begin to hear from colleges regarding acceptance.
    • SAT at BNL December 1.
    • December 7, class ring delivery.
    January
    • Check credits for graduation; make any adjustments to second semester schedule during first week following Christmas break; get enrolled in online classes or correspondence classes if necessary.
    • At this point, students should have acceptance or denial letters from colleges. Narrow your decision to the top few schools. The focus of second semester is now on securing the finances for college.
    • Apply for North Lawrence Foundation Scholarships. There are over 180 local and private scholarships for North Lawrence students. Application deadline will be mid-January. You must be accepted to a college to apply.
    • Start a scholarship folder; include at least two letters of recommendation, and extra wallet-size senior pictures.
    February
    • Inquire about housing applications and financial aid applications at the schools you are considering. Some schools do this as part of the admissions application. Return these to the universities in early February (can also be done late January).
    • FAFSA must be completed and received by the state no later than March 10th.
    • Attend College Goal Sunday at Ivy Tech Bloomington in February. Exact date TBA.
    March
    • DEADLINE! LAST DAY FOR COMPLETED FAFSA MARCH 10th!! (this takes several days to complete, so DO NOT WAIT until the last day to begin!)
    • Continue to monitor scholarship opportunities in counseling, as well as on the internet. Pay attention to scholarship deadlines, as many are in March.
    • If planning to work, put together a resume of skills, awards, community involvement, etc. Talk with counselor about applying and interviewing for jobs.
    April
    • Scholarship search winds down.
    • April 30th, senior announcement and cap & gown delivery day.
    • North Lawrence Scholarship Awards Night. Anyone receiving a scholarship will be required to attend.
    May
    • Make final decision about which college you will attend! Contact other schools you were considering to decline admission. Send deposit if required (and you haven’t already done so), get information on freshman orientation, and registration for classes.
    • Parents will receive SAR report for the federal government regarding financial aid.
    • Colleges/Universities will also send Financial Aid Notification report.
    • Graduation! Friday – May 29, 2020
       

  • Senior Information

     Click here for a downloadable version of this information

    Preparing For College    (Phase 1)

    • SAT/ACT   It is important! You can take or re-take at SAT at BNL on October 6th.  The registration deadline is September 7th. There are also dates in November and December, but students should really try for the October test in order to get results needed for college admission. Develop a list of potential college and begin planning for campus visits.
    • Use the INTERNET! Visit college websites, research schools you might consider attending. Download applications and other information for prospective freshmen. Notice specific dates for campus visit opportunities.
    • PARTICIPATE in job shadow opportunities. If you’re considering a career in a specific area, spend a day with someone working in that field. Family friends or relatives are often a great place to begin the search.
    • For the completely lost with no direction, you can take a career interest inventory at www.learnmoreindiana.org or a college match survey at www.collegeboard.com. This is also very useful for finding a variety of lesser known colleges in Indiana, or other states.
    • VISIT college campuses! Make an informed decision about which school best suits your needs and personality. Many schools have special days and programs for prospective students. Most campuses offer weekend visits, but seniors may also take 2 excused college visit days. Applications for college visit days are available in the counseling office or may be downloaded and printed here. This form must be turned in 1 week before the visit.

    Applying To College     (Phase 2)

    • CREATE a personal summary. Applications of all types will ask you to list your activities, accomplishments, work history, volunteer experience, goals, etc. This will be a “snapshot” of who you are, so spend some time on this. Outlines for a personal summary questionnaire are available in counseling or may be downloaded and printed here.
    • REQUEST letters of recommendation. Whether you’re applying to college, for scholarships, or for a job, many will ask for letters of recommendation. Pick your recommenders carefully. Choose someone who knows you well, and has specific knowledge of your abilities and/or attributes. Give the recommender plenty of time to prepare the letter, and also let him/her know of the deadline. It might even be useful to provide the recommender with your personal summary.
    • NOW is the time to apply! September and October are college application months.DO NOT WAIT for SAT/ACT scores to send in your applications. Simply indicate the date that you took or will take the test, the actual scores can be sent later.
    • COMPLETE college applications! Most schools require that an electronic application be done online. You should receive a response from the school in 4-6 weeks, once everything has been received.
    • REQUEST high school transcripts from Parchment.  This is also done electronically through the BNL Counseling website.
    • You will have to create a new Parchment account (or login if you already have one). When creating this account, you must use your full legal name as listed in PowerSchool.  Be sure to record and/or remember your username and password, as this will be the process for requesting all additional transcripts. **** Important***   FINISH your college admission application BEFORE requesting a transcript be sent to that particular school!  DO NOT use your BNL email address when setting up this account.  Use some other email address that you can access quickly and easily.
    • SEND SAT/ACT scores directly from to the colleges from the collegeboard.org, or act.org website, IF the college requires it!  This can be done during the registration process for up to four schools.  There is an additional charge for sending scores after registering for the test.  Your BNL transcript does list all test scores, but some still require they be sent directly from the testing company.

    Paying For College    (Phase 3)

    • The 1st semester is focused on the college search and application processes. The 2nd semester focuses on finding the money to pay for it.
    • ATTEND the financial aid meeting for seniors and parents on October 1st at 6:00pm.
    • The FAFSA! This stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid, and it’s a big deal. The federal and state governments give grants and loans based on this application so you need to fill it out! The application  must be completed and received (not postmarked) by March 10th.  The Bedford Public Library has an outreach person who will assist your parents with the FAFSA – by appointment.
    • Apply for the North Lawrence Foundation Scholarships. These scholarships offer money to local students pursuing education after high school.
    • LISTEN to the announcements for current scholarships available in the counseling office. When you hear one that you might qualify for, stop by the office and pick up an application. A printed list of active scholarships can be found on the filing cabinet near Mrs. Byrer’s desk in the counseling office, and on the BNL website.
    • SEARCH for college scholarships online. There are numerous online resources which offer FREE scholarship searches. The scholarships we learn about here are a drop in the bucket compared to what is available nationally. Check out fastweb.com, or download the scholly app to get started.
    • TAKE THE SCHOLARSHIP SEARCH SERIOUSLY! This is real money that you don’t have to repay. Put the work in now, it will be worth it.