College Application Seminar

San Dieguito Academy High School

3rd Period

Mr. Justin ConnPhone: (760) 753-1121 x: 5062

Classroom/Office: Room 97(in room 36 periods 1 & 2) E-mail:

Web Page:

Welcome to the 2011-12 school year and congratulations on making it to your final year of high school! This class will provide you with the support necessary to complete the college application process, including but not limited to, how to choose the right college, the college essay, applications, financial aide and more. Please keep in mind that you chose to take this class in order to help yourself succeed in applying to colleges. Therefore, take advantage of the opportunities and support of peers/teachers in order to make this process easier.

Classroom Expectations:

Classroom rules are necessary and vital to maintain an orderly and safe environment, so that learning can take place. Thus, I expect the following:

 Arrive on time-class begins at the bell

 Come to class prepared to learn

 Be respectful of people and property

 Stay on task

 No electronic devices-turn these OFF before you enter the room.

Class Participation:

Students are expected to be active participants in class. This means students need to come to class with all necessary materials and any homework or drafts of essays completed. Without completing the assignments, one will not be able to add to class discussions. Much of what we do in this class is share information, ask questions and seek answers, and do our best to support one another through the application process.

I appreciate parent/guardian support and partnership in providing a quality education for our students. We count on your commitment to having your student arrive on time and prepared for school. Timely attendance is an important component of academic success and citizenship.

Homework/Projects:

All homework is due in the basket by my desk before the bell rings, unless otherwise stated. Homework turned in after the bell will ONLY be accepted with an official excused absence.

Projects and major assignments will be accepted late, but will only receive partial credit. If you have an extenuating circumstance you need to see me prior to the due date.

Essays:

You will be responsible for authoring at least three college/scholarship essays. These pieces need to relate to a specific school or scholarship’s essay prompt and meet their word requirement. Each piece will be scored in the following manner: Once you finish your first draft you must meet with me to go over your writing in a conference. Toward the end of our conference we will discuss the piece: its strengths as well as areas of possible improvement. If you want to turn in that draft you will automatically receive a “C”. If you would like to address what we talked about and then re-write, you can earn a “B” at our next conference (assuming you address what we talked about). After our second conference you may re-write again, conference again and earn an “A”. There is no way to earn any higher than a “C” unless you meet with me more than once to discuss the piece. It is your responsibility to schedule conferences with me. I am available before school, at lunch, after classand during some independent work periods throughout the semester.

This is your chance to get one-on-one personal coaching for your writing; take full advantage of this opportunity. As well, this will allow me a great deal of time to support you in determining if the topic of your paper reflects your best qualities, writing, and meets the required assignment.

All papers (including drafts) must be typed, double-spaced, 12-point font, with one-inch margins, include the essay prompt you are responding to, and the current word count of your essay.

If none of the colleges you are applying to require an essay, you may substitute scholarship essays.

Absences:

If you are absent and miss a homework assignment, you will have as many days to turn in the assignment as you were absent (excused absences only). Projects, major assignments, and papers must still be turned in on the due date. These will be assigned in advance, leaving ample time to turn them in early or via e-mail. Once again if there is an extenuating circumstance you must see me prior to the due date.

Grading Policy:

Access to students’ grades is available through Parent Portal. If you do not have a pin or are unsure how to access parent portal please contact the school’s Counseling Office Secretary. Please check your grade regularly so there are no surprises as to where you stand in the class.

PLAGIARISM: Defined as the appropriating and putting forth as one’s own ideas, language or designs of another. In the interest of preparing you for college, punishments for plagiarism will be severe. Plagiarizing will be reported to administration, will result in an “F” on the assignment and could lead to failure of the course. More importantly, plagiarizing your college admissions essays will result in an automatic denial by the college and could result in larger problems.

Course Requirements:

  • 3 College Essays (one of which I recommend being the UC’s if you are applying to them)
  • Show 3 completed college applications
  • College Research Project
  • Attend two presentations by college speakers
  • Maintain a calendar with all college related due dates
  • Additional assignments to support the application process

Please read the above syllabus closely and then detach this page, sign and return to Mr. Conn

My student ______(please print legibly) and I have read and reviewed the above Course Policies and Guidelines for College Application Seminar, and know what is expected of me/my student.

______

Student Signature Date

______

Parent/Guardian SignatureDate

Comments/Concerns: