Applying for College - FAQs

How do I have my transcripts sent to colleges?

Students can have their official transcripts sent to colleges or scholarship agencies by printing
and filling out a Transcript Request Form. Some college application websites will automatically
send Mrs. Surratt a transcript request if you apply online (you will know this is happening if you
input her email address into the application). If a student is under 18, school records belong to
the parent and the form will require a parent/guardian signature. Most transcript requests are
taken care of the same day they are received IF the form is filled out correctly! If you become
concerned that your transcript has not been sent, please check with Mrs. Surratt.

Forms can be found in Mrs. Surratt’s office or on the transcript info page.

Unofficial copies of transcripts are available to students and parents without the need for a form.
Just simply ask Mrs. Surratt or Kim for one and they can quickly print one off for you!

How do I find my GPA and class rank?

Your GPA, which decides your class rank can only be found on your transcript. GPAs and
therefore, class ranks only change at the end of semesters. So seniors will begin their senior
year with a GPA, then it may change in January, and then one last time at the end of the year.
When self-reporting your GPA to colleges and scholarship, be sure you are using your
cumulative GPA and not your quarter or semester GPA. Finding out your GPA and class rank is
easily done, don’t hesitate to ask!

When should I apply to colleges?

The fall (September through December) is the ideal time to apply to colleges. Some schools will
have an application deadline and some will have rolling enrollment where they will accept
students at any time. Applying during the fall will give you time to receive your financial aid
package, continue to compare schools, and make your selection by May 1st.

General Timeline
September-December - Apply to colleges
October - Complete the FAFSA
December-February - Receive acceptance letters and financial aid packages
March-May - Make your college decision and notify the school you will attend by May 1st
How should I request letters of recommendation?

Some college or scholarship applications will ask you to provide letters of recommendation.
You can access a Letter of Recommendation Request Form from the link below. Be sure to give
your recommender plenty of time to write you a great letter, I advise at least a two week notice.
Also, don’t feel bad about requesting several letters of recommendation from the same
teacher/coach/mentor. Chances are that person saved the letter of recommendation that they
wrote previously, so all they need to do is change a few things and print out the new version!

Recommendation Request Forms can be found in Mrs. Surratt’s office or on the Letters of
Recommendation Page.

How do I find scholarships?

There are many types of scholarships out there, knowing what type of scholarhsip you are
looking for will help you decide how to find it!

● National Scholarships - Example: Coca-cola Scholarship. National scholarships are

those that are offered by large companies or non-profits. Students usually find these
scholarships by happenstance, searches (fastweb.com) or referral. Be cautious about
how much information you give to scholarship search websites. Many will promise you
money, but are only there to take your information to sell it.

● Local/Regional Scholarship - Example: Burrus Scholarship. Local and regional

scholarship information will more than likely come to the attention of Triopia through mail
or email. Once we have received information, that information will be posted to the
LiveBinder. Seniors have been told to check this LiveBinder often and regularly because
the binder is constantly being added to, especially in late Spring. Links to the previous
senior class’ LiveBinder and the current class’ LiveBinder can be found on the
scholarship page.

● Institutional Scholarships - Meridian Scholarship (SIUE). Institutional scholarships are

those offered only to students attending that institution (school). In a perfect world,
students apply to the schools of their choice in early fall, then check those schools
Financial Aid pages for information about scholarships. Many times additional
applications for these scholarships are needed.

Do I need to fill out the FAFSA and when do I need to do that by?

Each year the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) opens on October 1st. There is
no deadline to fill this application out, but it is best if it is completed by October 31st.
Both the student and parent(s)/guardian(s) will need to do their part to fill out the application. If
you have had a “bad” experience in the past with filling out the FAFSA, rest assured that each
year improvements are made. Triopia will hold a FAFSA Completion Night (usually during Parent
Teacher Conferences) to assist you if you are nervous or have questions. To prepare for filling
out the FAFSA in October, you may want to make sure you have:

● A FSA ID for BOTH the student and one parent. Keep your username and password
somewhere where you can easily access it when needed! Pro Tip: take a picture of it.
● The student’s drivers license number.
● The parents’ (if living with one parent, the parent who has the child for 51% of the time)
“prior-prior” years tax return. Example: Class of 2020 will use 2018 tax return.
● The student’s tax return if they filed.

The purpose of completing the FAFSA is to see if the student qualifies for any federal or state
aid. This could mean grants like the PELL or MAP, which is based off of financial need. It will
also let you know if you or your student qualify for educational loans with low interest rates.
Even if you think your family will not qualify for any financial assistance, most colleges require
you to complete the FAFSA before they can provide a student with an award letter.

Should I retake the SAT or ACT?

If you need a higher score in order to gain admission to a school you are interested in attending
then you should retake the SAT or ACT.
If you could possibly gain more scholarship money from a school you want to attend then you
should retake the SAT or ACT. (Example = you scored a 24 on your ACT and if you score a 25
you will automatically earn $2,000 more each year in scholarship money.)
If you retake one of the tests and receive a lower score it will not hurt you. Schools will always
take the highest score and some schools will take superscores. A superscore means they will
take the highest scores from each section across all the times you took the test and add them
together to create a higher composite score.

How do I retake the SAT?

Seniors took the SAT in April of their Junior year. To retake the SAT, students will need to log
onto their College Board account and register, select a date, select a testing location, and pay to
take the SAT again. Students who receive free and reduced lunch at school will need to see
Mrs. Surratt for a fee waiver.

Students should already have a College Board account from signing up to study for their first
SAT or from looking up their scores from their first test.
How do I take the ACT?

Unlike the SAT, students do not take the ACT at school (Class of 2017 and on). To take the ACT,
students will need to create an account, fill in (a lot) of information, register for a testing date
location, and pay to take the ACT. Like the SAT, students who qualify for Free and Reduced
lunch need to see Mrs. Surratt for a fee waiver.

When do I need to make a decision about what college to attend?

Choosing a college is a VERY big decision. So choose when you feel good about the choice you
are making...but preferably by May 1st.

Do I already have some college credits?

Probably, see the chart below for information.

Triopia Class LLCC Code Credit Hours

Senior Composition (Sem 1) EGL 101 3

Senior Composition (Sem 2) EGL 102 3

US History (Sem 1) HIS 111 3

US History (Sem 2) HIS 112 3

College Algebra MAT 113 4

Trigonometry (Sem 2) MAT 120 3

Calculus MAT 131 5