MCHS Library College, Career and Financial Aid Information

The MCHS Sun Center has found that the sites listed below have helpful information on colleges, careers and financial aid.  Also visit the Sun Center's website by selecting the Counseling Department from the MCHS School Website and please also visist the PUSD Website on
College Planning and Information.

• SAT Prep Center
  This page contains a wealth of excellent-and free-test-prep resources. The "Mini-SAT" tool is well worth downloading; it provides a 68-question timed practice test and student-friendly SAT tips. Consider bookmarking the link to the "SAT Question of the Day" page to help familiarize students with the test format. Created by: The staff of The College Board, Inc. Don't Miss: Be sure to download, print, and take a free, the full-length practice test.  Then review a free score and skills report, and explanations to all test answers at: www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/sat/prep_one/test.html

• Campus Tours:  Virtual College Tours!
  Campus Tours is for students who are planning ahead for college, or for people who just want to see what other places look like. Colleges are listed by U.S. state; links can lead to VR tours (Virtual Reality), streamed video, or a website.

• Welcome to OnlineCollegeFair
  Free college search service.  Chat with admissions officers, professors, and other students and learn more about the colleges and the programs you're interested in.

• The College Process
  Contains a wealth of information on such topics as:  What colleges look for, Choosing a college campus, The college essay, Campus visits, College comparison worksheet, The College interview Sat/act testing and test prep Community service, Financial aid scholarships, NCAA, and  website resources.  From the MCHS Counseling Office.

• Yahoo College Search
  Use Yahoo to search for colleges.
• U. S. News.com
• California Postsecondary Education Commission
  The California Postsecondary Education Commission is a citizen board established in 1974 by the Legislature and Governor to provide them with independent, non-partisan policy analysis and recommendations about California education beyond the high school and to coordinate the efforts of California's colleges and universities in order to "assure the effective utilization of public postsecondary education resources, thereby eliminating waste and unnecessary duplication, and to promote diversity, innovation, and responsiveness to student and societal needs."
• Petersons.com - College Quest
  From a college search to the financial aid 411, there's plenty here to read, download and play with.
• California State Universities
  Academic excellence has been achieved by the California State University through a distinguished faculty, whose primary responsibility is superior teaching. While each campus in the system has its own unique geographic and curricular character, all campuses, as multipurpose institutions, offer undergraduate and graduate instruction for professional and occupational goals as well as broad liberal education.
• California State Universities Mentor
  To provide students a simpler, more friendly process for: Selecting a CSU campus, planning to meet CSU entrance and academic requirements, applying for admissions and financial aid, understanding financial aid eligibility and opportunities, and establishing an electronic communications link between the student and CSU campus(es).
• University of California
  Welcome to PATHWAYS, the University of California's online undergraduate admission information and application network.
• University of California Campuses
• College Search engine
  The CollegeNET search engine helps you find the ideal college. Narrow down by region, college sports, major, tuition, and several other criteria. Hotlink from your search list directly to homepages of the schools in which you're interested.
• California Virtual University
  The CVU connects you to hundreds of online and technology-mediated classes offered by California colleges and universities. Visitors to the CVU Web site can register to be notified by e-mail when new courses are added by accredited California campuses.
• Vocational schools in all 50 states
  All the schools listed are State Licensed/Accredited. Accreditation is a voluntary process a school may request after State approval for two consecutive years. Accredited schools may offer federal financial aid such as Stafford loans or Pell grants. Stafford loans require no financial qualification, Pell grants are heavily dependent on the student's financial situation. Contact the financial aid officer at the school to provide you with the necessary documents for the loan/Pell grant.
• California Community Colleges
• Palomar College
  Palomar College is a two-year community college located in San Marcos, California; about 30 minutes north of San Diego. We serve more than 25,000 students per semester at our main campus, over our Educational Television Channel, and at several Education Centers throughout a very large district. Students may choose from more than 130 associate degree and certificate programs which prepares them academically for the first two years of a baccalaureate program, or for a vocation in a top-paying career.
• Miramar College
  San Diego Miramar College is a public California Community College administered by the San Diego Community College District and is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, an institutional accrediting body recognized by the Council on Postsecondary Accreditation and the U.S.Dept of Education. The college is located in the northeastern corner of the City of San Diego, in the County of San Diego, California.
• Mesa College
  Welcome to the Mesa College Web Site. Mesa College is one of three community colleges of the San Diego Community College District. We are a two year accredited college offering vocational certificated programs, Associate Degree programs and transfer programs.
• MiraCosta College
  Welcome to MiraCosta College, where you can learn career skills, prepare to transfer to a four-year university, or take workshops just for your own enrichment.

• GradeSaver:  Editing Essays, Resumes and College applications
  GradeSaver is the only editing service fully dedicated to academic and educational editing. GradeSaver offers professional online editing and proofreading for high school, college and post-graduate writing. Our editors specialize in college application essays, academic essays, theses, cover letters and resumes. GradeSaver is staffed entirely by Harvard editors who will help you reach your academic and professional goals.  Our service includes a complete grammatical, substantive, technical, and stylistic revision of your essay or document with a focus on the academic environment.

• IvyEssay's Home Page
  Everyone should have access to the resources that help create the best possible applications.  At IvyEssays, our staff -- including past admissions officers and the authors of a book series on admissions essays published by Barron's -- can help you strategize, construct and polish your application to perfection.  In addition to our editing services, we also offer over 1000 sample essays for your guidance and inspiration that were written by successful candidates to the nation's leading undergrad and professional schools.

• Accepted.com - Personal Statement and Application Essay Editing and Consulting
  Welcome to Accepted.com. Our purpose: helping you to write the best personal statement or application essay that  you can write. Since we want you to receive the fat envelope, we are developing an evolving resource providing information on different aspects of the admissions process to graduate and professional schools.

• The Nuts and Bolts Guide to College Writing
  This is a practical online guide that will help you write better college essays. It offers quick help when you need it most.  It's been kept short because we wanted to encourage students to use it. The bigger a writing guide becomes, the less likely it is to be used by busy students.

• myEssay.com
  myEssay.com is the premier admissions essay advisory service. We bring together experienced editors, former admissions officers, and proprietary methodology to provide our clients with a competitive advantage. myEssay.com offers superior personal essay evaluation services and invaluable admissions kits to help applicants through the application process.  The myEssay.com team consists of ten former admissions officers, two Rhodes Scholars, and numerous editors with professional editing experience.

• CollegeGate:  Editing and Free College and Business School Application Essays
  While CollegeGate's 100 free sample essays, free essay writing tips, chat rooms, admissions store, and college search engine should prove useful, our top-notch, Harvard-educated editors distinguish CollegeGate from all competitors and have made us the number one online admissions essay resource.

• Cambridge Essay Service
  Cambridge Essay Service: Personalized college and business school application essay editing, admission evaluation, essay writing tools, model answers.

• Tips on Writing the Admissions Essay
  How to Present the "Real You".  Good college application essays are important for a number of reasons. They portray the writer as a real person, someone who is unique and worth knowing.

• Edit Strategies
  Edit Strategies   Yale Editors for College Application Essays and Academic Papers.
  

• Kaplan Test Prep,  Admissions and Tutoring
  KAPTEST.com is your one-stop destination on in school and career. We are committed to helping you achieve your education and career goals.
• The College Board - The New SAT
  Here is a link to the College Board's website and information on the new SAT test that this year's sophomores will have to face. With some navigating, you will find the writing rubric, as well as other detailed information.
• SAT
  SAT Program Information - Register Online.
• ACT
  ACT is best known for its college admissions testing program. We have since developed a broad range of programs and services in the areas of college admissions and advising, career and educational planning, student aid, continuing education, and professional certification and licensure.

• Yahoo Financial Aid
• Welcome to the FastWeb Scholarship Search
  Start your scholarship search by creating a customized profile.
• U.S. Department of Education's home page
• California Student Aid Commissions' home page
• Student Financial Aid Administrators; many services
• College Board Online
• Preparing Your Child For College
  A Resource Book for Parents - 1996-97 Edition.  It's never too early to think about college -- about the benefits of a college education and about ways to put college within reach academically and financially.  Helps students make academic and other decisions that affect whether they will be eligible to enter college.

Sites For Exploring Your Interest, Values and Skills

• Career Search
  Career Search is a way to find out about jobs and careers. Select a career to learn what to expect from a job and what to do in school so that you can work toward the job you want. You'll find out about training and qualifications, what earnings to expect, and what the future holds for each occupation.
• Career Magazine
  The networked world has career opportunities to offer you whether you are changing positions or building contacts and ideas for the future.  Career Magazine is a comprehensive resource, designed to meet the individual needs of networked job seekers.
• Multiple Tools
  Your career search is a personal journey, not a straight track to be followed. Focus on the process rather than the choice. Here you'll find information on how to find the right job. In addition to resources that can help you locate career opportunities, we've got a wealth of information on resume writing, interviewing skills, best-paying and fastest-growing fields and careers, and much, much more. We add new material all the time
• Study Skills Checklist
  First make a print out of this document. Using your printout, read each statement and consider how it applies to you. If it does apply to you, check Y. If it does not apply to you, check N. The purpose of this inventory is to find out about your own study habits and attitudes.

• Occupational Outlook Handbook
  The jobs of the future will require a skilled person who can quickly adapt to a changing workplace.  The Occupational Outlook Handbook provides essential work-related information about the world of work and the qualifications that will be needed by tomorrow's workers.
• Jobs For Kids Who Like...
  Explore many possible jobs and careers by choosing from six major groups of interests:  Music/Arts, Math, Science, P.E./Outdoors, Social Studies, and Reading.  Written in clear and east to understand language.  This is provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
• California Occupational Guides by Interest Area
  Information about the backgrounds of many occupations prevalent in the Golden State is available here, provided by the state of California.  The purpose of these occupational guides is to provide students with useful information to help you make career decisions.  Also includes links to actual job listing sites.
• Princeton Review Career Find-O-Rama
  A complete career database for careers that require a college degree.  To get their profile of the career that interests you, simply enter the name of the profession in the box.  A detailed and thorough description is returned.
• JobStar Central
  California job search guide from your local public library. These sites are packed with information about planning your career. What kind of training or education is required? What can you earn? What kind of environment will you work in? What's hot? What's not?
• Military Jobs and Careers
  In today's world, there are hundreds of occupations from which to choose, so it's important to spend some time looking into your options. The U. S. Military is one option everyone should know about. Once you have the facts, you may discover for yourself the military is an excellent place to start your career.
• America's Job Bank
  America’s Job Bank is a partnership between the US Department of Labor and the state operated public Employment Service. The public Employment Service is a state operated program that provides labor exchange service to employers and job seekers through a network of 1800 offices throughout the United States. For more than 60 years, the public Employment Service has helped people and jobs find each other.
• Career Guidance Foundation
  The Career Guidance Foundation is a non-profit corporation that provides more than 7,100 complete college catalogs available online plus a college search engine to help students find the right college.

Page last updated 08/04/08