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Middle School curriculum is designed to prepare Students to finish four years of high school and have many post-secondary educational options, whether or not they have earned a diploma. Here are the options:
With a diploma:
1. Direct admission to a four-year college or university to work toward a four-year, or "Bachelor's" Degree. In general, colleges are looking for students who have at least a 2.0 three-year (grades 9 - 11) grade point average, adequate academic courses in progress in twelfth grade, and decent SAT and/or ACT scores. Beyond those general guidelines, each college or university, whether it is public or private, has its own "admission standards," so students must "do their homework" by investigating, via the schools' websites, printed materials, and college visits, what those standards are. College visits are also the most important part of choosing the right/right kind of college. A lot of it is like real estate -- "location, location, location." Some students want to study away from the distractions of urban centers, while others thrive on having city life going on around them as they pursue their studies. Some like the "feel" of a smaller college, while others want access to all the extra organizations and activities a large campus has to offer, and still others want something in between. You won't really know until you go.
Websites (copy and paste into your browser): Public Colleges/Universities -- www.universityofcalifornia.edu www.calstate.edu
Private Colleges/Universities -- www.aiccu.edu www.wiche.edu/wue www.hbcuconnect.com
2. Community college, then four-year college. Doing the first two years of a four-year post-secondary study program at a community or "junior" college makes perfect economic sense -- especially here in California, where the community college system, statewide, is highly respected not only here, but around the country. Students who enroll in a College Transfer Program, perform well academically (3.0 "B" average preferred), and earn a two-year Associate of Arts (AA) degree, then transfer to four-year colleges as juniors have several advantages. They have saved themselves (and their families) a whole lot of money, their high school transcripts no longer matter, and there is generally more room for new third-year transfer applicants than there is for first-year applicants at most, if not all, four-year schools.
Website (copy and paste into your browser): www.cccapply.org
Without a diploma:
1. Any student can apply and be admitted to a community college as soon as she or he turns 18, whether or not she or he has a high school diploma.
2. Many employers will hire qualified candidates into their businesses with the understanding that the company will, in exchange for their good performance on the job, pay for their continuing education, including college degrees and/or the achievement of an Adult High School Diploma, General Educational Development (GED) Certificate, or California High School Proficiency Exam (CHSPE) Certificate.
K-12 Public Schools exist, in large part, to give students the skills and attitudes they need to be successful in higher education and/or on the job market. If students can handle six hours in school and about two hours of homework, they can usually handle eight hours of paid work. The single most important skill they should learn and develop before going off to college or hitting the job market is self-advocacy. A student who knows her or his rights, is strong enough to stand up for her- or himself, and seeks constructive criticism and guidance when it is available will be successful in school, on the job, and, generally, in life.
College Entrance Exams
All four-year-college-bound students should take either an SAT Reasoning Test or an ACT Test (or both -- some colleges and universities want students to take both) at or near the end of their Junior year. Sometimes, students will take one or both of these tests again at the beginning of their Senior year, if they were not satisfied with the scores the first time around. Twice is plenty.
Students must determine which SAT Subject Tests (if any) the colleges and/or universities they want to apply to require -- it will be a different list for most schools. As a rule, these students should take the required Subject Tests at or near the end of the Honors of AP class they are taking in that particular Subject Area, no matter what year that might be. For example, a Sophomore who takes Honors or AP World History and knows one or more of the schools she or he will be applying for admission to requires an SAT World History Subject Test should take the Test at the end of that (Sophomore) year, while the information is "fresh" in her or his mind.
Fee waivers for these standardized entrance exams are available. If a student qualifies for a free- or reduced-price lunch at SLHS, she or he should also qualify for a testing fee waiver.
Websites: Please see links on my Welcome Page.
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