Where in the world is... "Admissions Nicole?"

Pictures from the road... as promised!

It's not even October and it has been a busy few weeks visiting high schools, meeting students and snapping pictures along the way!

We started the travel season hosting area guidance counselors for the UW-System workshops.  Area guidance counselors from Northern Illinois and Southeastern Wisconsin came to UW-Parkside to get updates from all the UW-System schools.  This circuit of workshops went on for two weeks across the state of Wisconsin, everyday in a different town and was sponsored by the UW-System Help Office.  UW-Parkside served as the host site for counselors in our region and we had one of the highest attendances!  Our Director, Matt Jensen gave the update for UW-Parkside and we held the last workshop the next day in Elgin, IL for the folks in the Chicago area, where I had the pleasure of giving the update for UW-Parkside.

The next week I hit the road on the WEF (Wisconsin Education Fair) circuit in southern Wisconsin.  We expected to be so busy at some that we had a few of us there.  UW-P Admissions Counselor Jessica Diaz, UW-P Pre-Health Advisor Mary Buscher and I all were constantly busy at our table at the WEF at Franklin High School where we spoke to students from Franklin, Oak Creek, South Milwaukee, Cudahy and other high schools in that area.  The very next morning at the Kenosha WEF, there we three of us - and thank goodness for Mary Beuscher and our Campus Ambassador Tiffany LeFlore because they were greatly needed - it was that busy!  Later that week I attended the Whitewater WEF hosted at Delavan-Darien High School.  That WEF doubled the attendance from last year and I left with no voice - no joke!  Elkhorn high school - almost cleaned me out of materials and I had to get pictures of their t-shirts.  It was homecoming week and their shirts had some awesome school spirit!  I'll be visiting there tomorrow so I can't wait to visit with you guys - I'm expecting another large group in the cafeteria again!

On Saturday I had the pleasure of meeting and teaching my class for College Readiness 21.  This is a precollege type of program that helps students prepare for college.  I teach a "College Prep" class to a group of 25 students in 2 - 1 hour rotations (50 students total) once a month.  Both groups are FULL of energy and I was so impressed with them.  These students volunteer to be in this program.  While they could be doing other things, they choose to take their Saturday to get up early (as early as 6a.m.) to get on the bus to come to the site to learn about writing skills and college prep (to name a few).  Our first class we got to know a little about eachother, talked about our plans for the class this year and learned about why a college education is becoming more important in today's economy.  Here's pictures of my 10a.m. and 11a.m. students - I am so proud of them already! 

Well, today I had great visits at Badger in Lake Geneva and Big Foot Union High School in Walworth.  For the remainder of this week it's on to East Troy, Elkhorn, Burlington (during lunches), Westosha, Union Grove, Wilmot (during lunches), Shoreland Lutheran (during lunches) - and be sure (if you work at Abbott Labs) to visit me at the Clara Abbott Foundation college fair this weekend at the HR building at Abbott Park from 9a.m.-2p.m. on Saturday!

See you on the road,

~ Nicole

Coming to A School (or College Fair), Near You!

The UW-Parkside Admissions Counseling Team is on the road as we speak! 

Come see us at one of many college fairs throughout Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota! Click here to find a fair in your area! Download recruitment_fairs_2008_fall12.doc    Have a question about a fair?  Leave a comment here or email me at leipski@uwp.edu and I will get information about it to you!

Come see me at your high school! 
CLICK HERE and search for your high school (cntrl F - enter your high school name):  Download nicoles_hs_visits_fall_08.doc   Your school not on that list?  Message me here or email me at leipski@uwp.edu and I can let you know if we have a counselor assigned to your school and when they will be visiting. 

See you on the road,

~ Nicole

PS: Elkhorn High School Students - I didn't forget about you and your hilarious homecoming shirts!  I will post your pictures from the Whitewater WEF in the next couple of days - stay tuned!  See you when I visit your high school next week - I think our visit will be so large they're going to have to put us in the cafeteria again!

Now's the Time...

TO VISIT!

Hey!  There's a big hole in the ground just north of the Union - and you need to come see it! (That's going to be our new all-suite style residence hall that will open Fall 2009.)  We'll be having the grand opening of the Union in January 2009, but already our students are eating in the new dining area, shootin' pool and having dances in the new recreation/gaming area and the newly renovated Union Cinema debuted with its first film this year!  We have so many new things to show you and our professors, students and staff eager to meet you! 

Have you checked out our "Visit Us!" page yet?  We've put together a variety of convenient ways for you to visit our beautiful campus at one of the most beautiful times of the year! 


Parkside Experience Days
Parkside Experience Days are Campus preview/open house programs that includes a presentation covering highlights of UW-Parkside, admissions, financial aid and scholarships.  There will also be a Q&A panel with our Campus Ambassadors.  After the general information session and Q&A, professors will be present from specific academic programs highlighted on certain days to answer questions.  Information about all majors and programs will be available at every Experience Day! There will also be booth from various areas from student life. 

Saturday, October 25th (10:00 AM-12:00 PM)
(Business Management, Computer Science, Management information Systems, Mathematics, Sport & Fitness Management)

 

Saturday, November 1st (10:00 AM-12:00 PM)
  (Applied Health Sciences, Biological sciences, Chemistry, Geography, Geosciences, Molecular Biology & Bioinformatics, Nursing, Physics, Pre-Health, Sports & Fitness Management)

 

Saturday, November 8th (10:00 AM-12:00 PM)
  (Criminal Justice, Economics, Geography, History, International Studies, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology/Anthropology, Teacher Education)

 

Saturday, November 22nd (10:00 AM-12:00 PM)
  (Digital Art, Communication, Humanities, Music, Philosophy, Spanish, Studio Art Theatre Art)

Choose a day with majors that fit within your area of interest so you can come out to meet faculty and program advisors from that area - they will have informational booths and are eager to meet you!  Call 262.595.2355 to sign up today!

 

Saturday Visits
Unable to make it out to us during the week?  Experience Day dates not working with your family's busy schedule?  Do you just prefer a smaller tour and would like to schedule an appointment with an Admissions Counselor?  Then one of our Saturday Visit days is for you! Admissions office opens from 9:00 AM until 1:00 PM Campus Tour at 11:00 AM.  Call 262.595.2355 to schedule your place on the tour and an appointment - they book up quickly!

Weekday Visits
Wide selection of times for tours and appointments to meet with an admission counselor!

Schedule an appointment with an admissions counselor:

Monday and Thursday 8:00 AM-6:00 PM
Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday 8:00 AM -4:30 PM

Click Here for the full schedule of student-led weekday tours.



Spring Preview Nights
Open house format: Presentation covering admission requirements, how to apply, financial aid, scholarships, student and residence life, and an optional tour. Program begins at 7:00 PM on  Tuesday, February 17th, Thursday, April 23rd,  2009


*On-Site admissions is available at all of the programs listed. Student must bring $44 application fee, official transcripts from high school (transfer students: all college transcripts), and ACT scores (required for all student under the age of 21). 

 
Visit our website for more details! Choose a program/type of visit, time and day that best fits you!  Call our office at 262.595.2355 to schedule your visit today!

Knowledge for College #12: Act now for ACT

This week I felt back in my groove because I was out and about talking to students again!   My good friend Roz Johnson, a counselor at The Real School in Racine, asked me to come out to speak to their juniors and seniors.  She requested that I meet with her students to do a college-planning workshop. One of the things we talked about was the ACT test. 

Roz's students were an impressive group in many ways - they really had their had their "ACT together!"  Usually high school students take this test in the April of junior year, this way if they are not happy with their score, they have a second opportunity to take the test with a date in June, September* (*Sept. test in WI available beginning 2009), or October. 

Many students asked me whether or not an ACT Prep course is recommended.  Taking an ACT Prep course can help you in test-taking strategies, but your overall success on the ACT will be determined by the academic rigor of your high school curriculum and how well you have mastered it up to that point in time of taking the test. 

Is the ACT worth retaking a second time?  Here's what ACT says...

Of the students who took the ACT more than once:

• 55% increased their Composite score
• 22% had no change in their Composite score
• 23% decreased their Composite score
  
  Statistics from ACT website: http://www.actstudent.org/regist/retake.

If you went into the test the first time with little or no ACT prep, then you most likely went in unsure of how to pace yourself and perhaps a bit of nervousness since you did not know what to expect in the first place.  It would be in your best interest to retake the test a second time. 

SENIORS!  Let me ask you... Have you taken the ACT? 
(Illinois folks - I know you ALL did last April as Juniors because it's mandated by your state - and that is a beautiful thing!)

If you answered: "NO" or "YES, but I didn't like my score" then...Get over to: http://actstudent.org/regist/index.html to register for the test! The registration deadline (with no late fee) for the October 25, 2008 test is September 22nd.  To see all the test dates with registration deadlines and late fee deadlines, visit:  http://actstudent.org/regist/currentdates.html

JUNIORS!  Be a VIP for the ACT this April!  Register NOW for your preferred test site and avoid register early to avoid paying the additional late fee!  Click here: http://actstudent.org/regist/index.html to register for the April test!

So, now you have the info and the links... so don't just sit there - ACT!

See you on the road,

~ Nicole

PS: If you are interested in doing ACT PREP, UW-Precollege Programs offers it NOW!  Here is the registration/information form (attached)Download 2008_fall_act_workshop_registration_form1_pub1.pdf

It's UW-P Tube!

YouTube has a channel you should check out... and created by UW-P business students!  I found it the other day and added it to my "favorites" list on YouTube. 

It's UW-P YouTube, 'The ParksideBiz Channel!"

Check out their full channel link of all videos here:  http://www.youtube.com/user/Parksidebiz

It's that time of year again...Know Your Guidance Counselor!

Hey you!  Yes, you - the high school student out there reading this!
I have two very important questions to ask you!

1. Does your Guidance Counselor know your face and name?

AND...

2. Do they also know you want to go to college?

3. Have you sat down with your guidance counselor to review your high school curriculum to make sure it is college-prep for the type of schools you are considering. 

If you answered NO to any of those questions - the below is a blog entry I posted 1 year ago that is a "must read" for any college-bound high school student:

CLICK HERE NOW

See you on the road,

~ Nicole