Support for Younger Students
Financial Planning
Getting Ready Academically
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How important are grades for college applications?
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What courses does my child need to take to get in to college?
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Who can take an AP course?
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What are my child's options if an AP course isn't offered at their school?
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Can students take an AP Exam without enrolling in the course?
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Can students who are homeschooled take AP Exams?
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How does a student qualify for the National Merit Scholarship Program?
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Can ninth graders take the PSAT/NMSQT?
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How are the PSAT/NMSQT and SAT related?
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What score does my child need to get on the PSAT/NMSQT Math Test to do well on the SAT?
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Where can my child get their PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10, or PSAT 8/9 scores?
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When will my child's test scores be available?
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If my child opts in to Student Search Service, will colleges get their PSAT/NMSQT scores?
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What do the PSAT/NMSQT scores mean?
PSAT 8/9
PSAT/NMSQT
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How does a student qualify for the National Merit Scholarship Program?
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Is the PSAT/NMSQT free?
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How do students sign up to take the PSAT/NMSQT?
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How many times can a student take the PSAT/NMSQT?
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Can ninth graders take the PSAT/NMSQT?
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How is the PSAT/NMSQT different from the PSAT 10 and PSAT 8/9?
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How are the PSAT/NMSQT and SAT related?
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Does the PSAT/NMSQT have an essay?
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What score does my child need to get on the PSAT/NMSQT Math Test to do well on the SAT?
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Where can my child get their PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10, or PSAT 8/9 scores?
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When will my child's test scores be available?
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If my child opts in to Student Search Service, will colleges get their PSAT/NMSQT scores?
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What do the PSAT/NMSQT scores mean?
PSAT 10
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Can ninth graders take the PSAT 10?
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Can homeschooled students take the PSAT 10?
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Are there PSAT 10 accommodations for students with disabilities?
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Is there any test help for students who are learning English as a second language?
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Do students have to write an essay on the PSAT 10?
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Who sees my child's PSAT 10 scores?
SAT
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How is the SAT different from the ACT?
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What's the best way for students to prepare for the SAT?
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When should students start using Official SAT Practice on Khan Academy?
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How do you link College Board and Khan Academy accounts?
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Is Official SAT Practice on Khan Academy really as good as expensive test-prep?
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Can students outside the U.S. take the SAT?
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Can students outside the U.S. use Official SAT Practice?
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How can my child make changes to their SAT registration?
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If my child signed up for the SAT without the essay, can they add it?
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How many times can a student take the SAT, and when should they take it?
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To qualify for more scholarships, when should students take the SAT?
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Does it matter to colleges how many times a student takes the SAT?
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Which scores will colleges look at if my child took the SAT more than once?
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How is the SAT Essay scored?
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Can students use Official SAT Practice at Khan Academy to prepare for the SAT Essay?
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Can my child take the SAT with accommodations?
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What do colleges look for in an SAT score?
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Can my child choose which scores to send to colleges?
SAT Practice
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Do I need to pay for an SAT tutor or SAT preparation materials?
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When should my child start preparing for the SAT?
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How much time should my child study on Official SAT Practice?
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Are the online SAT practice tests the same as the practice tests you can download and print?
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Is my child’s score on a practice test a good indication of what they’ll get on the actual test?
AP
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Can students who are homeschooled take AP Exams?
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Should only straight A students take AP?
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Can my child take AP courses in ninth grade?
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How can I help my child do well in AP?
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How many AP courses should my child take?
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Can you take AP courses or exams online?
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Can my child take an AP Exam without taking the corresponding AP course?
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If my child takes an AP course, do they have to take the corresponding AP Exam?
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Is there financial assistance available for low-income students who want to take an AP Exam?
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What's the difference between AP and honors courses?
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What's the difference between AP and dual enrollment programs?
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Will it hurt my child's college applications if they don't do well in an AP course?
CLEP
Homeschooled Students
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Do admission officers accept letters from religious mentors or extracurricular instructors for homeschooled students?
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Can students who are homeschooled take AP Exams?
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How do homeschooled students create College Board accounts?
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What's the "high school code" for homeschooled students?
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Where can I find more information to help my homeschooler apply to college?
Extracurricular Activities
Finding Colleges That Fit
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Should I let my child apply to a college I don't think we can afford?
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Is there an easy way to compare financial aid packages?
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What are the benefits of small colleges?
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What are the benefits of big colleges?
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What are the benefits of community or two-year colleges?
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When's the best time to visit a college?
The College Application Process
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How many colleges should my child apply to?
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How many safety schools and reach schools should students apply to?
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When should my child start working on college applications?
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Should we wait to apply to colleges until after we've completed the FAFSA?
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What can my child do over the summer to get ready to apply to college?
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Should we use an online or a paper application?
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What are the Coalition, Common, and Universal college applications?
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Should my child send additional material with their college applications?
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Is it OK to use the same material on different applications?
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Should my child apply early?
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What's the difference between early action and early decision?
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What if my child doesn't want to go to a school that accepted them early decision?
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How do I know if a college gives college credit or course placement for AP scores?
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Are there resources for first-generation college students applying to college?
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How can I get a copy of my child's high school transcript?
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How can I find out what colleges my child sent their SAT scores to?
Exploring Majors and Careers
Getting In to College
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Do colleges mostly care about GPA and test scores when making admission decisions?
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What's the most important part of the application?
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How do colleges use a student's GPA when making admission decisions?
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Is there a specific number of AP courses that colleges look for?
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Is it better to get a B in an AP class than an A in a lower-level class?
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What happens if a student submits the SAT Essay to a school that doesn't require it?
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If my child takes both the SAT and the ACT, which score should they send to colleges?
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Can colleges see if a student takes the SAT more than once?
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My child's grades/test scores aren't very high. How can they strengthen their applications?
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How do we request letters of recommendation?
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Do admission officers accept letters from religious mentors or extracurricular instructors for homeschooled students?
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Is participating in a lot of activities important?
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Will it hurt my child's chances of getting in if they're the first student from their school to apply to a college?
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My child has a learning disability. Should we disclose that when applying to college?
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Do admission officers look at the financial aid information of applicants?
Getting Financial Aid
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How much is tuition?
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What other expenses besides tuition will my child have?
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What will college really cost us?
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Do net price calculators include room and board and living expenses?
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Does a student get a paycheck for work-study or does the money go directly for tuition?
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Does a student apply for financial aid every year?
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Do outside scholarships affect other financial aid awards?
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Should my child apply to a college if we think they won't get enough financial aid?
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Will applying for financial aid hurt my child's chances of being admitted?
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When should we fill out the FAFSA and how do we start?
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We filled out the FAFSA and applied to colleges. When will we find out how much aid we'll get?
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What should we do if our financial circumstances change after we submit the FAFSA?
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What's in a typical financial aid offer letter?
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After we get an offer of financial aid, can we negotiate?
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How should we get in touch with the financial aid office?
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How many scholarships can students have at one time?
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When should students start applying for outside scholarships?
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Are there websites where you can search for scholarships?
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What are the qualities of an effective scholarship application?
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Are there any scholarship opportunities for students after they're in college?
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Should we pay for a scholarship search?
Fee Waivers and Reductions
Student Search Service
College Board Opportunity Scholarships
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How do I know if my child’s eligible for the Opportunity Scholarships?
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Are students in the class of 2021 or other classes eligible for the Opportunity Scholarships?
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Do you have to be a U.S. citizen to be eligible?
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How does my child apply for an Opportunity Scholarship?
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Can students earn more than one scholarship?
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How will you notify students if they receive a scholarship?
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If my child takes the ACT instead of the SAT, are they eligible to participate in the Opportunity Scholarships?
International
Accommodations for Students with Disabilities
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When should we submit a request for accommodations?
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Can I request an accommodation without the help of my child’s school?
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How do I find out if my child’s accommodation is approved?
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What if my child’s accommodation isn’t approved?
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What’s the college application process like for students with disabilities?
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What if my child tests with an accommodation that hasn’t been approved by the College Board?
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Are accommodations available for other College Board tests?