Potential Project

I have been thinking that I would really like doing a how-to manual on how to apply to college. It's a pretty hard thing to do especially when students are balancing school, friends, extracurriculars and often a job in addition to college applications. Most applications have multiple parts and many forms involved that have to be filled out by various people at varying points in the school year. If a student doesn't have a really involved guidance counselor, this process can be very stressful and hard to manage alone. This is especially the case if the student in question is the oldest in the family and doesn't have anyone to ask for advice.

PAFEO Analysis-

• P: the purpose of this work would be to give hints, tips and advice to high school juniors/seniors embarking on the college application process. Topics from organization and deadline management to admission essay construction and revision would be covered.
• A: the audience would be high school students although some material may be included for parents as well (perhaps as an appendix of some sort). The material will be written with the assumption that the student has not gone through the admissions process before and has little access to help from those who have (i.e. a student who is the first in the family to attend college-the oldest sibling)
• F: the format of the guide will be fun yet informative. Written in relatively casual terminology, the guide will use a lot of bullets and helpful checklists to ensure that the material is understood by the reader.
• E: testimonials will be solicited from both students who have gone through the college admissions process successfully and unsuccessfully as well as admissions officers. The advice and hints collected from these sources will be included as well as the authors opinions.
• O: there are a few different options for the organization of this guide. It could be organized in a chronological manner with information being given in the order it will be used. It could also be broken up by topics such as letters of recommendation, essays, etc. The manner of organization will be chosen in a way that makes the material the easiest to understand and put to use.

Other thoughts from class feedback: narrow it down to one state, region or school. We need to figure out the best way to reach our target audience (websites, facebook/myspace, videos, etc.) Also work in AP policies. Possibly use the common application as the example application.