College Advising

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At Covenant, we believe in partnering with parents, with college advising being no exception. By helping families better understand their post-secondary options while enrolled at Covenant, students can better develop a plan for their future.

College and Career Advising begins during the 9th grade year. Covenant’s advisors and students utilize Scoir throughout their high school experience to access a free aptitude test, gain assistance with the college search and selection process, and sending electronic application documents. Advisors:

Support and encourage students as they explore their gifts, talents, and interests while seeking God’s will for their future
Provide resources to prepare for the CLT10, PSAT, CLT, SAT, and ACT
Assist students in navigating their college search
Assist juniors and seniors with college admission and scholarship applications

Additionally, the College Advisor organizes the following:

Lunchtime visits with various college recruiters from across the country (Fall)
Lunchtime visits with speakers in various career fields (Spring)
Administration of the PSAT (Fall) and CLT10 (Spring)

Advising by Grade Level

FRESHMEN

Pray…seek after God. Your Creator knows you best. Walk with Him daily as you begin to reflect on and talk to others about your hopes & dreams, passions & giftings, and ideas for your post high school pursuits.
Learn…not for school, but for life. Start and finish the year strong by staying organized, practicing good study habits, and getting in touch with teachers when you face challenges. Building a strong academic foundation of learning means studying for mastery and not just the test.
Explore…interests, extracurriculars, careers, and colleges.
- Your interests…identify your giftings and interests. Make a list and consider taking a free self-inventory.
- Your participation…consider different extracurriculars, sports, and ways to serve. Try a new artistic skill or sport, sign up to serve in your church or other organization, or find a way to share your gifts and talents through other activities on or off campus.
- Potential careers…talk about career options with others, such as teachers, recent college graduates who are working, and professionals in the community.
- Potential colleges…attend campus Lunch & Learns and attend a virtual or local college fair.
Tasks to complete…
- Ask your parents if you already have a social security number. This is often required for testing, applications, scholarships, and other opportunities.
- Set up a separate email for college/career communications. Keep it professional.
- Set up your Scoir account and send your parents the invitation to set up their account.
- Set up your College Board and CLT accounts.
- Take the PSAT in October and the CLT10 in February.
- Keep a record of your achievements, honors, awards, activities, volunteer work, and leadership experiences. You will need these for your college resumé writing during application season.
Plan…for summer. Use this time wisely. Consider a visit to nearby colleges on a family vacation, ask to be a job shadow for a day or week, READ, upload your PSAT results to Khan Academy to review math and English skills, and find ways to further explore your artistic, athletic, and leadership skills.

SOPHOMORES

Pray…seek after God. Get in the Word. The best way to know God’s direction for your life is to have a close relationship with Him.
Learn…not for school, but for life. Continue applying strong organization and study skills that are foundational for lifelong habits. Ask questions and seek tutoring when help is needed.
Explore…interests, extracurriculars, careers, and colleges.
- Your interests…continue making and revising your list of gifts, talents, skills, and overall passions. Ask others what they see and talk to your parents as you process these things.
- Your participation…continue participating in extracurriculars, but begin to focus on quality, not quantity. Start looking for ways to build leadership skills.
- Potential careers…find ways to volunteer, job shadow, or interview people to deepen your exposure to things you feel might be your calling. Research career fields.
- Potential colleges…attend campus Lunch & Learns and attend a virtual or local college fair. Complete an assessment on mymajors.com. Research specific colleges online as you consider potential majors and priorities for selecting a college.
Tasks to complete…
- Complete the YouScience aptitude test through your Scoir account and begin researching possible careers and colleges.
- Make a list of questions to ask college representatives at Lunch & Learns, college fairs, and college visits.
- Take a practice test available on Khan Academy prior to the PSAT in October.
- Look over missed questions and review skills on Khan Academy.
- Take a practice test available on CLTexam.com prior to the CLT10 in February.
- Research and apply for scholarships. Yes, there are some specifically for sophomores and juniors.
- If you are interested in attending a military academy, request a pre-candidate questionnaire and complete it. Practice for the ASVAB.
- If interested in playing sports in college, research the National College Athletic Association eligibility requirements.
- Continue to record your achievements, honors, awards, activities, volunteer work, and leadership experiences.
Plan…for summer. Use this time wisely. Develop a list and talk to your parents about colleges you would like to visit. Investigate possible enriching summer activities such as volunteering, attending sports, arts, or academic camps, holding an internship, or working a part-time job. Continue to READ good books and review math and English skills on Khan Academy.

JUNIORS

Pray…seek after God. Pray with a submissive heart in seeking His will for your life. Reflect on Proverbs 16:9.
Learn…learn not for school, but for life. Use strong organization and study skills to stay focused on glorifying God as you focus on schoolwork. Reflect on Proverbs 16:3.
Explore…interests, extracurriculars, careers, and colleges.
- Your interests…use your prior exploration of gifts, interests, careers, and colleges to refine your research of college majors, post high school certification programs, entering the military, work force, or mission field, and gap years. Talk to your parents about where you feel God guiding you.
- Your participation…continue participating in extracurriculars and volunteer work. Be intentional in developing servant-leadership skills.
- Potential careers…volunteer or work in an area of passion/gifting or an area related to your potential career field. Find a local career fair to visit.
- Potential colleges…attend campus Lunch & Learns and attend a virtual or local college fair. Narrow your list to your top 5-10 colleges to further research based on what you’ve learned in terms of majors and interests, and taking trips coinciding with days off on the school calendar or longer breaks like Thanksgiving break and Spring break to visit these schools.
Tasks to complete…
- Continue using Scoir research tools and updating information.
- All year: Continue to review skills on Khan Academy.
- All year: Research and apply for scholarships for Juniors.
- October: take the PSAT. This is also the qualifying test for the National Merit Scholarship Program.
- Fall: Schedule and attend an advising conference with Mrs. Card for you and your parents to attend.
- Fall: Register and pay for any applicable AP test.
- Fall: Take a practice ACT, CLT, and SAT. Begin preparing for the tests you plan to take.
- Fall: Begin thinking about who to ask for letters of recommendation.
- Fall/Winter: Register to take your first ACT/CLT/SAT test of your choice.
- Spring: Register and take a different ACT/CLT/SAT test.
- Late Spring: Request letters of recommendation from teachers, College Advisor, Principal, and/or Head of School.
- May: Take AP exams.
- Spring/Summer: Register and take additional ACT/CLT/SAT tests as you continue to identify areas to work on to improve test scores.
Plan…for summer. Use this time wisely.
- Make sure your social media represents you well.
- Participate in an enriching summer camp, internship, volunteer opportunity, or a summer job.
- Organize your achievements, honors, awards, activities, volunteer work, and leadership experiences into a college resumé format.
- Write essays for applications based on previous years’ questions.
- Research and apply for scholarships for seniors.
- Begin college applications and school specific essays. Some schools open applications as early as August 1st.

SENIORS

Pray…seek after God. Pray for God to make clear your path and being open to the unexpected.
Learn…learn not for school, but for life. Lean into this last year, finishing your high school years strong by staying the course and continuing to glorify God with all that you do.
Explore…
- Order all deadlines for admissions, scholarships, housing, etc. for all programs or colleges you are applying.
- Determine if you need to pursue any interviews and/or auditions for any program and schedule them as needed.
Tasks to complete…
- Early: Schedule and attend an advising conference with Mrs. Card for you and your parents to attend to discuss Early Action and Early Decision (as needed), and get final questions answered for the application process.
- Fall: Visit your top choices for college if you have not already been on campus.
- Fall: Register and take one final ACT/CLT/SAT tests if needed.
- Fall: Register and pay for any applicable AP test.
- Fall: Continue to work on and complete college essays and resumé. Have at least one or two others read and provide feedback on both.
- Fall: APPLY to colleges and THEN submit final essays and resumé. Your high school transcript will be submitted electronically through Scoir. Dual credit transcripts must be requested through the university where you completed the credits.
- Fall: Follow up on letters of recommendation and with admissions counselors to make sure they have received all required forms and are not waiting for you to complete the application process.
- Beginning in October: Use the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form to apply for financial aid for college or graduate school. Some colleges also require the College Board CCS Profile and/or a school-specific financial aid form.
- Midyear: Some schools require a midyear transcript to be submitted. If so, submit the request in December/January.
- All year: Update Scoir with all application completions, all acceptances, and all scholarship offerings as they come in. We want to celebrate with you! Once you select your college of choice, submit your enrollment deposit and sign up for housing and freshman orientation.
- May: Take AP exams.
Plan…for thesis, graduation, and post-graduation! All colleges require a final transcript. Be sure to request your final transcript to be sent to the college you plan to attend.

College Credit through Dual Credit Partnerships and AP Testing

Covenant Academy desires for qualified students to have the option and opportunity to earn both high school and college credit through dual credit courses with one of our partnering universities and AP exam options.

Through our partnership with LeTourneau University, Dallas Baptist University, and as a member of the Canyon Christian Schools Consortium with Grand Canyon University, juniors and seniors may choose from many online electives across a broad variety of specialties. Seniors have the option to complete an approved dual credit math course for their final high school credit. Additionally, Biblical Greek I and II are offered as dual credit courses with traditional classroom instruction through LETU.

Although we are committed to a classical Christian education, we recognize many College Board AP exams are a natural extension to the content of our classes. Students who choose to take on the additional preparation necessary for such exams may opt in each fall and receive the benefit of teachers providing additional practice during the year.

More information about these opportunities can be found at: