Useful Websites for
College Planning

We know that the college admission process is daunting.  To help with this process we have compiled a list of websites that will be used within this process.  Please find live links that will lead you to the websites that you will need for the testing process, the college search process as well as beginning the scholarship process.  This is a page is not a comprehensive list, but it will start you in the right direction.

ACT & SAT Registration

http://www.actstudent.org

This site offers on-line registration for the ACT test.

http://www.collegeboard.org

This site offers on-line registration for the SAT I and SAT Subject Tests.  It also offers a database of 3,200 colleges and on-line financial aid information.

College Planning and Exploration

http://collegeprowler.com/

This site lets you search for colleges, read real student reviews, and compare college rankings.

http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/

The United States Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences and National Center for Education Statistics college search website.

http://www.californiacolleges.edu

California's free official source for college and career planning.

http://www.college.gov

This site, built by the United States Department of Education in collaboration with students, contains information and resources about planning, preparing, and paying for postsecondary education.  Over time, this site will continue to evolve, and students can help influence that process by visiting the site's feedback page to submit questions, suggestions and feedback.

http://www.collegeboard.com/quickstart

Easy-to-use, personalized college and career planning kit available to all CCHS students (students receive their access code after they take the PSAT).  The information and answers that students provide when they take the PSAT are incorporated into this tool, and it presents data back in five main parts:  My Online Score Report; My SAT Study Plan; My Personality; My Major and Career Matches; and My College Matches.

http://www.collegenet.com/

This site provides college and scholarship searches.

http://www.collegesource.org/

This site contains a database of over 62,000 digital college catalogs, institution profiles, transcript keys, and other critical resources.

http://www.collegeview.com/

This site provides great college search, career counseling and scholarship information.

http://www.knowhow2go.org

Site formed by the American Council on Education, the Lumina Foundation for Education, and the Ad Council, to encourage students to prepare for college.  There is also a specific KnowHow2Go site for California students managed by a partnership with the Southern California College Access Network, found at http://www.knowhow2gocalifornia.org.

http://www.princetonreview.com/

This is the Princeton Review website.  You can gather information on approximately 1,500 colleges.  Provides on-line practice SAT tests.

http://www.usnews.com/education

This site provides a college search, college ratings, and scholarship information.  It also has a “college personality quiz” that helps students discover the types of colleges they may want to consider.

Financial Aid and Scholarships

http://www.ca.gov/education

This site contains links to help students apply for financial aid and look for scholarships.  It also has links to help students plan for college and compare colleges.

http://www.calgrants.org

Direct link to the Cal Grant program.

http://www.college-scholarships.com/

You can find college contact information by state, including admissions and financial aid office e-mail addresses, toll free phone numbers, and links to on-line applications for admission. No other site on the Internet has so much college contact information.

http://www.csac.ca.gov/

The website for the California Student Aid Commission.  Learn about Cal Grants and other student aid programs, their requirements, and how to apply for them.

 

http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/

Federal Student Aid site; here you can find steps to get organized before you file your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), complete the FAFSA on the Web Worksheet, complete the FAFSA, and view your results online.  You can also check the status of your application, make corrections to a processed FAFSA, and get other information.

 

http://www.fafsa4caster.ed.gov

Get an estimate of your eligibility for federal student aid instantly, even before your senior year, and shorten the time it takes you to complete the FAFSA by using FAFSA4caster.

http://www.fastaid.com/

Purportedly, the oldest and largest private sector scholarship database.

http://www.fastweb.com/

 

Free scholarship service database for private scholarships.  Excellent for scholarship searches.

 

http://www.federalstudentaid.ed.gov

The gateway for free information, guidance, and tools for federal student assistance from the United States Department of Education's Office of Federal Student Aid.

http://www.finaid.org/

Almost everything you need to know about applying for financial aid. Excellent for determining expected parental contribution for college costs.

 

http://www.legion.org/needalift

Scholarship and financial aid information from The American Legion.  Their comprehensive college financial aid handbook is available on-line at this website.

http://www.scholarships.com/

A free scholarship search service.

http://www.sdcoe.net/scholarships/

The San Diego County Office of Education scholarship search website.  Use this website to search for scholarships in a variety of categories.

http://www.sdfoundation.com/grantsscholarships/scholarships.aspx

On this website you will find scholarships that the San Diego Foundation and other organizations offer, detailed application instructions, a scholarship seekers' toolkit packed with useful information, and much more.

http://www.webgrants4students.org

This private and secure site of the California Student Aid Commission will let you view the status of your Cal Grant application, update your address, view your award detail, view your California Aid Report (CAR), view payment history,and submit School Change (SC) or Leave of Absence (LOA) requests.

California Colleges and Universities

http://www.aiccu.edu

This is the site for the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities (AICCU), the unified statewide voice of California's private, non-profit, WASC accredited colleges and universities for state and federal policy issues.  The AICCU website provides information to students about private, non-profit education in California.

http://www.calstate.edu

The official website for the California State University.  Students apply online for any CSU campus at:  http://www.csumentor.edu.

http://www.cccapply.org

This site is a student's gateway to the California Community Colleges.  Students may review admission requirements, apply online, and find financial assistance.

http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu

The official website for the University of California.  Students may review admission requirements, apply online, and find financial assistance.