After a lengthy fall semester and applying to several schools, the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) seniors are beginning to narrow down their decisions in hopes of picking the best school for them. During the last portion of first semester, many colleges and universities require students to make a decision on whether or not they want to attend. 

During the first semester of AVID 12, site coordinator and teacher Leslie Aguilar has students apply to at least five colleges. She said, “During the first semester of their senior year, Scholars can comb through the information they have gathered throughout high school and make a more informed decision on which college is the best fit with their intended major, cost, location, college size, and student activities offered.” 

“I’m picking colleges that seem like places I could thrive and be successful at,” AVID senior Delaney Caton said about the process of utilizing data gathered from past years. Having information such as class size, tuition, and room and board options from past years helps students better understand the schools that they’re considering attending. 

Once the process of finding and applying to colleges is over, then one of the five must be chosen. Typically the student’s chosen major is the biggest deciding factor, but other factors may also influence such as tuition.

 After the first semester ends and students have made their final decision, the search for scholarships begin. 

“The biggest topics for second semester are scholarship applications and maintaining solid grades in their current classes. Luckily we have volunteer mentors who work with our seniors to help them craft the best scholarship essays possible,” Aguilar said about what AVID students will be working on during second semester. 

AVID senior Jania White said, “It’s stressful to find a scholarship that fits you and if you have all of the requirements to apply for one.” Many scholarships depend on certain qualifications that different students may have and finding the right one can be challenging since there’s an overwhelming amount of them to apply for. 

All of the hard work that these AVID seniors are putting in does eventually pay off. According to the National Student Clearinghouse from 2016 to 2018, 42 percent of low income and first generation AVID students graduate with a four year degree. 

Current freshmen who are interested in joining AVID should see Leslie Aguilar with questions about the application process. Seniors who are not in AVID but are attending higher education are encouraged to check out the counseling page on the Battle website for an updated list of scholarships to apply to.