Website Features Overview
1.
ACT and SAT Test Preparation
1.1 Tutorials
Online TPM includes a series of user‐friendly tutorials for the SAT and ACT standardized tests, covering the subject areas and question types currently presented on those tests. Each tutorial contains at least 12 screens of information (typically representing between 30 to 90 minutes of study time) and can be interrupted at any point and resumed at a later time.
For the SAT, the tutorials cover sentence completions, reading, arithmetic, algebra, geometry and data analysis.
For the ACT, the tutorials cover English, reading, science, pre‐algebra, algebra and geometry.
1.2 Practice Sessions
Practice sessions are designed to enable students to reinforce test‐relevant skills by applying concepts presented in the tutorials to simulated test questions. The TPM offers at least one practice session for each subject area covered in the tutorials. Practice sessions dynamically adapt to each student’s ability level. The most advanced students are presented with the most difficult questions and less advanced students see less challenging questions.
For each multiple‐choice answer, students are provided with unique feedback for each possible answer. The TPM offer hints and suggestions for incorrect responses and explanations for correct answers. Percentile rankings in each category are continuously updated to allow students to assess their performance on a real‐time basis.
1.3 Diagnostic Tests
The TPM includes timed sample diagnostic tests that help students identify strengths and weaknesses in taking standardized tests and in constructing a directed study program.
1.4 Vocabulary Builder
Vocabulary builder is designed to assist students in broadening their vocabulary. The student is presented a word with five possible definitions. The student makes their selection on the definition of the given word. If the student’s response is correct, the word will be stored on an electronic flashcard for subsequent review and another word will be provided to the student. If the student’s response is incorrect, the selected word will be crossed out and word presented that matches the student’s selection. The student will then have another opportunity to select the correct definition of the presented word. Vocabulary builder also dynamically adapts to each student’s ability level. Students with well developed verbal skills will encounter more difficult words.
1.5 Test Taking Tips
Students are presented with strategies for time and stress management when taking the standardized tests and an interactive game to teach guessing strategies.
2 1.6 Question of the Day
This is a link to a question of the day related to each of three standardized tests. The question of the day draws from a pool of over 1,200 questions.
1.7 Word of the Day
The word of the day is included to supplement the vocabulary builder. The TPM word of the day draws from a pool of over 1,500 words. The student has the option to automatically be notified by e‐mail of the word of the day.
2. Career Planning
2.1 Career Explorer
Career Explorer is online education and career exploration system designed for middle school students. Career Explorer provides extensive libraries of education, career and recreation articles in an interactive magazine‐style format. Career Explorer includes the following functions:
2.1.1 Work
The Work module provides students information about careers from a job experience orientation. This module includes the following components:
o The Career Finder student assessment
o Standard career profiles in interview format for over 940 unique careers o Going to work resources
o 400+ career videos
o 100+ Spanish language career videos 2.1.2 Learn
The Learn module provides students information about careers from an education orientation. This module includes the the following components:
o The Major Finder student assessment
o College majors associated with common career zones o College majors associated with common school subjects o Success in high school and college resources
o Access to the career profiles and videos outlined under the Work module 2.1.3 Life
The Life module encourages students to pursue recreational and volunteer activities to achieve balance in their life. This module includes the following components:
o Volunteering information and resources according to career zones o Recreation opportunities according to career zones
o Volunteering advice
o Articles by recreation experts 2.1.4 Your Portfolio
The Your Portfolio enables students the ability to record the results of their career exploration in a personal online account.
3 2.2 Career Planner
Career Planner helps students build powerful plans as they compare, connect and choose from a vast network of work and education options.
2.2.1 Work
The Work module provides information about careers from a job experience orientation. This module includes the following components:
o The Career Finder student assessment
o More sophisticated assessments, such as the Interest Profiler, the Work Values Sorter, Basic Skills Survey, Workplace Skills Checklist, and Transferable Skills Checklist.
o Getting ready to work resources including a resume builder o 650+ O*Net occupation profiles
o 400+ career videos
o 200+ Spanish language career videos
o Functionality to compare careers side‐by‐side 2.2.2 Learn
The Learn module provides students information about careers from an education orientation. This module includes the following components:
o The Major Finder student assessment
o College majors associated with common career zones o Postsecondary institutions offering specific majors o Postsecondary institution comparison tool
o High school and college planning resources o Career pathway information
o Access to the O*Net occupation profiles and career videos outlined under the Work module 2.2.3 Career Plan Builder
The Career Plan Builder is an interactive tool that guides students through the creation and refinement of individual career plans.
2.2.4 Your Portfolio
The Choices Planner Your Portfolio enables students to record the results of their career planning experiences in a personal online account.
2.3 Career Center
The Career Center includes other career exploration and planning utilities including collegiate distance learning catalogs, vocation and technical careers and schools, assessments, matching assistant and career information.
2.3.1 Career Self‐Assessment
The Career Self‐Assessment module provides links to one or more assessment surveys designed to help the students identify their interests, skills, values and personality.
2.3.2 Career Matching Assistant
The Career Matching Assistant shows students which careers match their interests, skills, values and preferences. Students are provided with the ability to select specific preferences within a set of parameters. Based on the expressed preferences of a student, the system searches the database and then provides a list of careers that best meet the expressed preferences. A link is established from the name of the career appearing on the list to a page providing detailed information about the career.
4 2.3.3 List of Careers
The List of Careers module provides a comprehensive listing of careers organized by cluster as determined by the U.S. Department of Labor. The information presented for each career includes a description of the career and tasks involved; general work activities; the national average salary for the career, the experience, education and training required; a list relating careers and college majors;
and a list of postsecondary Institutions that offer those majors. The state average salary is included.
2.3.4 Links to Career Resources
The System provides students with links to state‐specific job, volunteer and internship sites.
2.3.5 Vocational and Occupational Careers
The Vocational and Occupational Careers page lists all the occupational careers in alphabetical order.
The list of occupational careers is based on the U.S. Department of Labor’s Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code. For each vocational or occupational career included, an alphabetical list of the matching V/O schools or community colleges within Colorado is provided to the student. If a user clicks on a vocational or occupational school, he or she is directed to the corresponding vocational or occupational school’s homepage. If a user clicks on a community college, he or she is directed to the corresponding community college’s Campus Tour on the System.
2.3.6 Resume Builder
The Resume Builder allows the student to create a resume using a standardized template. Once the information is entered on the template, the student has the option to select the elements of the Resume that will be included in the print.
2.3.7 Distance Learning – Course Listing
The System contains an on‐line catalogue of courses offered by participating colleges. Course listings contain links to the corresponding institutions’ online registration pages. A student can access, browse, and view course information. Students can also access a search function to search the courses database.
2.4 Career Planning Professional Tools
In addition to the functionality outlined above for Career Explorer, Planner and Center, the following tools for educators are available:
• Reporting
• Lesson plans to facilitate classroom instruction incorporating career planning learning
• System implementation tips
• Technical support
3. High school coursework planner
3.1 Student Planner
The Student Planner allows a student to plan high school courses to meet core college admission requirements to postsecondary Institutions. The Student Planner does not validate nor verify the information provided by the students, and all recommendations made by the Student Planner are dependent upon the accuracy of the information provided by the student and the postsecondary Institutions.
Students can select postsecondary institutions in which they are interested, enter the name of the high school they are attending or have previously attended and select the courses they have taken or are taking in high school for the defined subject areas. Course listings are provided to the system by high schools reporting to the NCAA.
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Using the information entered by the student, the Student Planner will list by subject area and grade level the courses and grades entered. The core curriculum admission requirements for each postsecondary Institution selected by the student are displayed to allow the student to compare the courses taken against the postsecondary institutions’ required courses. A summary report allows students, parents and counselors to view by postsecondary institution, areas for which the student’s plan is insufficient.
3.2 Planner Timeline
The Planner Timeline provides students with a general guideline to the sequence and timing of tasks
recommended in connection with seeking admission to college. The recommendations are broken down by grade level and direct students to the appropriate System Functions and tools to assist in the college preparation process.
3.3 Higher Education Admission Requirements
This option links to information about the Higher Education Admission Requirements.
3.4 Event Calendar
The event calendar displays in real‐time and in daily, weekly or monthly calendar format upcoming events that are of student and educator interest.
3.5 Add your Counselor
The function allows the student to invite his or her counselor, parent or mentor access to view certain information saved in his or her account.
3.6 Pre‐Collegiate Programs
This module provides students, parents and educators with information regarding the state’s pre‐collegiate providers, programs and services.
3.8 NCAA Clearinghouse
This option provides the student with a Link to the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s Clearinghouse Website.
4. Selecting A College
4.1 Comparative View
The Comparative View function presents the student with an overview of postsecondary institutions tuition, fees, room and board, enrollment and average financial aid awarded to assist the student in determining which
Postsecondary Institutions are best suited to the student’s needs and desires. The student may select sorts of the data for the Institutions by lowest‐to‐highest, highest‐to‐lowest and alphabetically.
6 4.2 Campus Tours
A virtual Campus Tour is presented individually for each postsecondary Institution participating in the System. A list of the colleges and universities with Campus Tours is set forth on Exhibit 1. Each virtual tour provides comprehensive information about the postsecondary institution including admissions, academics, costs and financial aid, and student life.
Each postsecondary institution for which a virtual campus tour is presented may submit up to 10 digital images to be displayed as part of their tour. At the request of each institution, their virtual tour may display institutional videos.
4.3 Matching Assistant
The Matching Assistant shows students which colleges and universities match characteristics they specify.
Students are provided with the ability to select specific preferences within a set of parameters. Based on the relative number of matches between the specified characteristics and Postsecondary Institution characteristics, the System assigns a percentage value to each Postsecondary Institution and list the Institutions having a greater than zero percentage value in descending order, with the Postsecondary Institution having the highest percent of matches listed first.
4.4 Online College Guide
This is an electronic version of the College Guide published by College In Colorado each year. This module
contains Campus Tours similar in structure to the primary Campus Tours but representing information for 38 data fields for the institutions listed in the College Guide.
4.5 Distance Search
The Distance Search Module provides a list of postsecondary institutions in ascending order based upon distance from the zip code entered. A link is maintained from the name of each Postsecondary Institution appearing on the Distance Search list to the Campus Tour for that postsecondary institution.
4.6 Mentor Search
A specialized search engine allows the student to perform an Internet search based on a specified topic within the official web sites of student‐specified postsecondary institutions. A search may be done at the level of individual or multiple postsecondary institutions specified by the student.
4.7 Colleges Outside Colorado
The Colleges Outside of Colorado function allows students to compare Institutions within and outside of Colorado. The comparison is similar in structure to the Comparative View and Matching Assistant.
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5. Online College Applications
All public colleges and universities as well as several private institutions have selected the National Common Application, uniform application or a customized application to offer on the system. Along with gathering additional information, the system automatically populates applications with information previously entered and saved by the student. Students may work on several applications at once over a period of time and are notified of applications in progress.
As the student completes each screen of an online application, the System automatically checks the application screen for completeness. Once all screens of an application are complete and the data is validated the
application submittal process is initiated. This includes verifying to students successful submittal and a confirmation number.
Following successful submittal, the postsecondary institution accesses the submitted application via the Internet to download applications. If the postsecondary institution does not download the application within a pre‐
defined time period, an electronic notification stating that an application was submitted will be sent to the postsecondary institution to which the application was submitted.
5.1 Application Fee Processing
Application fees can be submitted using checks, credit cards or fee waivers at the determination of the postsecondary institution. If the postsecondary institution elects to offer the fee waiver option, the postsecondary institution can customize the business rules under which the application can be accepted.
To assist each Postsecondary Institution in reconciling the fees received through checks, credit cards and fee waivers a monthly fee reconciliation report is provided.
5.2 Auto‐Communicator
The Auto‐Communicator permits automatic download from our system into that institution’s information system on a predetermined schedule designated by the Institution.
6. Financial Aid
CollegeInColorado.org provides comprehensive information about all types of financial aid including loans, grants, scholarships, savings plans and work‐study available from the federal, state, institutional and private levels. In addition, many useful tools are available to assist parents and students prepare to pay for higher education.
6.1 Financial Aid Award Estimator
The financial aid award estimator estimates the student’s cost of attendance at colleges specified by the student compared to federal Pell Grant, other financial aid and/or student loans, potential subsidized and unsubsidized Stafford Loan and potential PLUS Loan for parents of dependent students that the student may receive based on expected family contribution calculation.
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The financial aid award estimator breaks down the cost of attendance into school charges (tuition and fees, and room and board if student lives on campus in a residence hall), books and supply estimates, and other living expenses (room and board if student lives off campus or with parents, personal, and transportation expenses).
6.2 Scholarship Search
The scholarship search utilizes a national scholarship database licensed from a third party that maintains a scholarship database of national reputation. The national scholarship database includes a compilation of private sources of postsecondary education funding, such as scholarships and fellowships, at the undergraduate,
graduate and post‐graduate levels.
6.3 Student Loans Over Projected Earnings Calculator
The SLOPE Calculator provides guidelines to the maximum amount of student loan indebtedness that can comfortably (8 percent) be incurred by a student in contemplation of an identified career, so that repayment obligations remain affordable in the context of projected career earnings.
The SLOPE calculator determines the slope by dividing the estimated annual (or monthly) student loan payments with the annual (or monthly) projected earnings for the first year of employment in the selected career choice.
6.4 Free Application for Federal Student Aid Transfer
The FAFSA Transfer functionality automatically populates the FAFSA form with student information from the student’s account in the categories that have been approved by the U.S. Department of Education for auto‐
population.
As part of FAFSA Transfer, the student is presented with a data transfer form that includes selected data
elements of the FAFSA on the Web form. The data transfer form is auto‐populated with student information and the student is also required to provide additional information. Once all the required data elements are provided, the student is provided with a button to transfer them in a secure manner. Once the transfer is complete, the student is directed to ED’s FAFSA on the Web page.
6.5 Other Utilities
Timelines and calendars for financial aid planning, frequently asked questions, glossary, financial aid guide and links to valuable external Websites are also included for families and educators to reference.
7. My Account
My Account is the student’s personal portfolio that is established when an account is created. A student can access his or her account each time they log in. Once logged in, the student may access the information contained in their account in a number of ways. As the student works within the system, the following information is stored for use:
• Online College Applications
• Colleges and Universities of interest
• Student Coursework Plan
• Careers
• Personal Profile information for scholarships
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• C‐Info Requestor (selection of postsecondary institutions to which students would like to send their profile information to receive recruiting materials back)
• E‐mail (ability to draft, send, receive and store simple e‐mail messages )
• Events (access to their personal or college events in a daily, weekly, or monthly view)
8. Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and their associated answers are made available for postsecondary institution specific questions and system specific questions. Questions and answers for the following major categories are provided:
• Freshman Admissions
• Financial Aid
• Non‐Traditional students
• University Selection
9. Counselor Center
The Counselor Center is a site designed to allow high school counselors to monitor students’ progress as they prepare for college. Students are sent an e‐mail invitation by their counselors to participate. When a
student accepts the invitation from his or her counselor (an “Accepted student”), the Accepted student gives the counselor access to view certain information saved in his or her account.
Counselors who have accounts established on the Counselor Center may:
• Invite students to become Accepted Student Users
• View a Summary View of all of that Counselor’s Accepted students. The Summary view is a list which may be sorted and which provides a summary of Accepted student information, such as grade level and the number of Applications started. From the Summary View, the counselor can e‐mail the Accepted student, view or update notes associated with the Accepted student, upload files, or go to a more detailed view of the Accepted student's information.
• Use the Note pad feature to type in and save notes for each Accepted student being managed. The notes are then saved for later retrieval by the counselor.
• Upload relevant electronic documents for each Accepted student.
10. Training Available
Full‐day train‐the‐trainer workshops will be scheduled during spring and summer of 2007 – invitations will be sent to each middle and high school in each region. These full‐day trainings are offered with CEU credits. In addition, two‐hour to half‐day system overview discussions can be requested and will be scheduled as time permits. The nature of the full‐day workshops facilitates in‐depth learning associated with the overall system, as well as fostering comprehensive understanding of implementation strategies to use of the system.
11. Data Tracking and Reporting
Reports available show number of hits; the number of pageviews; the number of visitors; and so forth. The demographics function allows participating institutions to gather demographic information from students who have created accounts or submitted the Colorado Uniform Application on the System. Information may be gathered for the system as whole and for individual Institutions.
10 Exhibit 1: Participating Institutions
1. Adams State College
2. Aims Community College – Fort Lupton Campus 3. Aims Community College – Greeley Campus 4. Aims Community College – Loveland Campus 5. Arapahoe Community College
6. Colorado Christian College 7. Colorado College
8. Colorado Mountain College – Alpine Campus 9. Colorado Mountain College – Spring Valley Campus 10. Colorado Mountain College – Timberline Campus 11. Colorado Northwestern Community College 12. Colorado School of Mines
13. Colorado State University
14. Colorado State University – Pueblo 15. Community College of Aurora 16. Community College of Denver
17. Community Colleges of Colorado Online 18. DeVry University – Colorado
19. Fort Lewis College
20. Front Range Community College – Boulder County Campus 21. Front Range Community College – Larimer Campus
22. Front Range Community College – Westminister Campus 23. Johnson & Wales University – Denver, CO
24. Lamar Community College 25. Mesa State College
26. Metropolitan State College of Denver 27. Morgan Community College
28. Northeastern Junior College 29. Otero Junior College
30. Pikes Peak Community College 31. Red Rocks Community College 32. Regis University
33. Rocky Mountain College of Art & Design 34. Trinidad State Junior College
35. United States Air Force Academy 36. University of Colorado – Boulder
37. University of Colorado – Colorado Springs 38. University of Colorado – Denver
39. University of Colorado – Health Sciences 40. University of Denver
41. University of Northern Colorado 42. Western State College of Colorado
