The College Counseling Process: Some Helpful Terms
The world of college admissions comes with its own language, which can be confusing at first. Understanding common terms can make the process clearer and a little less stressful. Weโve put together a glossary of frequently used words and phrasesโorganized by topicโto help students and families feel more confident as they navigate the journey ahead.
Financial Aid
FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid): An application that determines your eligibility for federal and state grants, scholarships, work-study programs, and loans. Most public institutions require the FAFSA.
CSS Profile: A College Board financial aid form required by many private colleges, in addition to the FAFSA, that provides more detailed financial information to assist in the distribution of institutional aid.
Net-Price Calculator: Every college, by law, must provide a calculator on its website that allows families to input some financial information and receive a general idea of what they might be expected to pay.
Application terms
ED (Early Decision): ED is a binding commitment: if a student is admitted, they agree to attend that college and withdraw all other applications. ED deadlines are usually in November, with decisions released mid-December.
EDII (Early Decision II): A smaller group of colleges offers a second round of binding ED, with deadlines in January and decisions in February. Students admitted through EDII must immediately withdraw all other applications.
EA (Early Action): Allows students to apply in the fall and receive decisions between late December and early February without a binding commitment. Students may apply to multipleย EA schools. EA decisions arrive between December to late January.
REA (Restrictive Early Action): Used by Harvard, Yale, Stanford, and Princeton, this is a non-binding early plan with a key restriction: students may not apply to other private colleges through any early plan. They may still apply early to public universities.
RD (Regular Decision): RD is a non-binding college application with a typical deadline in early January and notification by April 1.
MaiaLearning: Winsorโs college counseling data management platform that provides historical admission information, college research, and list-building tool, and facilitates the submission of transcripts and recommendations to colleges.
Common Application: An online platform used by many colleges and universities worldwide to simplify the college application process.
Standardized Testing
PSAT: The Preliminary SAT, a 2-hour exam, is available to juniors. Administered on campus in October, the test serves as the qualifying exam for the National Merit Scholarship Program; however, scores are not submitted to colleges.
ACT: A standardized college entrance exam that measures studentsโ readiness in English, math, reading, and science. The highest possible score is 36.
SAT: A standardized college entrance exam that measures studentsโ readiness in evidence-based reading and writing, and math. The highest possible score is 1600.
Winsor-Specific Programs
College Counseling Launch Program: A program organized by the College Counseling Office to officially welcome the junior class to the college search process.
Virtual College Explorations: Organized by the College Counseling Office, this program provides juniors with the opportunity to hear from Winsor alumni about their college experiences.
Approaching the College Process: Winsor course taught in the second semester of junior year by college counseling staff.
Teacher recommendation surveys: After students request teacher recommendations in May, they will complete a survey for each recommender.
