Education

Outlined below and some of the important steps needed to prepare for college.

Step 1: Researching Colleges

• College Navigator Research a College	• College Diversity Provides College/Institutional profiles
• College Report Card National Report Card on Higher Education	• Check Graduation Rates Education Trust - College Results Online
• Best Colleges US News Best Colleges	• Hispanic Serving Institutions The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities

Step 2: Testing

• Register for the ACT American College Testing - Needed for college admission (can be substituted with SAT)

• Register for the SAT Scholastic Aptitude Test - Needed for college admission (can be substituted with ACT)

Step 3: College Applications

• CSU Application Online Application for all Cal State schools	• UC Application Online Application for all UC schools
• The Common Application College Application for numerous Private Colleges and Universities	• HBCU Common Application Common Application for Historically Black Colleges and Universities

Step 4: Financial Aid and Scholarships

• FAFSA Application Free Application For Financial Aid	• FAFSA Pin Apply for pin for fast and easy signatures for FAFSA
• Fast Web Scholarship locator and college search engine	• Mapping Your Future A free and neutral resource on career, college, financial aid, and money management

For Athletes

• NCAA Clearinghouse NCAA Initial Eligibility Clearinghouse

For Parents

• FAQ's for CSU's How Families Can Help Students Prepare for College

• Family Education School Resources for Parents

Here is some extra help for struggling minority high school students looking to go to college. Check out BLU Educational Foundation. BLU has been a response to the growing educational challenges among African American and Latino families with limited income and opportunities in the Inland Empire. Currently, BLU runs several education and human service programs. Included are its College Prep Program, which provides academic advisement and college preparation, financial aid application assistance, mentoring, and parental support, among other services. For more info on BLU contact Dina Walker at dwalker@bluedfoundation.org.

Volunteer

Looking for some reliable and interesting new volunteer opportunities? Well if you aren't volunteering with YAP try volunteering with these other organizations and non-profits.

California Volunteers is the state office that manages programs and initiatives aimed at increasing the number of Californians engaged in service and volunteering.

The HandsOn Network has helped YAP gain outstanding volunteers for past events. They are the leading business unit within the Points of Light Institute portfolio and the activating arm. It is the largest volunteer and citizen action network in the nation. HandsOn Network inspires, equips, and mobilizes people to take action.

VolunteerMatch is a very reliable source for volunteerng opportunities and has been a more than useful tool in recruiting volunteers for YAP. VolunteerMatch strengthens communities by making it easier for good people and good causes to connect. The organization offers a variety of online services to support a community of nonprofit, volunteer and business leaders committed to civic engagement. Their popular service welcomes millions of visitors a year and has become the preferred internet recruiting tool for more than 65,000 nonprofit organizations.

Serve.gov is your online resource for not only finding volunteer opportunities in your community, but also creating your own. Use Serve.gov to help you do your part. America’s foundation will be built one community at a time – and it starts with you.