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from: College.edu: Online Resources for the Cyber Savvy Student Version 12.0 By Lisa Guernsey Please Note: This Book is updated every September. "Getting Plugged In" Consider yourself among the lucky. As a college-bound student, you have entered the market at a time when the internet is suddenly making the college search, the application process, and the financial-aid quest easier than ever before. The World Wide Web is stocked with directories and news sources that are helpful and free; electronic mail makes asking questions easy; and the digitalization of many tasks is eliminating the need for mindless paper pushing. But, as many frustrated people have already discovered, the Internet comes with a major caveat: Although good stuff is out there, it can become a nightmare to find. No one wants to waste an entire afternoon clicking through pages of outdated drivel and useless promotions, attempting to download files that never seem to work, and waiting for oversized color advertisements to etch themselves across the screen. This book can help you avoid that wasted time. It will direct you to the Web sites and on-line areas that provide useful information, instead of those that simply act as indices pointing you elsewhere. (Unless otherwise noted, the sites are listed in order of what I consider most useful.) It will warn you about the sites with heavy graphics and programs that require additional software and computer memory to run. And it will offer a few tips on making surfing the Internet, in general, more worth your while. * TIP: If this is your first time meandering through the Internet, take a few minutes to read Appendix II: FAQ's for Internet Newbies. It will help you get your bearings. Site Seeing: The Basics Consider this a scaled down, one-stop shop for college-bound students using the Internet. Use this 10-step program as a guide to essential links-or simply as a strategic outline to the chapters that follow. Step One—Narrow your list of possible colleges.
Step Two—Go to their homepages. Learn everything you can about the school. Bookmark ones you like. Step Three—Read objective information about the colleges. Step Four—Take some virtual tours. Ask questions along the way. Your best bet is to visit eCampus Tours (below) or go to the home pages of the colleges you bookmarked (See Step Two) Step Five—Meanwhile, prepare for the SAT or ACT.
Step Six—Request, download or bookmark applications from the colleges you are interested in. Your best bet is to go to a college's home page and head for the admissions office. See Step Two. Step Seven—Complete and send your college applications. Step Eight—Collect financial aid information, send in your FAFSA, and register for PROFILE (if necessary). Step Nine—Conduct your own scholarship search Step Ten—Hang out on the Internet instead of stressing out about acceptances.
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