McKee College Fair

A big thanks to all the students and parents that came out to the McKee College Fair this past Saturday! It was small  but I hope those of you who came were able to get some useful information from the schools that did attend. We will be having a larger fair in the fall and I would love to hear from some of you who you would be interested in seeing and speaking to then. Please comment on this post or email me at JPecora5@schools.nyc.gov with the names of schools you would particularly like to see or speak to in the fall. Schools from all over the country have regional representatives that come to high school fairs to speak to parents and students like you who can't take the long trip to visit a school that is hours away. So please, be in touch with me and let me know who you would like to see!

Another big thanks to all the colleges that attended our college fair:

• St. John's University
• College of Staten Island
• Kingsborough Community College
• CUNY
• SUNY Alfred State
• US Marines
• NYU Poly 
• Berkeley College
• IDC
• Penn State

-jmp

Acceptance Letters

Wow I love getting acceptance letters from all of you! I'm so proud of each and every one of you on each acceptance you receive. You all deserve it!! Here are some updates:

• Angelica Cortes: Congratulations on being accepted to BMCC and City Tech (Liberal Arts)!
• Chris Sosa: Congratulations on being accepted to City Tech (Civil Technology) and CSI!
• Alexander Mardikos: Congratulations on being accepted to City Tech (Graphic Arts Production Mgmt) and CSI!
• Edwin Uruchima: Congratulations on being accepted to SUNY Canton and DeVry!
• Terrence Ravenell: Congratulations on being accepted to SUNY Hudson Valley CC (Health Sciences)!
• Congratulations to Danica Tanjutco and Michael Pepper on being accepted to FIT by advance notification!
• Giancarlo Luca: Congrats on being accepted to City Tech (Architectural Technology)!

Keep bringing in those acceptance letters!

-jmp

More acceptance letters!

More congratulations are in order for the students who have been handing in their college acceptance letters!!

• Congrats to Brandon Reillo on getting accepted to DeVry with a $2,225 scholarship!
• Congrats to Kayla Simas on getting accepted to Mercy College with a $6,000 Presidential Honors Scholarship!
• Congrats again to Kayla Simas (that's 3 colleges now!) on getting accepted to Washington College!
• Congrats to Shayla Jones on getting into SUNY Albany Univerity EOP!
• Congrats to Abraham Arreortua, Andre Roman, & Nya Richardson for getting accepted to Berkeley College!
• Congrats to Jeudy Azzarelli on getting accepted to SUNY Alfred State with free room & board!
• Congrats to Damien King on getting accepted to St. John's University!

Please make sure you keep bringing in your acceptance and scholarship letters!

ms miller pecora

Spring Semester

Hello Seniors!

Welcome back! Many of you had a nice break last week and I hope those of you that went had a great time on the senior trip!

 

Now back to the real world!

 

CUNY

·         If you submitted your CUNY application, you need to see Ms. Eileen in the Guidance office to submit your SAT/ACT scores. You will not get processed until those are submitted!

·         The deadline for the CUNY app for 4-year schools was February 1. The application is still open for the CUNY Community Colleges.

 

ACCEPTANCE LETTERS

·         If you have received ANY acceptance letters, you MUST bring them to me! I need to make and keep a copy of your acceptance letters. It does not matter if it is not your school of choice. If you only received an email, forward it to me!

·         BRING IN YOUR ACCEPTANCE LETTERS ASAP

 

FINANCIAL AID

·         SUNY Financial Aid Days – February 22^nd at the SUNY Recruitment Center – 33 W 42^nd St from 10:00am-2:00pm. Get help filling your FAFSA for free!

·         Deadlines for Financial Aid are quickly passing. Make sure to submit your FAFSA as soon as possible.

 

As always, see me with any questions.

-ms. miller pecora

SUNY Cortland Urban Recruitment of Educators

In New York state there is a crtical need for oustanding teachers who understand the effects of culture, ethnicity, gender, language, poverty and race on students who attend high-need urban schools.

Suny Cortland offers aunique and comprehensive program in urban education to prepare future teachers for ht echallenges of working in high-need urban schools. Cortland's Urban Recruitment of Educators (C.U.R.E.) Program and Scholarship seeks motivated individuals committed to teaching in high-need urba schools. C.U.R.E. aims to increase the diversity of both the teaching force in New York State's urban public schools and in the student population at SUNY Cortland.

Read more...

#MajorMondays

Let's get #MajorMondays started. Every Monday I'll post info on a specific college major, what jobs are available to you, and what you'll be studying. Give me feedback on what you'd like to see next week on #MajorMondays. This week's #MajorMondays is COMPUTER SCIENCE! (*play fanfare here*)

What is COMPUTER SCIENCE?
Computer science majors learn about computer systems and the way humans and computers interact from a scientific perspective. Instruction includes programming and the theory and design of software. (https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/majors/computer-information-sciences-computer-science)

Computer science is the systematic study of information and our interaction with it. What energy is to physics, information is to computer science. It is about how we represent it, how we store it, how we manipulate it and how we present it. (http://www.princeton.edu/majorchoices/departments/computer-science/)

It helps to be precise and mathematical but also able to think abstractly. In order to solve problems, you’ll need to think like a human and like a computer at the same time. This requires creativity, imagination, and the ability to think logically.

While programming is essential to studying computer science, the major can prepare you for careers that involve no programming at all.
  

As a computer science major, programming courses will be a key part of your studies. These classes cover languages such as C++ and Java, and introduce you to the precise thinking behind computer programming. You’ll learn how to solve problems by translating a question into instructions a computer can follow to come up with the answers. And you’ll explore what goes on inside a computer when it’s solving a problem.

What jobs are out there in COMPUTER SCIENCE?

• Computer and Information Systems Manager
• Computer Hardware Engineer
• Computer Programmer
• Computer Support Specialist
• Computer Systems Analyst
• Database Administrator
• Network and Computer Systems Administrator
• Software Developer
• Software Engineer
• Web Developer
• Artificial Intelligence

Computer scientists are integral to virtually every business in the modern world. That means that there's a demand for us in everything from finance to politics to bioengineering. Of course, traditional computer companies such as Google and Microsoft pay special attention to us, and a large number of CS majors end up interning and/or working for companies like those. We typically have excellent job placement rates and starting salaries—in fact, we often have the highest average starting salaries of any major at Princeton. (http://www.princeton.edu/majorchoices/departments/computer-science/#intern_experience)



Is a degree in COMPUTER SCIENCE worth it?
Yes yes a hundred times, YES!
Moving up in the field will only garner you more money as you go along (Master's degree, Doctorate degree), but Bachelor's degree holders also find lots of jobs that make a lot of money.

Just check out this graph of how much the computer-related career field is intended to grow over the next few years:

 

According to about.com, these are the cities and jobs hiring the most Computer Science majors:

Top 10 Cities Where Companies Are Hiring

1. Washington, D.C.
2. San Jose
3. NewYork
4. San Francisco
5. Boston
6. Seattle
7. Chicago
8. Atlanta
9. Los Angeles
10. Dallas

Top 10 Companies Hiring

1. CSC
2. AppLabs
3. General Dynamics
4. Microsoft
5. Deloitte
6. Amazon
7. ManTech Int'l Corp.
8. Raytheon
9. HP
10. Northrop Grumman

Schools that offer COMPUTER SCIENCE
Some of the top COMPUTER SCIENCE schools in the world include:

• University of Texas at Austin
• University of California at LA
• Cornell University
• Carnegie Mellon University
• Harvard University
• Princeton University
• UC Berkley
• Stanford

New York schools that offer COMPUTER SCIENCE:

• SUNY Stonybrook University
• SUNY University at Buffalo
• CUNY City Tech
• CUNY City College
• CUNY Hunter College
• CUNY College of Staten Island
• Wagner College
• Marist College
• Hofstra University
• Pace University

#MajorMondays!
-Ms. Miller-Pecora


Seniors excited about college

I love these pictures! Some of our seniors attended their schools and are showing off their new clothes!

Check out Diana Delacruz (SUNY Canton), Malcolm Lewis (Stevens Institute), and Reggie Fredericks (NYU)!

Love these kids!! <3

-Ms. Miller

Upcoming College Events for Juniors

SUNDAY, APRIL 28TH 
New York National College Fair, 11:00am - 4:00pm
Jacob Javits Convention Center, 655 W 34th St, New York, NY
*FREE TO STUDENTS AND PARENTS!*

With over 350 colleges in attendance, this is the biggest college fair you'll find in NYC! 

Before the fair...

• Review the colleges that will be in attendance and decide which to visit
• Go to www.nacacnet.org/ncfstudent to:
• Register for the fair
• Watch the video for a complete fair overview
• Learn about different types of schools

At the fair...

• Pick up the on-site locator for the latest school list and a booth location map.
• Meet one-on-one with college representatives who can answer questions.
• Visit the Counseling/Resource Center to talk to a counselor about choosing a major, financial aid scholarship information, and more.
• Attend a Workshop about topics such as financial aid, college admissions, working with special needs students, and non-traditional students

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SUNY Group Information Sessions

SUNY Center for Student Recruitment, College of Optometry, Schwarz Theater

33 W. 42^nd St, 5:30pm

Dates: 4/24, 5/08, 5/29

Perhaps you're thinking about starting your college search or maybe you have already narrowed your search to a few colleges and your list includes one or more SUNY campuses. You and your family are invited to join staff from the SUNY Center for Student Recruitment in NYC for a group information session. You will have the opportunity to explore The State University of New York -- the campuses, academic programs, application and admissions process, financial assistance, and more!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

May 19^th - SUNY College Fairs for HS Juniors

The Armory Track and Field Center, 216 Fort Washington Ave, 1:00pm

Start your SUNY journey close to home by joining us for a SUNY College Fair. Take a closer look at The State University of New York, one of the leading systems of higher education in the country, and you'll find tremendous opportunity, choice, value and success.

High school juniors and their families are invited to join SUNY representatives for a program designed to provide information and answer your questions about the college search process and all that is available to undergraduates at The State University of New York.

Community Colleges

COMMUNITY COLLEGES

5 reasons why Community College may be the best choice for you!

1.    $MONEY$

v  Community college costs a fraction of the total price of a public or private 4-year college.

TOTAL COST OF ATTENDANCE (TUITION, ROOM/BOARD, FEES)

CSI (CITY PUBLIC 4-YR SCHOOL)	SUNY DELHI (STATE PUBLIC 4-YR SCHOOL)	ST. JOHN’S UNIVERSITY (PRIVATE 4-YR SCHOOL)
$11,195	$17,436	$39,035

BMCC TUITION (CITY PUBLIC COMM. COLLEGE)	SUNY ORANGE (STATE PUBLIC COMM. COLLEGE)	BRYANT & STRATTON (PRIVATE COMM. COLLEGE)
$9,551	$9,478	$19,425

2.     WEAK GRADES/TEST SCORES

v  If you don’t have a high enough GPA or test scores for your dream four-year college, it’s okay! Community colleges are open-admissions. You can use  community college to build up your grades and prove what a serious student you are and can be.

v  As a freshman, colleges use your high school grades to *assume* what you would be like as a college student. As a transfer student from a community college, colleges don’t have to *assume,* your college grades do all the work!

v  You start college with a clean slate. You don’t have to worry that you failed English in sophomore year of high school – you can be a whole new student with a whole new attitude!

3.     WORK/FAMILY OBLIGATIONS

v  Four-year colleges don’t usually offer a lot of flexibility in making your schedule. Most community colleges offer evening and weekend classes, for students who have several obligations during the day time.  

4.     YOUR CAREER DOESN’T REQUIRE A BACHELOR’S DEGREE

v  Community colleges offer many certification and associate degree programs that you won’t find at most four-year colleges. Many tech and service careers do not require a four-year degree, and you won’t find that specialized training at a four-year college.

v  Example: Automotive Technology, Broadcasting Technology/Management, Microcomputer Systems, Construction Mgmt Technology, Culinary Arts, Dental Hygiene, Digital Design, Digital Music, EMT/Paramedic, Environmental Technology, Fashion Merchandising/Marketing, Game Design, Laser & Fiber Optics Technology, Medical Office Manager, Radiologic Technology, Small Business Entrepreneurship, Sports & Fitness, Veterinary Technology

5.     YOU AREN’T SURE WHAT YOU WANT TO DO!

v  You’re 18 years old and you’re not sure what you want to do with the rest of your life?? BIG SURPRISE!! You are NOT the only one in that position!

v  Use community college as your stepping stone to figure it out. To figure out if college is for you; to figure out what subject you enjoy studying; to figure out what field you want to work in.

CUNY COMMUNITY COLLEGES Borough of Manhattan CC (BMCC) Bronx CC (BCC) Hostos CC Kingsborough CC (KBCC) LaGuardia CC (LGCC) The New CC (NCC) Queensborough CC (QCC)

SUNY COMMUNITY COLLEGES Adirondack CC Broome CC Cayuga Clinton Columbia-Greene Corning Dutchess Finger Lakes Fulton-Montgomery Genesee Herkimer County Hudson Valley Jamestown Jefferson

SUNY COMMUNITY COLLEGES Mohawk Valley Monroe Nassau Niagara North Country Onondaga Orange County Rockland Schenectady County Suffolk County Sullivan County Tompkins Cortland Ulster County Westchester County