Welcome to the College and Career Resource Center
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Welcome to Leon High School‘s College and Career Resource Center (or CCRC for short)! This online space provides a variety of resources for college and career planning. The CCRC is a place where students can come to obtain information on two and four year colleges and universities, testing and test preparation, financial aid and scholarships, and career possibilities.
How Do You Want to Affect The World Around You?
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- Self-Evaluation. Knowing your interests, values, skills, and personality will increase your odds of finding a career path that works for you holistically.
- What are my interests?
- What are my skills?
- What kinds of things are important to me?
- When do I feel the most successful?
- How do I want to affect the world around me?
Floridashines.org is full of tools to help you identify your skills, interests, and values.
- What careers are out there? How do I figure out which careers would be a good fit for me?
- After you identify your skills, interests, and values, explore the online resources listed below to learn more about which careers align with you.
- Conduct informational interviews with professionals in the fields you are interested in pursuing.
- Shadow a professional who is currently in a career you are interested in so you can have an idea of what a typical day would be like if you were to also pursue that career.
- Take high school classes relevant to your interests.
- Explore options through participation in related clubs, activities, community organizations, jobs/internships, etc.
- Speak with your school counselors, teachers, family members, and others around you about careers you are interested in.
Online Resources
Tools to help explore skills, interests, and value in relation to career. Also includes resources regarding financial aid career exploration, and college prep.
Career guidance featuring hundreds of occupations
Resource to help better identify which careers may work for you based off of your personality type.
An overview of how to learn more about a career you are interested in from people in that field.
- Choosing a career that’s right for you…right now. Career exploration is a journey. Most people change careers at least once in their lifetime. Don’t be afraid to have some options for NOW and LATER in your career decisions. Many people who are currently unhappy in their careers ended up there because of the allure of money or because someone told them they should go in a specific direction. Take time to learn about what you want currently and for your future and your chances of having a career you enjoy and helps you meet your goals are much higher.
- Self-Evaluation. Knowing your interests, values, skills, and personality will increase your odds of finding a career path that works for you holistically.
Paths to Post-Secondary Education
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Throughout your high school journey, it will be important to think about your life after Leon High school. What are you interested in? What are you good at? What will people pay you for? How will you impact the world around you? These are some big, and possibly intimidating, questions that you may or may not have the answers to yet.
There are many educational paths you can take that can help you reach your desired goals; does your career of interest require an Associate's Degree from a community college or a Bachelor's Degree from a 4-Year University? Or, can you meet your goals with a certificate from a technical school? Below is a breakdown of the different options for post-secondary education.
Types of Post-Secondary Education
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Certificates
These are non-degree offerings in technical and vocational fields of study. A certificate generally leads directly to full or part-time employment in an occupational field. Visit the school websites for a complete listing of Degree and Certificate Program offerings.
Full list of certificate programs offered through Tallahassee Community College: https://www.tcc.fl.edu/academics/programs/
Full List of certificate programs offered through Lively Technical College: https://www.livelytech.com/all-programs/
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Associate Degree (AA, AS)
Two types of Associate Degree programs are offered through community colleges. In general, the Associate Degree program takes around 2 years to complete. An Associate in Arts Degree (A.A.). Degree is typically viewed as a stepping stone to additional education at a 4-year university. While an Associate in Science Degree (A.S) is typically viewed as a degree that leads directly into the workforce.
Full list of Associate Degree programs offered through Tallahassee Community College: https://www.tcc.fl.edu/academics/programs/
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Bachelor’s Degree (BA, BS)
This requires 4-5 years of study, usually in a university setting. Students typically earn either a Bachelor’s of Arts (B.A) or Bachelors of Science (B.S.) Degrees upon graduation. Due the wide variation in degree offerings within each university, it is best to look at each individual university to explore whether they offer a field you interested in studying at the bachelor’s level.
List of common College and Majors:
https://www.princetonreview.com/college-advice/top-ten-college-majors
Where do I Go from Here?
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Deciding on a post-secondary educational institution can be both exciting and terrifying; a choice that can seem to dictate whether you end up living the life of your dreams or an ultimate let-down. In reality, the institution you attend is only a small, yet still important, piece of the puzzle. Educating yourself on your options will take time. Don’t wait until the fall of your senior year right before applications are due to decide what you will do after leaving the halls of Leon.
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Community college or Technical school Path
If you plan on attending a technical school or community college, your process will look a little different than those attending a 4-year university immediately following high school, but it will still require planning. Below are a few pieces of advice to ensure you make you are prepared to be successful.
- Look at the community colleges or technical schools of interest to you.
- Explore their websites to become educated on the admission requirements, scholarship deadlines, and programs offered at each institution.
- Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid early! Most technical schools and community colleges accept federal aid, more specifically the Pell Grant (FREE MONEY).
- If you are pursuing a certificate or Associate of Science Degree, reach out to people in the program to learn more about the specific program you are interested in.
- Once you have decided on your institution and program of study (i.e., Certificate, A.A., A.S.), apply to the institution in time to be eligible for scholarships, if available.
- Once you have applied and been admitted be sure to check your email for that school frequently. Most official forms of communication, including financial aid opportunities, are sent through the official school email.
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4-Year University Path
If you are planning on attending a 4-year university immediately following high school, its better to start the process sooner than later. The sooner you have a definitive list of schools of interest to you that you plan on applying to, the likely you will have a smooth and exciting experience. Below are resources, tools, and tips for having a successful college application process.
Choosing the university for you
- Generate a rather broad list of 15-20 schools that interest you that you will research more in-depth, BigFuture is an excellent resource to do this. You may know you will attend a certain school, but it is a good idea to explore what is offered at each school. You may be surprised by what’s out there.
- After researching your chosen “what-if” schools, you should narrow down your list to 5-10 to which you will apply. When trying to figure out how to narrow your list, consider the following:
- Size – Size of colleges range from very small to very large. Do you want to be in 1 in 500 or 1 in 35,000 students?
- Location – Do you wish to attend a school down the street from your parents’ home or far away in a completely new environment?
- Type – Do you want to attend a public university or a private university?
- Cost – This includes tuition, fees, room and board, and travel expenses. Attending a state university in your home state can be substantially cheaper than attending a public university in other state.
- Admission Requirements – Are your GPA, test scores, and resume on comparable to students who are typically admitted at that school?
- Curriculum and Degrees Offered – Do the schools you are considering even offer your degree program?
- Honors – Distinctive academic programs may be available to students who meet requirements. Is this something that is important to you?
- Facilities – Are you familiar with the quality of the facilities, including classrooms, laboratories, libraries, dorms, etc.?
- Financial Aid – Along with federal and state aid, many colleges offer institutional aid to bridge the gap. Can you afford to attend your schools of interest?
- Extra-Curricular Activities – The College should offer a variety of activities which are of interest to you, e.g., student government, social organizations, athletic or intramural activities, etc., Can you see yourself thriving and having fun at your schools of choice?
You should come up with a list of 5-10 colleges to which you will apply. Your list of 5-10 schools should include:
- 1 or 2 “Reach” school(s) that you could reasonably see yourself getting admitted to.
- Some “Target” schools that you stand a good chance of being admitted (i.e., meet the median GPA and test scores) and would enjoy attending.
- At least 1 “safety” school that you are more than qualified to be admitted to and would enjoy attending.
Now that you have your list completed, now is the time to visit campuses (if possible)!
