Discover UAF: Inside Out

Calling all high school juniors and seniors!

Are you curious to learn what college is really about? Do you want to meet a real UAF professor? See the dorms? Eat at the cafeteria? How about the opportunity to speak face to face with an admissions counselor? Meet other students? Learn about important deadlines, transitioning to college, financial aid, and tips to help you succeed at college?

Well, Discover UAF: Inside Out is the event for you!

Students and parents will have the opportunity to ask questions, get answers and experience life at UAF during UAF Inside Out, a preview event designed to let you see what the University of Alaska Fairbanks is all about--from the inside out. This event for high school juniors and seniors will be held Friday, July 13. Parents and guests are welcome to attend during the day.

Register online now! Hurry, the last day to register is July 9th!

If you have any questions please call 907-474-7500, or email admissions@uaf.edu.

The Next Step

First off- Congratulations to the graduates of 2012! You should all feel SO proud of yourselves!  

The decision to pick a university may be looming for some of you. This can be a very intimidating decision; it can feel as if you are deciding what path you will be on for the rest of your life. 

Before you stress over the decision, give yourself a nice big pat on the back for giving yourself options. All the time and energy you spent doing well in school and applying for colleges has paid off. As you weigh your options, remember that a perfect school doesn’t exist. In the end, college is what you make of it. Accepting this truth will ease your mind and make it easier to see the pros and cons of each school. 

The first thing to do is learn all you can about your prospective colleges. Does the school have a major you are passionate about?

               Here is a list of UAF majors.

What is the freshman retention rate? The student to teacher ratio?

               Here are some facts and figures for UAF.

What is there to do for fun?

               Click here to see past events put on by our Student Activities Office.           

Speaking to current students is a great, honest way to find out about universities.

               Meet some current students at UAF by visiting this link

It is important to also consider what type of campus a university has. Is it a city campus? Rural? Traditional? If possible, try to visit. You will get to see the dorm, class rooms, dining halls, meet current students, and see how the university fits within the surrounding community. If you can’t visit campus, try online tours.

               Check out our virtual tour!

After doing all the research, ask yourself these questions:

How did I feel on the campus I visited?

Which college has the most of what I want?

At which college do I imagine myself the most happy, comfortable, and successful?

Also consider how much a college costs, and how much financial aid you might receive.

Good luck in your decision making! Don’t forget to reply to your chosen school by the deadline!

Math Bridge Program

I remember taking my first (and only) math class at college. I remember thinking it had only been two and half years since my last math class in high school.  I figured I was headed into an introductory math course, which would introduce me to difficult math concepts, not actually test me on them. I was in for a challenging semester, which I survived thanks only to an extreme bell curve.

Are you signed up for Math 107, 161, 200, or 262 this summer?

Let me introduce you to the Math Bridge Program.

The Math Bridge Program is offered by the University of Alaska Fairbanks Department of Mathematics and Statistics. It is a five day long (only fifteen hours total!) program that will prepare you to succeed in your summer math courses.

Fifteen hours and you will receive intensive, individual review of prerequisite material, a preview of how your course will be organized, test skills, strategies for finishing your homework, and how to gain the most benefit from lectures.

Successfully complete these fifteen hours and what do you get?

Not only all the skills to excel in your summer math class, but a FREE one-credit tuition waiver!

Best of all, the Math Bridge Program is completely free. There are only two requirements:

1)Register for MATH 107, MATH 161, MATH 200 or MATH 262 at UAF for Summer 2012.

2) Complete the Math Bridge Program Application Form.

Visit this website for more information, and to access the application. You will also find a detailed schedule and points of contact for the program. Sign up soon! Registration is on a first-come, first- served basis, and closes May 18th. Class is from 9am- Noon, May 21- 25.

http://www.uaf.edu/dms/math-bridge/


 Math does not have to be intimidating, or go hand-in-hand with a bell curve (unless you are learning the Gaussian function). A little work now can really pay off this semester- take advantage of it!

Spring has sprung in the Golden Heart City!

The residents of Fairbanks are just starting to see the grass again after eight months of winter. The UAF sledding hill is closed for the season. The ice on the ice wall is starting to detach. Students, excited about summer, are walking around in shorts and flip-flops. We are waking up to a mild twenty degrees above and the sun peeking into our windows.  Springtime in Fairbanks is a reviving, awakening time of year. 

Spring is your chance to sign up for Summer 2012 courses offered at UAF. The summer sessions are a great opportunity to take a class you wouldn’t normally be able to fit into a busy academic schedule during the fall or spring semesters. In the summer you can complete up to 14 credits in a variety of fields. Many types of classes are available, from basic general requirements, to unique one-day classes. 

A UAF Summer course may be just the thing to fill your time between floating the Chena River, hiking in the midnight sun, and taking in a Goldpanner baseball game.  Here are a few unique classes to consider:

Hands on Documentary Production, FLM F292: Work with classmates to produce a documentary film! Learn how to operate a camera, direct, edit and more. This course is three credits and is part of the MAYmester session, which runs May 14- 25^th.

Seminar: The Horror Film, ENGL F692: Watch and analyze horror films, including Dawn of the Dead, The Exorcist, and Carrie. Investigate the horror narratives from different cultures, and analyze how monstrosity is defined. This three credit class is part of the first six-week session which runs May 29- July 3. 

Beginning Field Painting, ART F233: Spend even more time outside this summer while learning a new skill- painting! This summer the class is painting in the Yukon-Charley Rivers and staying at Slaven’s Roadhouse, a historic 1936 mining camp. Learn about the concepts of space, light, color, composition, and the elements of landscape painting in one of the most beautiful locations in Alaska. This class is from July 18- 22 and will earn you one credit. 

Alaskan Gourmet, CAH F025: Learn to cook gourmet, high quality meals with the freshest Alaskan products! This is a non-credit course that is from 8 am- 5 pm on July 26. Work with Chef Christopher Koetke, who will help you make the most of Alaska’s bounty.

You can learn more about these and all of the summer courses UAF offers at www.uaf.edu/summer

The last day of registration is the first day of the class you are interested in. Register early to have the most choices!

Paying your way through college

Have you taken a moment to calculate the estimated costs of tuition, room, and board at UAF? If you have, you've probably figured out that going to college costs money, and you're probably in search of some assistance (by that I mean cash). We are here to help direct you to a few great resources.

Feb. 15 is the deadline for applications for UAF privately funded scholarships. For more information contact scholarships@uaf.edu or visit www.uaf.edu/finaid/scholarships/.

Admissions annual event, Discover UAF: Admissions, Financial Aid, and Scholarships will take place on Saturday, February 4, 2012 in the lobby of Signers' Hall. Participants will hear from representatives from the Office of Admissions and the Registrar and the Financial Aid Office about the admissions application process, how to apply for scholarships, and the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

The Financial Aid Office is hosting its annual Financial Sense Day on Wednesday, February 1. If you live in Fairbanks, this is a great opportunity to attend free financial literacy workshops throughout the day. Topics include:

• Writing a scholarship essay
  
• Living on less
• Money skills
  
• Money management tools
  
• Paying for college
  
• Discover your money personality
  
• History of money
  
• Understanding personal finance
  
• Using your parents' GI bill
  
• Getting out of debt
  
• Avoiding bank fees
  
• Money realities
  
• Tax filing

The event runs from 9 am - 8 pm with workshop at the Wood Center (UAF Main Campus), and at the Community and Technical College (604 Barnette Street). Additionally, students can attend a Financial fair from 10 - 1 pm in the Wood Center and receive FAFSA application help in the Rasmuson Library (lab room 301) from 12-2 pm or at CTC (computer lab) from 6-7:30 pm.

Contact Ashley Munro at akmunro@alaska.edu or 474‐1934 for more information.

Another great event to think about attending is College Goal Sunday. This annual event is offered throughout the state and is available to anyone.

Traditionally offered right around Super Bowl Sunday - and conveniently just prior to tax season - College Goal Sunday provides on-site expert assistance with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

The FAFSA is used for many forms of aid, from grants to loans to work-study. Did you know the FAFSA is also the application for the new Alaska Performance Scholarship?

College Goal Sunday is a 2-hour event where financial aid professionals from Alaska's higher education institutions and the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education will join other volunteers in key locations statewide to help Alaska's students complete the paperwork.

Ashley Munro, Financial Aid Advisor for the University of Alaska Fairbanks, will provide expert, line-by-line advice on the FAFSA and will be available to answer your financial aid questions. Internet and phone access are required to participate. Students and adult learners are welcome to attend these sessions.

Other great resources:

• Financial Aid Grid
  

These websites relate to financial aid. The UAF Financial Aid Office and UAF do not control the content or take responsibility for the content of these pages. However, UAF Financial Aid staff have looked at these sites and found helpful information on a variety of topics including free scholarship searches and loan repayment options, to name a few.

• Alaska Sea Grant Funding Opportunities
• American Indian College Fund
  The American Indian College Fund's mission is to raise scholarship funds for American Indian students at qualified tribal colleges and universities and to generate broad awareness of those institutions and the Fund itself.
• Education is Freedom National Scholarship Program
  The program provides college scholarships to high school seniors or graduates, age 24 and under.
• FinAid! The SmartStudent Guide to Financial Aid
  Created by Mark Kantrowitz this site contains a wide variety of general information about financial aid and links to free scholarship searches, universities and other organizations relating to higher education.
• FastWeb
  Free searches for scholarships and/or colleges.
• Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF)
  In support of its mission to double the rate of Hispanics earning college degrees, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund provides the Latino community more college scholarships and educational outreach support than any other organization in the country.
• IRS Tax Information for Students
  Online tax resource dedicated to helping you find the information, news, and forms you need to complete your taxes.
  • Tax Benefits for Education (PDF)
    IRS Publication in PDF format about the Hope Scholarship and Lifetime Learning Credit.
• Mapping Your Future
  This one-stop site for students and parents with information on financial strategies, career options, and college planning.
• Scholarships for Graduate Students
  A list of scholarships available to graduate students maintained by the UAF Graduate School.
• Scholarships for Volunteering and Community Service
• SchoolSoup
  A free scholarship search site.
• Social Security Administration
• Tylenol Scholarship
  Cash for college sweepstakes.
• United Negro College Fund
  The nation's oldest and most successful African American education assistance organization.
• U.S. Department of Education
  This site contains a variety of information concerning the federal government's involvement with education at all levels. Below are pages within the U.S. Department of Education that may better direct you towards specific information you seek:
  • FAFSA on the Web
    Enter your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) online. Doing your FAFSA on the Web can save you about two weeks of processing time when compared to using the paper FAFSA.
  • "Guide to Defaulted Student Loans"
    Maintained by the Office of Post secondary Education.
  • Hope Scholarship and Lifetime Learning Credit
    New federal government incentives for higher education.
  • National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) Student Access
    U.S. Department of Education's central database for student aid. It receives data from schools, agencies that guaranty loans, the Direct Loan program, the Pell Grant program, and other U.S. Department of Education programs. NSLDS provides a centralized, integrated view of Title IV loans and Pell grants that are tracked through their entire cycle; from aid approval through closure.
    Office of Postsecondary Education
    Higher education and financial aid topics.
  • The Student Guide: Financial Aid from the U.S. Department of Education
    The online version of the department's free guide.
• Wiredscholar
  A free financial aid service offered by Sallie Mae. The Scholarship Search connects you to one of the Internet's largest databases of financial aid.

Alaska Performance Scholarship and FAFSA help

The Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education (ACPE) and the Alaska Department of Education & Early Development are hosting WebEx/Teleconference meetings in January for the general public to learn more about the Alaska Performance Scholarship (APS). Students, parents, educators, and other interested parties are welcome. Participants will learn about eligibility requirements, award levels, the application process, and using the award. There will also be an opportunity to ask questions. Go to APS.alaska.gov to view a schedule of available sessions, and to register.

Additionally, in February, ACPE will host online meetings on completion of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) – the application for the APS - as part of Alaska College Goal Sunday. Ashley Munro, Financial Aid Advisor for the University of Alaska Fairbanks, will provide expert, line-by-line advice on the FAFSA and will be available to answer your financial aid questions. Students and adult learners are welcome to attend these sessions. Go to www.alaskacollegegoalsunday.com to view a schedule of available sessions, and to register.

For either meeting, you must register at least 24 hours in advance to participate. Once you have registered online, you will receive an e-mail with instructions on how to participate in the meeting. Internet and telephone access are required to participate.

If you are unable to participate in the online meetings but would like additional information about the APS sent to you by mail or fax, please call 1-800-441-2962 (465-2962 in Juneau).

Closed for the holidays!

Most offices at the University of Alaska Fairbanks will be closed for the winter break, Dec. 24 – Jan. 3. Some offices will also be closed or minimally staffed Dec. 19 – 23 and Jan. 4 – 6 as a cost-saving measure.

The UAF police and fire departments will remain open and the UAF Bookstore, the Student Recreation Center, the Wood Center, the UA Museum of the North and the Rasmuson Library will have limited hours during some parts of the winter break.

Campus shuttle service will be on an on-call only basis from 7:30 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. Dec.19 – 23 and Jan. 4 – 13. Call 474-RIDE (7433) for pickup. Regular campus shuttles will not run Dec. 24 – Jan. 3 or Jan. 14 – 16. Campus shuttles will run at limited times from 7:30 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. Jan. 17 – 18. All routes will return to normal schedules on Jan. 19.

Visit http://www.uaf.edu/marketing/holiday/index.xml for specific dates, hours and schedules.

Students will begin returning to campus Tuesday, Jan. 17, when residence halls reopen. New students are invited to participate in orientation activities the following day. The first day of classes for the spring semester is Thursday, Jan. 19. The 2011-2012 academic calendar is also online at www.uaf.edu/catalog/current/acad_calendar.html.

The University of Alaska Museum of the North will be open during the holiday season Dec. 19 – 24 and Dec. 26 – 31 and Jan. 2 – 7. Regular hours resume Jan. 9. Visit http://www.uaf.edu/museum/ for more information.

Going to College in Alaska!

Announcing the ALL NEW online version of the 2011-12 edition of Going to College in Alaska!

The online magazine can be found at www.GTCIAK.com. The magazine provides general college admissions and financial aid information; and brief profiles of postsecondary institutions in Alaska, including many that the Alaska Performance Scholarship can be used at.

The Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education (ACPE) annually produces Going to College in Alaska which contains useful tips to help Alaska’s high school students make decisions about postsecondary school options.

Transfer to UAF!

Dear Transfer Students,

Perhaps you know about the Transfer Credit Resource Site that gives you a comprehensive list of all of the courses that UAF has accepted for transfer credit (and the courses for which they are applied). You may even know that UAF has recently created a position that is aimed at helping transfer students gather information about the school, assist you through the application process, and help you transition to UAF (that’s me, by the way). But, did you know that UAF will waive lower division General Education (core) requirements for students transferring in from a regionally accredited school that meets one of four requirements? No? Well, let me tell you the criteria. You’ll receive the waiver if

1. Your AA or AS degree is from the University of Alaska;

2. Your community college has an established 2+2 program with public universities in the same state;

3. Your community college or community college district is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU); OR

4. Your associate degree program has been approved by the Core Review Committee as satisfying the 100 and 200 level General Education requirements.

We implemented this policy for Fall 2011 and it has been a great success and tremendous boost to many our transfer students. If you’re not sure if your degree will qualify or what any of these requirements actually mean, send me an email. We’ve compiled a list of schools that have already been approved for the wavier that I can check for you. If your school isn’t on that list – don’t fret - it doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t qualify. Your application may be the first we’ve received from that community college since we implemented the program. Worst case scenario is that you apply for admission and 2-3 weeks after acceptance, we’ll let you know the results of the Transfer Credit Evaluation.

We haven’t even talked about all of the great undergraduate research opportunities available, UAF’s thriving campus community, or the adventure of attending college in Fairbanks, Alaska, so don’t forget to ask me about these when you send that email.

Sincerely,

Mary

mmkreta@alaska.edu

Stay on Track

Students make the Stay on TRACK “Finish in Four” Promise

Fifty four students have made the Stay on TRACK “Finish in Four” promise to complete 30 credits a year, choose a major, see an advisor, and other smart steps to finish their degree in four years. Students responded positively to the additional attention on their progress to graduation, and Regent Heckman commented in support of the campaign at the UA Board of Regents Nov 2nd meeting.

The Stay on Track campaign is grounded in the philosophy that students and the university can take deliberate actions to help students graduate in a more timely manner, saving them money and reducing their loan debt. Campaign kickoff events were held this week at nine campuses across the UA system – Yukon-Koyukuk Center, Aleutians-Pribilof Center, Kenai River Campus, Bristol Bay, Matsu, Ketchikan, Juneau, Fairbanks and Anchorage.

Postcards, emails, electronic billboards and UA websites urged students to visit the Stay on TRACK website www.alaska.edu/stayontrack, which had 6,600 unique page views since mid-October.

Work continues on the current phase of the campaign, which is specifically focused on first time, full time bachelor’s degree seeking freshmen. Phase II, slated for Fall 2012, will focus on students seeking an associate degree.