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These are job readiness and college preparation workshops and handouts created by the Carnegie Mellon chapter of Women in Science and Engineering (W.I.S.E.) for presentation at local high schools. The third one listed below is on Higher Education

1. Defining SMART Goals/Resumes/Cover Letters
   • Part I - Defining SMART Goals
   • Part II - Resumes & Cover Letters
     Handouts
     • Top Six Tips for Writing a Resume
     • Sample Resume
     • Sample Cover Letter
     Activity
     • True/False Resume Game
   
   
2. Interviewing Skills Training
   Handouts
   • Common Interview Questions and How to Answer Them
   • Ten Questions to Ask Interviewer
   • Warning Signs: 25 Attributes That Interviewers Don't Like To See
   • Appearance and Proper Interview Attire Worksheet
   Activity
   • Stress Balls
   
   
3. Higher Education
   • Part I - Preparing and Paying for Higher Education
     • Can I Upgrade You: College Preparation Presentation
     • Financial Aid Presentation
       Activities
       • Test Your Financial Aid Knowledge
       • The Human Barometer
       • Free Money Activity
   • Part II - Higher Education: College Lifestyle 101
   
   
4. References and Additional Resources
   

1. Welcome and Icebreaker (make a goal)
   1. Discussion about Icebreaker
      
   2. Questions in a bowl/box
   
   
2. Presentation on college preparation
   1. Introduction of SMART goals worksheet (student begin to fill out)
      
   2. Work in groups on worksheet.
      
   3. Wrap up and transition to financial aid session
   
   
3. Financial aid presentation
   1. Short Quiz introduction (Human Barometer)
   2. How well do students know financial aid
      
   3. Loans
      
   4. Scholarships
      
   5. Free money activity
   
   
4. Debrief and Closing.
   
   (Note: Each agenda part is described in detail below)

Time: (2 minutes)

Procedure:
• Introduce yourself
  
• Make a goal icebreaker and discussion (optional - see WISE Workshop I - Part I)
• Distribute slips of paper for questions
• Instruct participants to not place many questions on the paper since we have time constraints
• Collect questions in a bowl to be answered in D below.

Lesson Plan overview:
Students will learn and understand the procedures for college preparation by using SMART goals.

Learning objectives:
1. Students will learn and understand SMART goals through a small presentation and hands on activity.
   
2. Students will learn about application processes, costs, personal statements, resumes, interviews and other areas that undergo application submissions.
   
3. Students will get information pertaining to application fee waivers, programs that offer waivers and ways in which applications can be reduced for those in need.
   
4. Different types of schools and programs that are available and affordable (CUNY and/or SUNY schools).

Vocabulary:
• Fee waiver
  
• FASFA
  
• Personal statement
  
• EOP, HEOP, SEEK

Materials needed:
• Handouts
  
• PowerPoint
  
• Pens/pencils
  
Procedure:
1. Introduction to WISE and what overall presentation will be about: ( 5-8 minutes)
   
2. SMART Goals: Students will receive a presentation on what SMART goals are and how they can be used. (10 minutes)
   
   
   1. What are SMART goals?
      • Explain the smart goal acronyms
        • S-Specific
          
        • M-Measurable
          
        • A-Ambitious
          
        • R-Realistic
          
        • T-Time sensitive
      
      
   2. Explain how SMART Goals can be used.
      
      
      • Specific: have you written down/or expressed your goal as specific as possible?
        
        A specific goal has a much greater chance of being accomplished than a general goal. To set a specific goal you must answer the six "W" questions:
        • Who: Who is involved?
          
        • What: What do I want to accomplish?
          
        • Where: Identify a location.
          
        • When: Establish a time frame.
          
        • Which: Identify requirements and constraints.
        • Why: Specific reasons, purpose or benefits of accomplishing the goal.
        
        
      • Measurable: is this something that is measurable and comfortable for you?
        
        Establish concrete criteria for measuring progress toward the attainment of each goal you set. When you measure your progress, you stay on track, reach your target dates, and experience the exhilaration of achievement that spurs you on to continued effort required to reach your goal.
        
        To determine if your goal is measurable, ask questions such as......How much? How many? How will I know when it is accomplished?
        
        
      • Attainable: can your goal be achieved and a specific amount of time required?
        
        When you identify goals that are most important to you, you begin to figure out ways you can make them come true. You develop the attitudes, abilities, skills, and financial capacity to reach them. You begin seeing previously overlooked opportunities to bring yourself closer to the achievement of your goals.
        
        You can attain most any goal you set when you plan your steps wisely and establish a time frame that allows you to carry out those steps. Goals that may have seemed far away and out of reach eventually move closer and become attainable, not because your goals shrink, but because you grow and expand to match them. When you list your goals you build your self-image. You see yourself as worthy of these goals, and develop the traits and personality that allow you to possess them.
        
        
      • Realistic: can this goal be done in a realistic time and manner?
        
        To be realistic, a goal must represent an objective toward which you are both willing and able to work. A goal can be both high and realistic; you are the only one who can decide just how high your goal should be. But be sure that every goal represents substantial progress. A high goal is frequently easier to reach than a low one because a low goal exerts low motivational force. Some of the hardest jobs you ever accomplished actually seem easy simply because they were a labor of love.
        
        Your goal is probably realistic if you truly believe that it can be accomplished. Additional ways to know if your goal is realistic is to determine if you have accomplished anything similar in the past or ask yourself what conditions would have to exist to accomplish this goal.
        
        
      • Timely: how long will this take to accomplish? Is it being done in a timely manner?
        
        A goal should be grounded within a time frame. With no time frame tied to it there's no sense of urgency. If you want to lose 10 lbs, when do you want to lose it by? "Someday" won't work. But if you anchor it within a timeframe, "by May 1st", then you've set your unconscious mind into motion to begin working on the goal
   
   
3. Brainstorm: How can we use SMART Goals to prepare for college? Students will create visual goals to outline their post High School paths.
   
   
   1. Activity: Handout SMART goals worksheet (5 minutes)
      
   2. Allow students 10 minutes to begin to brainstorm what their Smart goals are for college preparation.
      
   3. Give a brief outline of resources available to prepare for college (resources below). (10 minutes)
   
   
4. How can I use my SMART goals to prepare me for college?
   
   
   1. Start thinking about whether you want to continue your education or not.
      
   2. Gather information on
      • Who will help you get to where you would like to be?
        
      • What do you want to accomplish after HS?
        
      • Where would you like to see yourself? In College? Work field?
        
      • When would you like to do this? Directly after HS or a few months later?
        
      • Which road might be better for you? What is the process?
        
      • Why would do you want to take this path?
      
      
   3. Students will use the indicated general questions to begin to think about when thinking about post High School careers. A layout of how such questions can useful will be emphasized.
      
      
      • Who do you need to help you will college applications?
        Counselors
        Relatives
        Peers
        Parents
      • What do you need to complete you application process?
        Cover letter (what is a cover letter?
        Resume (how can your resume help you?)
        Personal statement ( why is this important for college applications)
        Scholarships ( explore the different types of scholarships and ways students can find them)
        Costs
      • What types of colleges are you thinking about attending?
        CUNY (2 year colleges)
        SUNY (4year colleges)
        Private or state
      • What are the deadlines to send in applications?
        Explore deadlines and how you will be able to reach them. What goals have student set to ensure that their deadlines will be met?
      • What financial supports are bests for you?
        FASFA (what are the different types of FASFA awards?)
        Financial Programs (how can students benefit from these programs?)
        Fee waivers (explain what fee waivers are and how they can help students?)
      
      
   4. Take a trip to visit the school of your dreams before making a final decision if possible. (look into programs, awards and schools that welcome incoming students for financial assistance when visiting)
      
   
   
5. Activity wrap up/teach back:
   Things to consider:
   • Follow ups.
     
   • Group discussion.
   • Engaging wrap up activities (questions in a bag; usage of objects to have students teach back, etc.)
   • Ask students to teach back what they have learned and how they will be using their SMART goals to help manage their post high school success.
   
   
6. Use own SMART goal tracker to explain what facilitator has accomplished for transition into financial aid session.

30 minutes

To have participants understand and retain information regarding financial aid to assist them in paying for higher education.

• Explore different methods of paying for higher education
  
• Identify the differences and types of financial aid
  
• Explore the impact of higher education goals and lifestyles in regards to financial aid

• Xerox (resource sheets)
  
• Slips of paper
• Pens
  
• Markers or chalk
  
• Paper and easel or chalk board

1. Check-in / Ice breaker (7 minutes)
   • Conduct a short T or F quiz to test their common knowledge of financial aid. This can be done via a handout or as an interactive activity.
     • T or F quiz: Test Your Financial Aid Knowledge - see attachment.
       
     • Interactive Activity: The Human Barometer - see attachment.
       • Place 3 signs along the classroom, AGREE, NOT SURE, DISAGREE.
       • Read a statement and ask students to go next to the sign they identify with.
       • Then ask them to tell you why they are standing there.
       • Students with correct answers can receive a reward, i.e. candy.
   • Note: The purpose of this icebreaker is to introduce and connect the students with financial aid definitions and obstacles while opening their minds to explore new thoughts and ideas on how to overcome these obstacles.
   
   
2. FAFSA, etc. (12 minutes)
   • What is financial aid?
     • College costs can be high, so federal student aid is financial assistance for students who need help paying for college. Federal Student Aid, an office of the U.S. Department of Education, provides federal student aid, which includes grants, loans, and work-study. Federal student aid can be used to cover the costs of your college's tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, and transportation. This aid can also be used to help pay for a computer and dependent child care expenses.
   • Different types of Aid (Review Resources)
     • Scholarships
       
     • Loans
       
     • FAFSA
       
3. Who qualifies for financial aid? (7 Minutes)
   • Free Money Activity - see attachment:
     • The purpose of this activity is to provide students with the insight that they can all attain money for scholarships.
     • Read 10 characteristics/qualifications for a scholarship and ask them stand if they identify with the statement.

• Q&A Session - read fish bowl questions - if previously covered question, have audience answer
  
• Handout Resources
  
• Thank you for participating

Answer the following questions by indicating if they are true or false.


1. "Cost of attendance" is the amount of funding needed for a student's education including room and board, transportation and books, as defined by the institution the student is attending.
   
2. A Federal Perkins Loan provides low-interest loans to help needy students finance the costs of post secondary institutions.
   
3. If you no longer live with your parents, and are NOT claimed on their taxes, you qualify for financial aid as an independent student.
   
4. Federal student aid financial aid covers the expense of food in all post secondary institutions.
   
5. It is possible to gain a scholarship from an employer.
   
6. You are NOT eligible for financial aid if you are NOT a United States Citizen.
   
7. If you have children who receive more than half of their support you may be considered as an independent student.
   
8. You must meet all seven conditions of the Office of Scholarships & Financial Aid to be considered as an independent student (OSFA).
   
9. After graduation, students have a certain time period before they are required to pay back Pell Grants.
   
10. A Direct Stafford Loan is available directly from the U.S. government.

Students will silently stand next to the sign that best answers each question.


1. "Cost of attendance" is the amount of funding needed for a student's education including room and board, transportation and books, as defined by the institution the student is attending. (true)
   
   
2. A Federal Perkins Loan provides low-interest loans to help needy students finance the costs of post secondary institutions. (true)
   
   
3. If you no longer live with your parents, and are NOT claimed on their taxes, you qualify for financial aid as an independent student.
   (false) - See OSFA Advisor handout
   
   
4. Federal student aid financial aid covers the expense of food in all post secondary institutions.
   (false) - Federal student aid covers tuition, books and supplies transportation and room and board. It covers food when it is applicable ie: part of room and board.
   
   
5. It is possible to gain a scholarship from an employer. (true)
   
   
6. Who are NOT eligible for financial aid if you are a not a Unites States Citizen.
   (false) - You are eligible for financial aid if you are a U.S. permanent resident who has an I-151,1-551 OR I-551C permanent resident card.
   
   
7. If you have children who receive more than half of their support from you may be considered as an independent student. (true)
   
   
8. You must meet all seven conditions of the Office of Scholarships & Financial Aid to be considered as an independent student (OSFA).
   (false) - To be considered an independent student, you must meet at least ONE of the seven conditions set out by OSFA.
   
   
9. After graduation, students have a certain time period before they are required to pay back Pell Grants.
   (false) - Pell grants do not have to be paid back.
   
   
10. A Direct Stafford Loan is available directly from the U.S. government. (true)

Students are to stand if they identify with the statement.

Please stand up if:


1. You lost a family member on 9/11
   
2. You have parents in the military
   
3. You have done voluntary community service
   
4. You are the first person in your family to go to college
   
5. Your write poetry, short stories are engage in creative arts
   
6. You are considered a minority (NON-WHITE black, Hispanic, Asian, East Indian)
   
7. You come from a low income household
   
8. You are a non-citizen of the United States
   
9. You are 22 years old or older
   
10. You want to major in math, science, engineering, technology or foreign language
    
11. You are a young woman
    
12. You are a minority male.

Time: 90 minutes

Goal: Give students information to help them survive on campus

Objectives:
• Help students identify campus resources through lecture, discussion and handouts.
  
• Prepare students for academic life at college.
  
• Show students different ways to be involved on campus socially

Materials:
• Gift bags - containing candy, pens,
  
• Flip Chart
  
• Markers
  
• Pizza
  
• College Life Handouts - examples named are the ones used in the original presentation. You should substitute similar and current brochures availabe from your local colleges.

Workshop:
1. Icebreaker - 5 minutes
   • Alphabet college game.
     • Clap hands and go around circle naming universities in alphabetical order. Hint: college basketball.
     • Say your name and name a college or university that you know about and/or are interested in.
     
     -or-
     
     
   • Popular images of college activity:
     • Ask students to give their impressions of college life - popular images in the media (School Daze, Different World, Higher Learning, etc) - what does a "day in college look like?
     • What are their expectations.
     • Write their ideas on flip chart and dispel/answer questions from there.
   
   
2. Introduce facilitators and our college experiences
   
   
3. Presenter introduces students to college administrative offices.
   • Specifically, Financial Aid office/Bursar, Residence Life (housing and meal plans), Registrars Office, Admissions.
   • Review and distribute sample organizational chart.
   • Student unions: hangout spot, store, bookstore, dining hall.
   • Emphasize importance of attending campus orientation to become familiar with your specific university.
   • Become an RA to save on room and board.
   • Handouts:
     • Exploring Your Student's Housing Options
       
     • Organizational Chart
   
   
4. Presenter covers the following academic aspects of college and campus safety.
   • Briefly go over handout and discuss how college and high school differ.
   • Emphasize that college is student-centered.
   • Show students a bulletin, which should be available at all schools to let students take charge of their academic progress.
   • Discuss the process of choosing a major.
     
   • Campus Safety: Balancing Personal Responsibility and Newfound Freedom
     Sex, Drugs, Alcohol & Crime
   • Materials/Handouts:
     • "Understanding the Difference Between High School and College" trifold.
       
     • "1997-1998 Miami University" Bulletin"
       
     • "Choosing a Major" Handout: UW Green Bay example
       
     • "College Planning Calendar"
       
     • "College Prep Guide"
       
     • "Budgeting for the College Student"
       
     • "118 Ways to Save Money in College"
   
   
5. Presenter covers various clubs and organizations on campus with activities

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