November 2022
​San Diego & Imperial Counties Cal-SOAP (California Student Opportunity and Access Program) offers free services to help students pursue a postsecondary education, especially students who are low-income or will be first in their families to pursue a college degree. Through advisement and academic services, Cal-SOAP helps students and families understand the college-going process and how to do everything from applying to college to filling out the FAFSA or CA Dream Act to searching for the perfect career fit. Connect with us!
San Diego County: www.calsoapsandiego.org,
FB and Twitter @SanDiegoCalSOAP
​Instagram @calsoapsandiego. 
Imperial Valley: FB and IG @ivcalsoap. https://www.icoe.org/news/find-your-path

Top Stories

Senior Focus: FAFSA, California Dream Act, WebGrants

Every high school senior and their parent(s) should complete either the FAFSA or CADAA. Not finished and need one-on-one help? Make an appointment in the Cal-SOAP Virtual classroom. Want help via text? Personal FAFSA assistance chatbot available: FAFSA help by text. After you have completed your FAFSA or CADAA, you must create your WebGrants 4 Students account! This is where you will be able to accept and view your Cal Grant award or Middle Class Scholarship. On this website you must confirm your GPA has been verified and if it is not, contact your school counselor. Once you have made your final decision on which college you will be attending, you need to input your college into the "school of attendance" section. This will ensure that your award (grants, etc.) goes to the correct college. Do not submit until you have made your official decision about which college you will be attending. This account is very important and if you do not create one, you can miss out on money for college! Here is a video tutorial that will help you set up your WebGrants 4 Students Account.

Scholarships

Community College Applications & Promise Scholarship:
Planning to attend a community college starting Fall 2022? Applications open now. Mesa/City/Miramar. Southwestern College. Grossmont College. Cuyamaca College. Imperial Valley College. The San Diego Promise covers the cost of tuition for up two years at San Diego City, Mesa, and Miramar colleges, and provides textbook grants of $400 per year to students who also qualify for a fee waiver (the California College Promise Grant, formerly known as the Board of Governors Fee Waiver). Apply to the San Diego Promise here. Download the San Diego Promise checklist. Learn more about the San Diego Promise at these upcoming sessions

University of California Admissions Updates 

UC San Diego update: Read this article about how UCSD is focusing on admitting more California residents.
Statewide Update: effective beginning with the fall 2023 admissions cycle (applicants filing in fall 2022), the University of California has changed the application filing period. The new filing period will be October 1 – November 30.  Note: the deadline will not change. UC recognizes the month of November can be stressful for students, who are possibly navigating the submission of multiple college applications, preparing for end-of-term finals, and the onset of the holiday season. 
Allowing students to submit their application as early as October 1 could ease some of the pressure students normally feel at the end of the year, as well as those worsened by the pandemic.​

FSA ID

Watch this webinar to learn how to get an FSA ID so you are ready to fill out the FAFSA in October of senior year. Students who do not have a social security number: you will fill out the CADAA instead of the FAFSA and will not need an FSA ID. CADAA help is available at Immigrants Rising.
Photo used under Creative Commons from focusonmore.com