I Have a Plan Iowa
I Have a Plan Iowa allows students to:
- Create meaningful course plans to achieve college and career goals
- Complete assessments to better understand their interests, skills and values and match them to potential careers
- Prepare for the ACT or SAT
- Explore education and training programs required for their chosen career path
- Search for colleges or universities that meet their needs
- Research financial aid options and search for scholarships
The RAI Core Course Lists provide each Iowa high school with a list of their respective courses that are accepted for the Regent Admission Index (RAI). Completion of core courses is one of the four factors considered in the admission of freshmen to the Iowa Regent universities. These lists are based on the previous Winter course data submitted by school districts to the Iowa Department of Education, and updated each August.
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College Planning Checklists
These checklists from the Office of Federal Student Aid will help you get ready for college throughout high school. Each list also contains a list for parents, too.
9th Grade
10th Grade
11th Grade
12th Grade
9th Grade
10th Grade
11th Grade
12th Grade
Tips for Choosing a College
- Use the I Have a Plan website to narrow down options based on a variety of factors.
- In order to find out about colleges that meet your needs, after logging in to the site, select "College Planning" at the top. Then scroll down to choose "School Finder". "School Finder" has categories on the left side of the page. Select the categories you are interested in and change the settings according to those interests. After you have made all of the selections you want, select "See your matching school." You may find that there are no schools that match your interests, so you may have to change your requirements or use less requirements.
- Look at school websites and admissions profiles online.
- Most schools have a lot of information you would get from admission pamphlets online. You can also request that materials about the school be sent to you.
- Search the web for information about colleges. Here are some website to check out:
- US News and World Report: US News and World Report researches information about college and updates their site regularly. Click on the link to find out the top colleges in a variety of categories including: Best Values Schools, Regional Colleges/Universities, Up-and-Coming Schools, and many more.
- Big Future - College Board: College Board has a college finder similar to the I Have A Plan site. Their database is much more complete and you can rank your requirements on a scale of "Don't Care," "Want," and "Must Have."
- Princeton Review: Similar to US News and World Report, this site offers rankings and lists of college in a variety of categories.
- Kiplinger's Best College Values: This site offers information on what colleges will give you the biggest bang for your buck. They have several categories, but you have to search around the site more to get the information you want.
- Talk to friends, family members, or other college graduates about their experiences at colleges you are interested.
- Visit campuses, ask questions.
- The best way to find out about a college is to visit. Then you can feel the atmosphere, see what the campus is like, and possible talk to other students. If you want to see something in particular or talk to people on campus, ASK!!! Admissions departments want you to get the best experience possible while visiting, because they want you to choose their college.
- Follow your gut! Only you know what school will be right for you. There is no magical formula or right answer to the question "What college is right for me?" You might choose a college that you decide is not right for you; you can change your mind.
- If you are choosing an online school, go to http://www.accreditedonlinecolleges.org/Iowa/ to check out which online colleges in Iowa are accredited.