In This Issue:

Career Center helps students of all classifications
It’s time to file the FAFSA
Resources for student success

Happy New Year, and welcome to this edition of Slice of Life, the online newsletter for parents of Ole Miss students. We’re back, they’re back and it’s cold here! We have gotten off to a good start and are all back in the swing of things—I hope the same can be said for your students. In this issue, as always, we try to present topics of interest to you that may also be helpful for your students. Remember, we want them to be successful just like you do. So, in this issue:

Information about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is included, written by none other than our director of financial aid, Laura Diven-Brown. You may have heard before that the FAFSA is for ANYONE wishing to receive many different types of aid, but you didn’t think you would qualify. Well, guess what? You might qualify, and, now that filing is electronic, maybe this is the year to check it out!

Career Day is just around the corner (this week—literally!), and you should know that it is an extremely valuable opportunity for any student, whether freshmen or senior. Come to think of it, the Career Center, in general, is a wonderful, helpful resource for all of our students.  Our contributing writer, Jonathan Harrington of the Career Center, details how your students can benefit by simply walking in the door. I hope you encourage your students to attend the Career Fair and stop by the Career Center in Martindale.

Finally, many of you may not be aware that our Academic Support Center (in Martindale, who knew!) does a lot more to support students than just academic advising. Jackie Certion, an academic counselor at the center (and beloved former orientation employee) offers some information about those support services that just may help your students in ways you’ve never expected.

If you are a parent, you know that there is nothing like the joy of trying to suggest anything to a college student. They’re so willing to listen, appreciate your interest and advice so much, and always do what we suggest, don’t they? Now I know you recognize my sarcasm, but it is true that students often make the mistake of trying to do everything themselves. The more we, as university staff, and you, as concerned family members, can encourage them to break out of that type of thinking and actually seek out some help, the more successful they will become—and that’s what it’s about, right?

So, enjoy, remember to send us your feedback, and happy reading.

Whitman Smith
Director of Orientation and Parent Programs

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Career Center helps students of all classifications

By Jonathan Harrington
Assistant Director of Employer Services
Career Center

Dear Parents:

We would like to introduce the Career Center to you and encourage your student to visit us in Martindale 303. In general, students and parents view the Career Center as assisting seniors in finding employment. While helping students who are searching for a job is an important role of our office, we do many more things for students of all classifications, especially freshmen.

Students may be questioning whether or not they have chosen the right major, or they may not have chosen a major at all. We have full-time counselors who meet with students regularly to assist them in exploring different majors and career opportunities. We also sponsor and facilitate hundreds of workshops and events throughout the year to educate students on the wide array of options that exist for them. One event that may assist your student is our All Majors Career Fair. The Career Fair will be held on January 31, 2008 in the Turner Center Gymnasium from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. All students and alumni are invited to attend.

The Career Center hosts a Career Fair every fall and spring that attracts employers from all fields. This allows students to preview the job market and talk with representatives about full-time and part-time employment, as well as co-op and internship opportunities. Freshmen are encouraged to attend because the fair gives them a jump on acquiring information from prospective employers and allows them to explore various career opportunities and occupations. This can be valuable to a student who is undecided about his or her major. 

At the most recent fair in September of 2007, 90 employers and 16 professional school representatives were present to talk with students and take their résumés. Employers from Abercrombie and Fitch to Youth Villages and various federal agencies prospected for candidates. We are anticipating an even larger turnout this semester. Currently, we have more than 90 organizations registered to participate. To view those that are registered, please visit the Career Center’s Web page at www.career.olemiss.edu and click on the link titled Employer Registration for Spring 2008. In addition to this event, we will have specialty fairs for those students interested in risk management and insurance, engineering, education and internships. Each of these events will be linked to our Web page so that students can view the participants ahead of time.

Again, we are here to assist your student. For more information about the Career Center and the different programs we offer, go to www.career.olemiss.edu/. We meet with students daily, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday on the third floor of Martindale (Student Services Center). If your student would like to meet with one of our counselors, please advise him or her to schedule an appointment by calling 662-915-7174. Thank you for your support and for trusting us with your students. We look forward to assisting them throughout their college career.

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It’s time to file the FAFSA

By Laura Diven-Brown
Director
Office of Financial Aid

Parents,

W-2s are coming out for 2008, so it’s time to file! Taxes, sure, but also the 2008-09 FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), which is based on 2007 financial and household information. The form is now available on the Web at www.fafsa.ed.gov. 

At Ole Miss, we encourage all students to complete a FAFSA. No family’s income, assets or situation, no matter how great or small, should prevent the filing of this “gateway” to all types of financial aid. The priority date for filing is February 15. Meeting this deadline will help to ensure that students are considered for all possible assistance, including those programs that have limited funding. And remember: submitting a FAFSA must be done EVERY year before awards can be made—even for those students who have received financial support in the past.  

We recommend completing the FAFSA online, if at all possible, to avoid many of the pitfalls inherent in filing the paper version. The online form is processed more quickly, which is important. But another benefit is that the Web version has built-in checks that don’t exist on the paper application.  Making careless errors or forgetting to answer a question on the paper application can lead to delays that may result in missing deadlines. The online form won’t let you do that.

While the FAFSA takes time to complete, the questions are not as difficult as some people believe. Many are straightforward, such as asking for your name, address and Social Security number. Families should complete their tax returns as early as possible, and, ideally, before filling out the FAFSA. However, if you are not able to get your taxes done first, you can use estimates. It’s far better to do a very good job estimating and apply on time than to wait and apply late. A copy of last year’s tax return can help.

Although you may not know precisely what line 36 of your tax return will be, at least you can see what it was the year before. If you know, generally, how your earnings have changed, you can project amounts and avoid gross errors. Of course, once you complete your taxes, you will need to update the FAFSA information with the real numbers.

Don’t forget to apply for a PIN so that the FAFSA can be signed electronically, and you won’t have to mail in a signature page to the government processor. Students AND their parents need a PIN. You can apply at www.pin.ed.gov.

We’re here to help if any of you have questions. Just call our toll-free number at 800-891-4596, or e-mail finaid@olemiss.edu. Our home page contains a wealth of information as well: http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/financial_aid. Of course, your student can always drop by our office in 257 Martindale. We’re always happy to assist!

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Resources for student success

By Jackie Certion
Academic Adviser
Academic Support Center

If your student did not have such a stellar first semester, many resources are available to help him or her get on the right track. In addition, parents can do a lot to help their students survive the sometimes turbulent waters of college life. 

The Academic Support Center (ASC) strives to offer professional, quality advising to The University of Mississippi community through efficient service, communication of university policies, and open collaboration with university departments and support services to help facilitate the educational experience.

The university has resources in place to help students get on solid academic footing. The ASC offers a special 3-hour course offered only to freshmen on academic probation called Academic Skills for College (EDLD 101). The course covers the development of academic skills, which include managing time, taking notes, learning how to read textbooks, preparing for and taking examinations, and becoming oriented to university life.

Another service from the ASC is the Freshmen Absence Intervention (FABI) program. FABI uses faculty reports of freshmen absences to track those students with multiple absences. The FABI coordinator then contacts the student based on how many absences he/she has in each course. With a little bit of intervention, students who are floundering with attendance can get back on track quickly.

The University Writing Center, while not a remedial or proofreading service, can help students successfully complete writing assignments. For many freshmen, writing skills need to be stepped up a notch from high school, and the advisers at the Writing Center can be a big help. The Writing Center is located in the J.D. Williams Library and is open to any student.

Parents can help by continuing to convey confidence in their student's ability to be successful. We understand that a student’s level of intelligence is not always reflected in his or her grades. College is not just more demanding than high school, but it also requires that students skillfully set priorities. Successful time management is essential.  

Attending classes, studying, working a part-time job, participating in extracurricular activities and finding time for friends, family and self can be difficult to balance.

Just because your student was a little slow getting out of the racing block does not mean he or she cannot successfully complete the race. Earning a college degree takes perseverance. Please encourage your student to take advantage of available resources, starting with the Academic Support Center, located in Room 350 of the Martindale Student Services Building.

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