The Texas OnCourse Educator Blog

Starting in October 2022, the process will be simplified. Students will be able to fill out and submit their application completely electronically, and counselors can easily check completion.   

Some college-bound seniors may be eligible for more financial aid than they were awarded this spring but will need to take steps to correct their information. Your students deserve to receive the full reward amount they’re eligible for. We know they’re going through the financial aid process for the first time and aren’t likely to know how to navigate this challenge.  Don’t worry though, we’ve got the right information to share with your students and their families before school’s out for the summer.

Admissions tests have long been an essential part of the college application process. The admissions test process includes test prep, taking the actual test (sometimes multiple times), interpreting scores, and finally, submitting it to the institution of interest. In the era of COVID-19, testing cancelations and barriers to entry called for change. Since the onset of the pandemic in 2020, thousands of colleges and universities nationwide have become “test-optional,” affirming that they will not penalize students for the absence of a standardized test score. Some of those schools are in Texas. Some will remain test-optional even once the pandemic passes.

Earning a four-year degree is not the only postsecondary path to starting a successful career. In this January 2021 webinar, we covered alternative options available to students. Topics included Texas certification programs, community college programs, technical school offerings, and innovative concepts like coding bootcamps that offer skills in high-need areas.

As educators, we spend much of our careers ensuring that our students are ready. In Texas, they should either be college ready, career ready, and/or military ready by the time they graduate from high school. Let’s talk about efficient options for students who want to go to college but may not yet have demonstrated their readiness for college-level coursework.  

COVID-19 has been an education game-changer.

COVID-19 has rocked our world as educators. Schools have closed, in-person classes and activities have pivoted to virtual or hybrid, and as we struggle to keep up, we worry about our students falling behind. We are committed to serving the dynamic needs of Texas educators, particularly as it relates to college and career readiness. We provide consistently updated information on COVID-19 resources for Texas educators. We recognize that your students are becoming more independent and tech-savvy during the pandemic and are managing their time and education from home in many cases. Keeping them on track for postsecondary success is a top priority.

Earlier this week, we hosted a webinar in partnership with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board on the TSIA2. We know this is a topic that y’all have a lot of questions about. Nearly 1,000 people registered for the webinar and 500 joined live! We’ll quickly summarize some key differences with the new assessment here. 

Many of your students are likely considering college as part of their postsecondary trajectory. There are a lot of different ways for your students to attend college. They could be interested in any combination of two-year, four-year, public, private, nonprofit, or for-profit institutions in either a residential or commuting experience. This article will walk you through the basics of college planning so that you’re prepared to support any student on any college pathway. We include links to additional articles, webinars, videos, and other resources. And don’t forget to refer to the ultimate source for all postsecondary planning information for professionals: the Texas OnCourse Academy.

With National Scholarship Month just around the corner, we’ve started getting some questions about how COVID-19 will impact scholarships.

Students with disabilities may face more obstacles than their peers during the college application process. The College Board offers test accommodations to help students with disabilities obtain the same opportunities for higher education as other students.