FAFSA Deadline: February 15th

You have less than two weeks to file your FAFSA! The 15^th is Notre Dame’s priority deadline which means that you will be in the first wave of students to be considered for financial aid. To receive any aid form the state of Maryland your FAFSA must be received by the Maryland Higher Education Commission by March 1, 2014. Click here for more information: http://www.ndm.edu/admissions/financial-aid/how-to-apply/

While file early? Well, why wait? The earlier you file, the earlier you will receive your complete financial aid letter Once you have your complete financial aid letter, you will be able to see what each college you have applied to is going to cost. Until you know, it’s hard to make an informed decision of where to attend. You also want to file early so you don’t miss out on any money. There are a lot of students who seek financial aid from the government and once it’s gone, it’s gone. You want to be first in line! Thirdly, you want to file early for the sake of convenience. No one needs the stress of running around trying to find all the necessary documents and fill out all the forms two days before it’s due.

So take some time this weekend, sit down with your parents or guardians and fill out your FAFSA. Then you can spend some time researching the perfect bedding set for your future dorm room!

If you have any questions, contact your admissions counselor or the Office of Financial Aid at 410-532-5369 or finaid@ndm.edu There is still time to set up a personal appointment and work one-on-one with a financial aid staff member.

Awesome Alums (A shamless brag story)

Of course we love to showcase what our current students are up to (and you can even read for yourself by viewing their personalblogs), but we also can’t help sharing the exciting news of our fearless alums!

Nicole Buckingham Kern ‘03 has some art work on display at the Howard County Arts Council that was described as "the most striking artwork in this show". Multiple artists designed and created dresses made from various materials at the Ordinary Woman Gallery.. Nicole's dress is created from plaster and folded to give it the appearance of movement and life.

To read the full article click here: http://www.baltimoresun.com

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! (to visit college campuses!)

This is a wonderful time to visit college campuses. Although many of the current students are off campus (our students are on break from December 16^th until January 27^th) the admissions office is still open. It is always suggested that once you know what schools have accepted you to visit or spend the night at your favorites before making your decision. However, it can be difficult to schedule those visits in the final months leading up to graduation. Why not visit now while you have no school to worry about? 

What are some benefits to visiting during winter break and early January?

• ·         There are more appointment times available because you’re visiting during a relatively quiet time of the year. 

• ·         After New Years is over, many faculty and staff return to campus to plan for the coming semester which means your admissions counselor can arrange for you to meet with a professor in your major, or a coach.

• ·         Almost all current students are on break so it is easier to schedule an appointment with the Financial Aid office.

• ·         It is a less stressful time for you to visit. You are either on break or just started the new school year so you don’t have any major assignments due yet. Take advantage of this brief calm!

If you are interested in visiting Notre Dame, give us a call (410-532-5330) or go to http://www.ndm.edu/admissions/womens-college/visit/admissions-events/ to register for one of our Winter Open House events, the next one is this Saturday, January 18th!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Merry Christmas from the Women's College Admissions Team!

The University is closed Monday the 23rd- Friday the 27th. Feel free to email us during this time and we will respond during the New Year.

Finish and Follow Up

It is that time of year when we give thanks for all that we have and to look forward to a new year, which for our high school seniors includes graduation and their first year at college. With classes finishing up and winter break so close, we know all you want to do is grab some hot chocolate and sleep all day; but you need to ask yourself two very important questions before you take that well deserved break!

Have you finished all your applications?

Sounds like a silly question but it’s worth asking. Fall is a crazy time and maybe you only had time to get out 4 applications but there were 3 other schools you also wanted to apply for. Now is your chance, most schools are still accepting applications but the longer you wait, the less chance you have to get choice scholarships!

Have you followed up with the schools you have submitted applications to?

Have you talked to your admissions counselor within the past two weeks? If not pick up the phone right now! Although you may feel like you are all done because you hit the submit button on your application you still have to follow up to ensure your application is complete. Your admissions counselor might still be waiting for test scores or waiting for letters of recommendations or transcripts. If you don’t follow up to ensure your application is complete, it may delay your acceptance or keep you from being accepted. It is best to find out what is missing now because it will be very difficult to get in contact with people once winter break is in session and you don’t want to wait till the New Year to get that missing piece in to your counselor. 

And once you have confirmed you are all done you can truly relax and wait for your acceptance letters to arrive.What a nice Christmas present that would be!

Snow day!

Everyone loves a snow day- especially students who are knee deep in their finals. Tuesday the 10th, the weatherman did not disappoint! The snow started at exactly 7am as predicted and 10 minutes later the text went out saying school was delayed until 2pm. By noon, the campus was officially closed. 

While some students took the opportunity to get a little extra studying done, some braved the elements to have a bit of fun!

Christmas Traditions at Notre Dame

Every university has special traditions to mark various events and holidays and women's colleges are especially known for these traditions. Last night was the annual Tree Trim and Christmas Dinner at Notre Dame1, one of the most beloved traditions on our campus.

We started the evening in Doyle Formal where there is a small prayer service to mark the season of advent. This prayer service immediately flowed into the campus Tree Trim where every office, department and student group was allowed to place an ornament on the tree. It is always so much fun to see the new student groups and new members of the community join in this celebration, though without a doubt, A Child’s Place steals the show every year. A Childs place is a preschool for kids 3-5 years old and some of our education students intern or volunteer there. About 8 children came forward with their handmade ornaments and of course received a crowd wide “awww” and a round of applause. 

After all the ornaments are placed and the tree is lit, everyone was dismissed to the dining hall where Christmas dinner was served. This tradition has been around since the very start of the College, when the School Sisters would serve Christmas diner to the young women! The tradition continues with faculty and staff taking on the role of the server. Many of the admissions staff are alumni of the Women’s College who have fond memories of our own Christmas dinners, so it is especially sentimental for us to continue the tradition as servers.  After dinner and desserts have been devoured, it is on to the caroling, the favorite song being the 12 Days of Christmas. Each table is assigned a certain set of numbers and you have to stand up and sing (shout) out your verse.

This is a great tradition and a welcome break during the last week of classes for our students. But if you think this sounds great, wait till you hear about what goes on during finals week! Stay tuned!