College insights shared at EPPs, Discovery Days

 High school students recognize the familiar moniker of a college fair.

 More than likely, however, few know that an Educational Planning Program is the same event, just a different name.

 Throughout September and October, high schools or community buildings across Nebraska are sites for college fairs.

 The Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture at Curtis is among the dozens of universities, trade schools, colleges or post-secondary training programs recruiting prospective students to their school.

“We will have recruiters at 40 of these EPP events this fall,” said Jennifer McConville, associate dean at the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture.

“The college fairs or EPP’s are tremendous opportunities for us to showcase the academic programs at NCTA.”

Additional outreach events include Husker Harvest Days in Grand Island this Tuesday through Thursday, and recently at the Nebraska State Fair.

“Since NCTA is an agricultural college, along with veterinary technology and animal health, these outdoor venues are popular too,” Rittenhouse said.

NCTA is part of the University of Nebraska system and is a featured partner at the Big Red Building and nearby tent at Husker Harvest Days.

College Fairs

Regional EPP’s are provided at host sites with multiple schools invited to each venue. This week, NCTA is attending two-a-day EPP’s at Mullen and Alliance on Monday, Scottsbluff and Chadron on Tuesday, and at Sidney and Ogallala on Wednesday. On Sept. 19-22, NCTA will be at Ord, Broken Bow, Ainsworth, O’Neill, South Sioux City, Bloomfield and Norfolk.

Hastings, Kearney, Holdrege, McCook, North Platte, Lexington, and Grand Island are Sept. 26-29. In October, due to the large attendance centers, seven EPP’s are at Lincoln high schools Oct. 3-6, and then at nine Omaha high schools on Oct. 24-28.

Planning resources

High school students and their families can begin college entrance preparations through a variety of events and resources. Nebraska has a unique opportunity through EducationQuest Foundation’s Apply2College activities. Resources for college prep can begin in middle school and includes advice on financial aid. See https://www.educationquest.org/

Financial aid, enrollment and scholarships center around the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The FAFSA window for 2023-24 opens Oct.1. All college-bound families should prepare for the FAFSA.

Also, unique to Nebraska residents, is Nebraska Promise, a University of Nebraska financial aid program that provides full tuition coverage for in-state students with family incomes of $65,000 or less.

NCTA Discovery Days

Prospective college students are invited to the NCTA campus for one of four open houses called NCTA Discovery Days.  The free programs include campus tours, a financial aid presentation by EducationQuest, conversations with student ambassadors and recruiters, and interactive sessions in some of the academic classes.

NCTA Discovery Days will be Oct. 4 and Nov. 14, 2022, and March 6 and April 11, 2023. To register, see https://ncta.unl.edu/discovery-days .

Part of the University of Nebraska system, the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture is a two-year institution with a statewide mission of preparing students for successful careers in agriculture, veterinary technology and related industries. NCTA is known for its affordable tuition, high job-placement rate for its graduates, and for the success of student teams in competitive activities including crops judging, ranch horse events, livestock judging, shotgun sports, stock dog trials, and intercollegiate rodeo. The college is consistently ranked as one of the best two-year schools in the nation.