Classmates Scattering Here, There for College

Thousands of North County high school seniors will take part in graduation ceremonies in coming weeks. For some, the occasion will mark the close of their formal schooling. For most though, it will mark the opening of their college education.

“It’s an exciting time in their lives,” said Jeralyn Johns, career counselor at Poway High School, “but the college admissions process does create a great deal of anxiety. There’s so much to be done, and there’s a lot of pressure put on the students.

“They have to fill out applications, take achievement tests and make decisions regarding their future while they’re still taking difficult classes here in high school.”

Poway High will hold its graduation exercises on June 20, but most of the college-bound students there and at high schools throughout North County have already thought far ahead of that date.

A majority of North County’s graduating seniors--from an estimated 60% at Escondido High School to 96% at Torrey Pines High--go on to either a two-year or four-year college. Others choose to attend technical schools, join the military or go directly into the work force.

Many students who enroll at a two-year college do so with the intention of transferring later to a four-year school; some students enroll at a university but take classes at a junior college.

Poway High, which holds workshops for its students on how to best select a school and apply for admission, sends about 70% of its graduates on to college--40% to four-year colleges and universities, 30% to junior colleges.

The ratios at some other North County high schools:

Escondido High School, 15% to four-year colleges; 45% to two-year colleges;

El Camino High in Oceanside, 25% to four-year; 60% to two-year;

Rancho Buena Vista in Vista, 30% to four-year; 45% to two-year;

Vista High School, 20% to four-year; 60% to two-year;

San Dieguito in Encinitas, 50% to four-year, 40% to two year;

Torrey Pines High in Del Mar, 68% to four-year; 28% to two-year.

Percentages aside, the decision to go to college is a very personal one dictated by a variety of factors including aptitude, commitment, finances and opportunity.

Here’s what nine college-bound Poway High students plan to do:

Starting at Palomar

Itchung Cheung will attend San Marcos-based Palomar Community College, where he has a scholarship in biological science.

Although Cheung will study biology at Palomar, he would like to move on to environmental science and transfer to UCSD in two years.

Meanwhile, he will live at home to save money for his education. “I’d like to help educate the public on environmental issues,” said Cheung, who currently serves on the Poway High School committee for recycling.

Commuting to SDSU

Bryan Lubic will live at home and commute to San Diego State University.

Lubic said he waited until January to apply, but was accepted at SDSU, where he may major in philosophy or give thought to law school.

Lubic will be one of the many enrollees of four-year colleges who also attend a community college. “I’ll use concurrent enrollment at Miramar College to help get my general education out of the way, and to get the classes I don’t get at State,” he said, “and I’ll have to work for spending money and for expenses.”

He would like to eventually transfer to UCSD.

Moving to UCSD

Francine Frank plans to major in English, psychology or political science at UCSD, with an eye toward a career in law or psychology. She plans to live on campus at UCSD in the Warren Apartments, where she estimates her expenses will be about $11,300 per year.

Frank is working to line up education funds from a variety of sources. She says she is eligible for $10,000 in aid, but that sum will cover only about the first year of her schooling,

“I’ll have to come up (with) the rest of the money through work-study, grants, private scholarships and loans. I’m applying for about 20 scholarships--I want to use as few loans as possible.”

The proximity of UCSD was a factor in Frank’s choosing the school. “I wanted to be away from home but still close enough to go back home for the basics, you know, food and laundry. Plus, my family’s all in this area.”

Joining sister at Marymount

Lara Herndon will begin her college experience this fall at Marymount College of Palos Verdes, a private junior college.

Herndon, who is a triplet, will join her sister at Marymount while their brother attends Palomar College. She’ll study education with a minor in dance in hopes of becoming a preschool or kindergarten teacher.

Tuition, room and board at Marymount costs about $15,000 a year. Financing her education isn’t an issue for Herndon: her grandmother, who was a school teacher, left money for the family’s education.

As for choosing Marymount, a relatively distant junior college, “I wanted to enjoy a college experience that was like a four-year school and get away from home,” said Herndon. “Plus, it’s near the beach and not too far from home.”

After two years she hopes to transfer to one of the UC campuses, the University of Arizona or the Tisch School of the Arts in New York. “I’ve got time to make up my mind,” she said.

On campus at USD

Michele Nowicki was so certain she wanted to go to the University of San Diego that it was the only place she applied. “It’s close to home and I love the school,” Nowicki said.

Nowicki wasn’t sure if she would be accepted though, and was nearly resigned to either taking time off from school or trying to get in at Hawaii Loa College.

“When I found out I was accepted, I started stressing looking for financing. Getting accepted to a school is one thing, getting financed is another.”

She will live on campus and will pay about $19,000 a year in tuition, room and board and expenses.

Nowicki, who is trying to get a scholarship, will study biology and marine science.

Drawn to USC

Ron Turner will attend the University of Southern California where he was attracted by its architecture program, its relatively short distance from San Diego and his general affinity for Los Angeles.

He’ll live in the dorms and apply for financial aid, work study and student loans.

“If I didn’t get into USC, I would have been off to Arizona State University. I knew I’d be happy either way.”

Turner said studies will come first, but that he would like to try out for football and track during his sophomore year.

Cal Poly fit right

Jill Kevan wants to try out for the soccer team at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, but more practical considerations led her to choose the school.

“I applied at seven schools and basically was praying for all seven,” she said. “All seven accepted me, but Cal Poly was the cheapest one. Plus, it has good programs in the area I want to study, education and liberal arts.”

Kevan will live in the dorms and continue to apply for scholarships. She says she’s gotten about $1,500 worth of scholarships already, which will help offset the costs.

“I like the small-college atmosphere,” she said. “It’s close to the beach and the mountains. It has the best of both worlds.”

Premed at UCLA

Traci Cisneros, who wants to be a doctor, will study biology and premed at the University of California Los Angeles. She will live in a residence hall on campus, will work and try for scholarships to help pay the annual $10,000 that her education will cost.

Cisneros said she used to want to be a teacher, but was influenced by her work as a volunteer in the surgery and recovery ward of the Palomar-Pomerado Hospital.

She hopes to combine her love for science and her desire to help people into a career as a pediatrician.

Bound for Harvard

Eric Witt will be attending what many consider the premier school in this country: Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass.

Witt, the first Poway High student to be accepted at Harvard in more than a decade, plans to study engineering and applied science. He will attempt to win as many scholarships as he can to defray the $24,000 annual cost.

“It’s a really exciting opportunity,” said Witt, who visited the campus for the first time during spring break. “I was a little intimidated when I first got to the campus, thinking about being there next year. But I visited the dorms and there seemed to be just a lot of typical teen-age guys. The rooms looked like mine would if my parents didn’t live with me.”