USCA's Junior Preview Day Gives Students Taste of College Life

Story Courtesy of Aiken Standard

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AIKEN, SC (03/28/2018) Melissa Trejo, a junior at Ridge Spring-Monetta High School, hasn't decided yet where she wants to go to college next year, but USC Aiken is on her top-three list.

Trejo and more than 1,000 other 11th graders from all seven of Aiken County Public Schools' high schools toured USCA's campus Tuesday and learned about programs and student organizations the university offers during the second Junior Preview Day.

Trejo, who plans to major in nursing, said she's visited USCA a couple of times before, but this trip gave her and her classmates an up-close look at the library, the Student Activities Center, classrooms and a suite in the freshman residence hall.

"My favorite part was exploring the campus," she said.

Linda Andraca, another junior from Ridge Spring-Monetta High, has USCA on her list of top choices, too.

"I didn't know there was so much here," she said after the tour.

Her favorite part of campus? "The cafeteria," Andraca said.

Why? "The food, of course," she said and laughed.

Monica Smith and Jennifer Randall, counselors at Ridge Spring-Monetta and both USCA alumna, brought 44 students, almost the entire junior class, from their school.

"It gives 11th graders a chance to really experience what college life is like," Smith said. "They have a lot of opportunities here. It's a small school, and it's right in their backyard for most of our students."

"I think a lot of our students think you have to go way far away to go to a four-year college, and they don't realize how close USC Aiken really is," Randall said. "From Ridge Spring, it's only 20 minutes away from home."

Smith said her students also "get to have a lot of fun with all the other 11th graders in Aiken County."

After touring the main campus, the students crossed the pedestrian bridge and gathered in the field by the Convocation Center to line dance; play on inflatables; have lunch; and take selfies with Ace, the USCA mascot.

"They're having a blast," Smith said.

Andrew Hendrix, director of Admissions at USCA, said Junior Preview Day helps 11th graders start thinking about college and life after high school graduation.

"It's great way for us to introduce the school district's juniors to the college search process, the college visit process and kicking off the college application process," he said. "It's an opportunity for us to show them USC Aiken and the great things happening here but more importantly, more broadly than that, to talk about the importance of finding what's right for them.

"We want to share with them what we have to offer and help them explore other schools. As I told the students during the opening session, we think we stand up pretty well to the competition. We like for them to compare us to other schools."

And until midnight Wednesday, USCA gave the juniors a special incentive to apply to the university.

"These students have the opportunity to submit an application to USC Aiken for fall of 2019 without paying an application fee for the first 36 hours," Hendrix said. "So between now and midnight Wednesday, it's free for these students to apply as a freshman."

Editor's Note: This story first appeared in the Aiken Standard March 28, 2018.