CLASS OF

2027

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UPCOMING DATES:

August 11 – 9:30 AM Senior Breakfast
August 16 – 20 – Senior Trip
August 21 – No School for Seniors
August 26 – Cap & Gown Picture Day
August 28 – Sr. Add/Drop Cut Off

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TO DO LIST

Research colleges – Included in Scoir is a fantastic college search tool. There are pictures, videos, average SAT/ACT scores, average GPA, acceptance rate, and more for each school.
Begin your college list with at least three different types of schools:
- LIKELY: schools you are very likely to get into, you already exceed all the requirements.
- LEVEL: your GPA and/or test scores “match” with the college’s
- REACH: schools that are more selective or have higher standards than what you currently offer.
Complete Recommendation Letter Survey in Scoir
Ask at least 2 teachers to write a recommendation letter
Sign up for SAT or ACT (see dates and registration links below) and spend time practicing for the tests!
Begin drafting your main application essay (see details in the Essay section below)
Begin working on your resume/activities list for your applications

SCOIR

Your College Search Starts Here

We will use SCOIR extensively over the next year. As you add colleges to your “My Colleges” tab your counselor can see these and also suggest other schools that might be a good fit.

RESUME

Begin entering all of your extracurricular activities, honors/awards, work experience, and community service into your profile. This will ensure you have all of your information in one place and SCOIR has an export tool that will take all of your information and build your resume.

ESSAYS

Check the essay topics on Apply Texas, Common App, and Coalition App. (The application you choose will depend on the colleges you will be applying to – most Texas schools are on Apply Texas, while Common App and Coalition have schools from across the United States.)

Narrow down your topic and begin writing a first draft. Having your essay already started by August will be a huge time saver for you upon starting senior year and then Mr. Travis can help you edit as needed.

Johns Hopkins published essays they loved from previous applicants – read them here to get inspiration for your own essay!

Many colleges also require supplemental essay questions which are shorter and are designed to give the college greater insight into you, the applicant. See the guide below for more information on writing supplemental essays.

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SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY QUESTION GUIDE

East Texas Communities Foundation: Local scholarships with varying requirements.

Christus Women with Heart Scholarship: Open to all high school seniors (Brook Hill has had two winners in the past 4 years of this scholarship!).

CTCU Scholarship: Must have 2.5 GPA and be a US Citizen.

Texas Bank & Trust Scholarship: Open to students planning to major in Finance, Business, or Entrepreneurship in college.

Peltier Scholarship: Must be a graduating senior whose parent is an educator.

Smith County Texas A&M Club: Must be enrolling at Texas A&M in the Fall 2027.

Austin Bank: Students must have a 2.5 GPA; requires essay and 3 recommendation letters.

East Texas Professional Credit Union McLauchlin Scholarship: Must be a graduating senior pursuing a major in Education. The applicant, or an immediate family member, must have an East Texas Professional Credit Union account in good standing.

John & Rheba Myers Scholarship: Smith County graduate with at least a 3.5 GPA and minimum SAT of 1120.

Champion Energy Scholarship: A BH student won this scholarship in 2025!

Junior League of Tyler: The Beverly Beaird Young Woman Leadership Scholarship is designed for a young woman in her senior year of high school in Smith County who: Demonstrates excellence in and has commitment to voluntarism and improving her community, demonstrates innovation and creative actions that reach out to and motivate others, demonstrates a commitment to continuing her education, demonstrates at least one year’s experience as a volunteer.

East Texas Professional Credit Union Presidential Scholarship: Must be a graduating senior, the application (or immediate family member) must have an East Texas Professional Credit Union account in good standing.

Smith County Area Go Texan:

Stonewater Roofing Scholarship:

STARS –

SELF-REPORTED TRANSCRIPT AND ACADEMIC RECORD SYSTEM

Many colleges are now requiring students to complete the STARS (Self Reported Transcript & Academic Record System) and then link their STARS to each college application. You can create an account now and start entering your high school grades.

(Texas A&M, Baylor, Clemson, LSU, Penn State, UTSA, and many other schools are already requiring the STARS and we expect more schools to join them.)