The Carpe Diem Foundation is offering a great scholarship for their gap year programs to a low-income, first generation student. The student must be admitted to Portland State University, awarded a Pell grant and be a first generation college student. Click here for the application process. This is a great opportunity to travel internationally, earn credit and serve your community. The application deadline is June 1. Ask for an deadline extension if you need it! Let them know you just found out about the program.

Clackamas Community College is offering a free creative writing workshop on Saturday, June 1, 2013. Register soon. This is a great opportunity to improve your writing skills. Trust me: everyone needs to learn new writing techniques. This is a low-stress event (no grade), but attending indicates to colleges that you are interested in taking the initiative to grow and learn. You can use your new information for improving your college application essays, not to mention improving your work i

If you are looking to apply for a structured summer program, there are still some programs whose deadlines have not passed. I will list a few here. Most are relatively local.

The University of Oregon is offering an arts, architecture, and design camp at their Portland campus.

Oregon State and the University of Portland are hosting Business Week camps.

Oregon Tradeswomen is offering camps for middle school (wait list) and high school girls who are interested in learning skills in the building construction field. (This could also be useful information to understand in the field of engineering). This is a very inexpensive program: $25.

The Oregon Writing Project is offering a workshop on writing college application essays. This is a bargain for the amount of help you will receive.

The University of British Columbia, Okanagan campus has extended the deadline for their environmental summer program until May 31. Remember, you need a passport or an enhanced driver's license to go to Canada.

Many of these programs are first-come, first-served. Apply now if you are interested.

The Common Application is the most used application in applying to private colleges (and now a few public universities). Please do not use the fast applications that some colleges will send you. If they have offered the fast app to you as a free option, they also have to let you submit the Common Application (CA) without any cost to you. Ask the college admissions representative at that particular college how you can do that or write to me and I will give you the information. The fast apps shortchange your application and could affect your admission qualifications or the amount of scholarships you may be offered. The CA goes live on August 1 each year for the upcoming application season, but you can begin working on your essays before then. The new prompts are outlined below. Remember, applying to college is like adding another AP or IB course to your schedule. Get as much done in the summer as possible! Don't forget to check each college's website for early scholarship application deadlines. If you do not apply by these deadlines, you will not be offered any scholarships. Not all schools have early deadlines, but you don't want to miss those that do. Here are the new essay questions. You should write around 500 words, but no more than 650 words and no fewer than 250 will be accepted.

• Some students have a background or story that is so central to their identity that they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
• Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what lessons did you learn?
• Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?
• Describe a place or environment where you are perfectly content. What do you do or experience there, and why is it meaningful to you?
• Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.

Here's the official link to this page on the common application website.