College & Career Advising

Wisdom

Opening new doors to discover God's will

Although many of our students will attend a four-year college or university, the College & Career Advising office serves all our upper school students whether they plan to attend college, take a gap year, join the armed forces, or enter the work force.

Tabitha Robertson, our College & Career Advisor provides individual counseling to students and their parents regarding areas of college preparation such as entrance exams, college search and selection, research and goal-focused high school planning.

Robertson t — Tabitha Robertson
College and Career Advisor

The advisor submits required documents to colleges, trade schools, and universities in support of our students, including transcripts, personal references and recommendations, as well as scholarship applications. In addition, she establishes and maintains relationships with colleges and their admissions representatives and facilitates student/parent trips to college campuses.

Mrs. Robertson helps parents and students to make the most of the four-year template for college/career planning by organizing college preparation, financial aid, and scholarship information sessions.

College & Career Helps

Dear Parents,

As you and your child begin to look toward graduation, a great many decisions must be made. This planning guide can help you and your student as together you make your way through the high school years.

9th grade
- Focus on your grades—your GPA starts now!
- Get involved in your church and community & start collecting service hours
- Join sports and organizations at school and in your community
10th grade
- Focus on your grades—your GPA continues to grow
- Take the PSAT/NMSQT
- Develop relationships with teachers—they will be a enormous help in your college application process
- Stay engaged with extracurricular activities
- Start building your prospective list of colleges and university
- Begin going on college visits
11th grade
- Focus on your grades—the GPA at the end of 2nd semester goes on your college applications
- Take the PSAT/NMSQT
- Enroll in SAT/ACT preparation programs
- Continue college visits
- Attend college fairs
- Take the ACT
- Continue building your college list
- Begin thinking about what teachers you would like to write your letters of recommendation
- Create a resume
12th grade
- Your grades still matter: most colleges and universities require a final transcript
- Re-take the ACT
- Finalize your college list
- Decide what teachers will write your letters of recommendation and ask them
- Begin college applications and essays
- Complete the FAFSA, if needed
- Apply for scholarships
- Accept financial aid awards
- Choose a college
- Pay your deposit

Publicly-Funded College Scholarships

Scholarships available for qualifying Tennessee high school students include:

Privately-Funded College Scholarships

Ways parents can help their students earn scholarships.

Helpful sites where parents can search for privately-funded scholarships:

Parents and students can also try a few additional approaches:

Look at Knox County or Knoxville city websites, as these sometimes list scholarship opportunities or point to community organizations that offer them.
Visit your local library, some scholarships are posted in person rather than online.
Follow local social media groups or community pages, local nonprofits or civic organizations may announce scholarship opportunities there.

We recommend our students take the ACT before graduation. According to the ACT website, all 4-year colleges and universities in the United States accept the ACT. However, some colleges no longer accept the SAT for entrance.

ACT Testing Information

Registration and test dates
Free ACT-sponsored test preparation
Momentrix practice test
Science and writing portions of the ACT are not required for:
- Tennessee HOPE scholarship purpose
- Admission to University of Tennessee
- UT institutional scholarship consideration

ACT Registration Code for Temple Academy: 431-902

Test Preparation

Some popular test prep websites are listed below. Parents are advised to review preparation content and pricing before accessing to the website.

A-List – ACT and SAT prep; includes videos, study packages, instructional videos, pacing guides, quizzes/drills, and online test assessment tools.
Jumpstart ACT Prep – Streaming video modules review the must-know content, includes testing strategies specific to the ACT, and concludes with realistic question practice modeled from actual “retired” ACT exams.
Kaplan Test Prep – Offers practice tests, live instruction, on-demand, and course materials.
Magoosh – Includes full-length practice tests with explanations and videos.
March 2 Success – Includes 7 full-length ACT practice tests. Personalized test results are given with a detailed explanation of the problem along with the correct answer. To access practice tests, you must register for a free account.
PrepScholar – Guarantees a 4-point improvement; a 5-day risk-free trial is available.
Testive – Includes practice assignments, feedback, and expert instruction that is personalized to each student.
Top Score Education – Virtual tutorial program; Instruction personalized for each student.

Here are a few tools that may help you determine your vocational place in God's will.

Proverbs 15:22 - Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established.

Discuss the career paths you're exploring with your parents, grandparents, youth director, pastor and others because they have poured their lives into you and want your best. Prioritize your relationship with the Lord - follow Him daily, and He will put a plain path in front of you (Proverbs 27:11).

Proverbs 3:5-6 - Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

College/Career Workshops
Career workshops in Knoxville for Spring 2026 focus on resume building, interview preparation, and specialized industry hiring,

Interest Inventories
Use various interest inventories to help highlight interests, values and skills.

Volunteer Log
Colleges may request a volunteer log as part of their application package to to determine the extent of your church and community involvement while you are in high school. Your principal can give you the volunteer log document.