We are very excited to introduce Austin ISD’s new college and career readiness platform, SchooLinks! All of the SchooLinks features are designed with students in mind to help them become career, college, and life-ready. As a guardian, you will have the opportunity to join your student in their career and college exploration process and have conversations with them about their future.

System Access

• Student & Staff Access: Log in via the SchooLinks tile in the Austin ISD Portal using district SSO credentials.
• Guardian Access: Access to SchooLinks through your own parent/guardian account using the email that connects with your student’s account. 
  • Watch this video and view this document to learn more about setting up and using your SchooLinks parent account.

What Students Are Doing in SchooLinks

Students can access SchooLinks through the Austin ISD Portal on their phone, tablet, or computer. We are encouraging students to immediately begin:

• Searching & Favoriting Colleges: Using the College Search tool to build their target list of colleges.
• Managing Applications: Setting up their SchooLinks College Application Manager and linking their Common App account.
• Tracking Deadlines & Materials: Using the Application Manager to track application steps, requirements, and deadlines, as well as requesting official materials like transcripts and letters of recommendation.

Note: While SchooLinks acts as a central hub to organize and track application materials, it is not an application submission portal itself. Students will still submit their final applications directly through platforms like Common App, ApplyTexas, or individual college websites.

How Guardians Can Participate

Guardian accounts allows you to:

• Review Assessments: View the results of your student’s career interest, strength, and mindset assessments to learn more about what careers might fit them.
• Track Student Progress: See what colleges and careers your student has favorited and set as goals.
• Stay Organized: Check your personalized dashboard for upcoming events, important reminders, and to-dos for your student.
• Conduct Research: Complete your own research on colleges, careers, and financial planning (including comparing college costs, expected aid, and scholarships) to help drive informed conversations.
• Connect with Counselors: Message your student's school counselor directly through the platform.

Student & Grade-Level Requirements

Grades 6–8: Career Exploration

• Complete interest and personality inventories (Find Your Code, Game Center).
• Draft preliminary high school course plans and review endorsement options.

Grades 9–11: Graduation Planning & Testing

• Build and update Personal Graduation Plans (PGPs); submit electronic parent signatures.
• Review transcripts, GPA, and assessment scores (PSAT, SAT, ACT, TSIA2).

Grade 12: Post-Secondary Execution

• Request official transcripts and manage application submissions.
• Track FAFSA/TASFA completion and apply for local/national scholarships.
• Register for campus admissions visits and college fairs.

For any questions with SchooLinks please reach out to your campus college and career advisor.