Junior Year and the Dreaded College Search

Now is the time to start planning for your college career!

Junior year is known for beginning the college search and preparing for the search and application process.  It can all seem daunting, so here are some tips to help make your junior year more manageable:

Narrow down potential majors

Talk with your guidance counselor and schedule a time to take career tests and assessments.  These can be very useful in identifying your strengths, narrowing down your interests, and pointing you toward possible career paths.

Attend college fairs

College fairs are a valuable resource to gain additional information about a wide variety of colleges.  There will be admissions representatives present for each college, so it is a great way to ask questions and learn more.  For more information about college fairs, read my blog post College Fairs- Helpful Hints to Help Your Child Stand Out.

Create a list of colleges

Create a list of colleges that you are interested in; try to keep the list between 10-15 colleges.  When creating your list, don’t forget to consider important criteria such as: majors offered, location, public vs. private, financial aid options available, demographics of the campus, size, tuition costs, housing options, extracurricular activities, student-faculty ratio, etc.  

Visit colleges before applying

Schedule college visits before applying.  Even if you plan to go on a scheduled campus tour, plan your visit so you can also explore the surrounding community.  Don’t be afraid to ask questions; make a pro/con list of each school so that later you can accurately -recall details of each campus.  The college will be your home for four years, so you want to make sure you will feel comfortable there. 

Colleges monitor students’ interest in their school.  Not only will visiting the schools help you narrow down what you want in a college, but it will show the college that you are interested in them as more than a backup or safety school.

Get to know your teachers

Colleges require students to submit letters of recommendation along with their admissions application.  Get to know some of your favorite teachers.  They will be a valuable resource when it comes to asking for letters of recommendation.

Grades

If you have a low GPA it’s not too late to turn it around.  Colleges look at trends in your GPA, so if you have slacked off, you still have time to show colleges that you’re taking your education seriously.  If you do very well your junior and senior years, colleges will notice your efforts.  

Don’t forget about standardized tests

Deadlines for standardized tests are fast approaching! Make a timetable for SAT/ACT.

March 9^th is the deadline for the ACT http://www.actstudent.org/

April 6^th is the deadline for the SAT so begin thinking and studying for the SAT http://sat.collegeboard.org/home

Begin to prepare for AP exams.  Remember you can get college credit, so the time you spend studying for the exam could save you from taking a course in college.  Put forth the effort now and it will pay off in the future.

There are many study guides available to help you prepare for all standardized tests.

Begin thinking about senior year course selection

Consider taking upper level courses such as Honors, AP, and community college courses.  AP courses and classes at your local community college are great ways to earn college credits.  It shows colleges your intellectual curiosity and dedication to hard work.

Plan for summer

Start planning now so you can make effective use of your summer.  Begin to think of possible jobs or internships and schedule additional college visits.

Here are some additional resources for high school juniors.

The College Board’s action plan for juniors: http://www.collegeboard.com/student/plan/action/juniors.html