Here are a few helpful tips for what students should be doing right now. (And parents - I”m providing this to CALM the crazy - please don’t use it to make it crazier!)
9th-graders - Make a long-term plan for the next three years. Ask your counselor about AP/AICE/IB and Dual Enrollment opportunities. - Evaluate your year-to-date academic performance. How are you feeling about your classes? If you’re tracking with strong A/B’s, consider an increase in rigor (but remember Mental Health matters!) - Meet with Guidance and register for next year’s classes through your high school. - Athletes: Familiarize yourself with the NCAA and NAIA athletic recruiting requirements. - Create an activity log to track all of your extracurricular activities, summer experiences, academic honors, and other achievements. - Plan a summer experience that helps you explore a passion or interest. - Continue to develop your time management and study skills - work hard and earn your best grades.
10th-graders All of the above, plus: - Review your PSAT scores and consider taking a practice ACT. Consider a test prep plan based on your test preference or PSAT/NMSQT. - Stay engaged with extracurricular activities (clubs, sports, community service, fine and performing arts, work, etc.) - Start visiting colleges either online or in-person. Get familiar with the personalities and sizes of several different types of campuses. See a small liberal arts college, a large public university, and a few things in between. - If your plans may include a military academy, get familiar with the preliminary application and Congressional nomination process.
11th-graders All of the above and: - It’s go-time, friends! Time to pick up the pace on building and evaluating your college list. - With parent help, complete the FAFSA EFC estimator. Use the info from EFC to run Net Price Calculators on each of the schools of interest to be sure they fit within your budget. - Make a “final strategy” to prep and test for your best SAT/ACT scores by the end of summer. (A “best” score is one that appropriately reflects your academic ability!)
12th-graders - Compare financial aid/merit offer packages from the schools that have sent them. (Be careful! Those offer letters can sometimes be presented in a tricky format- contact me if you'd like a great spreadsheet that helps with this!) - If you’ve been accepted to college but the financial aid package isn’t what you’d hoped, consider an appeal. (Contact me if you need a meeting to determine if you should file an appeal.) - If you’re deferred or waitlisted, review your application and determine whether you want to write a deferral response or letter of continued interest. - Continue working on those scholarship applications - check your chosen institution for even MORE money! - Plan visits to colleges and attend Admitted Students Day events, in order to make your final college choice. (Check those “reply by” deadlines!) - Make sure to put those housing deposits in! - Send a thoughtful thank you note and/or gift to the teachers and coaches that have helped with your applications. (Let them know where you're going!)
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