College Prep Checklist for High School Juniors
Junior year is a critical time in your high school journey, especially when it comes to preparing for college. Here’s a checklist to help you stay on track:
- Academic Planning:
- Meet with your guidance counselor to review your academic progress and ensure you’re on track to meet college admissions requirements.
- Consider taking challenging courses, such as AP or IB classes, to demonstrate your academic abilities.
- Standardized Testing:
- Register and prepare for the SAT or ACT. Consider taking these tests multiple times to achieve your best score.
- If you’re considering taking SAT Subject Tests, plan to take them at the end of the academic year when the material is fresh in your mind.
- College Research:
- Continue researching colleges and universities that interest you.
- Attend college fairs and information sessions, and schedule campus visits to get a feel for different schools.
- Extracurricular Activities:
- Stay involved in extracurricular activities that demonstrate your interests and leadership skills.
- Consider taking on leadership roles in clubs or organizations.
- Financial Aid and Scholarships:
- Research scholarships and financial aid options. Start preparing any required documents, such as the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), which opens on October 1st.
- Look for scholarships that align with your interests, background, or intended major.
- College Visits and Interviews:
- Visit colleges and universities you’re interested in to get a sense of campus life and academic offerings.
- If possible, schedule interviews with admissions officers to demonstrate your interest in the school.
- Letters of Recommendation:
- Identify teachers, counselors, or mentors who can write strong letters of recommendation for your college applications.
- Give them plenty of notice and provide any necessary information to help them write a personalized letter.
- Essay Writing:
- Start brainstorming ideas for your college application essays. Consider topics that showcase your personality, interests, and values.
- Begin drafting your essays and seek feedback from teachers, counselors, or peers.
- Test Optional Consideration:
- If some of the schools you are interested in are test optional, carefully consider whether to submit your test scores or not.
- Research the policies of each school to understand how they evaluate applications without test scores.
By following this checklist, you can make the most of your junior year and set yourself up for a successful college application process.
Imagine Scholarships has a blog, and a newsletter with many helpful resources for students, educators and parents as well as thousands of quality scholarships that are organized to help you find money for college. Sign up today, you’ll be glad you did.