How to Get Ready for College During High School

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Applying and preparing for college can be overwhelming at times. That is why it is best that you know what you should be doing during your high schools years to get a head start on college planning.

Freshman Year - Dive Right In

It’s never too soon to start doing your research and looking ahead for your future. A lot of colleges have different requirements, it’s important to narrow your choices down early so you can begin scheduling the appropriate courses for those schools. Try visiting different campuses to help you narrow your choices down.

Your college planning advisors will direct you to pick up an extracurricular activities, such as volunteer work, sports and student leadership groups. Pick something you like and stick to it. Your application will look better if you demonstrate your ability to commit to a couple of activities and sticking with them, as opposed to switching to different ones every few months.

Sophomore Year - Prep Yourself

It is never too early to start prep testing. Take the PSAT as a practice exam for the SAT; the PSAT is also a good way to help you qualify for scholarships. Put forth all your efforts into your classes and make sure your grades are demonstrating your capabilities; your GPA is one of the most important factors for college admittance.

Junior Year - Stay on Track

Keep up with your grades and stay on track with all your courses, meet with your counselor to check what you still need to take in order to graduate with honors. Junior year is also a great time to start taking important exams such as SAT, ACT, SAT Subject Test, and even AP exams. Taking them early allows you to retake them in order to submit the highest test scores along with your application.

12th grade - Prepare for the Future

Begin looking into scholarships, financial aid, and student loans to finance your education. Taking a workshop with college planning advisors is a great way to learn what to expect from college admissions and financing. There are few workshops to walk you through the entire college experience.

Get the most out of your high school years to prepare for college. For more information on college planning, contact our college planning advisors to help get you started.

The Top 3 Reasons to See a College Planning Advisor

Seeing a college planning advisor is viewed by some as unnecessary or, even worse, and extravagance that the rich indulge in as a mere marker of status. However, if you have children in high school and are trying to plan for their futures, then you know that college is anything but an extravagance. And when it comes to making the most of your child’s college application, securing the guidance of a professional college planning advisor can help you in the long run. Here are the top 3 reasons why:

1. College planning advisors tell you how to get into competitive programs. If you want your student to get into the best program in their particular field of interest, you need to understand how complex their admissions process likely is. Fortunately, a college planning advisor knows what these schools want to see and can help your student cultivate a body of work that will make him or her truly stand out as an applicant.
2. Proper planning can help you save money. Sure, anyone can look at the yearly cost of tuition, but a well-trained college planning advisor knows what the actual costs of your child’s education are likely to be. For instance, a private program may cost more per year, but it may also have more course offerings and a shorter average graduation timeframe. Crunching the numbers on all these factors is what good advisors do so you can save in the long run.
3. Non-traditional students are often in greatest need of professional college planning help. If your child is homeschooled or attends an online high school, chances are he or she has no access to a counselor. If they literally have no access to a school counselor, hiring a college planning advisor may be the best way to fill the void.

Even if your child’s high school does have a college counselor, it may be the case that your child isn’t getting much college planning advice. As it stands today, the average counselor is responsible for 500 students, and the average student gets less than 40 total minutes of college planning advice over the course of all four years. Fortunately, professional college planning advisors are available to help you and your child navigate the complex world of college planning.

What I Did on My Summer Vacation… To Prepare for College

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Congratulations, high school students everywhere. You made it through another school year and now it’s time to sit back and enjoy your summer vacation. For those of you who will be seniors in the fall, however, now is the perfect time to start preparing for your college admissions. Extracurricular activities and summer school might be your way of making your applications stick out, but just as important are your scores on the SAT or ACT tests. And that’s why it’s time to start your test prep. Here are a few tips to keep you focused so you can make the most of your summer vacation.

Make Plans to Do Other Things

First, forget about studying. Take a few days or a week off. Think about all the things you want to do this summer. It may be an extracurricular activity, but it can also be a book you want to read or learning how to surf. Figure out what you want to accomplish and get started. Although it may seem overwhelming, staying busy actually makes you more likely to get your college prep activities done. As in physics, a body in motion tends to stay in motion.

Make a Schedule

Scheduling your study times is the easiest way to fit them into even the busiest schedule. You should have a goal for each week, in terms of study time and areas to focus on. However, it’s best for most people to avoid making a schedule for the whole summer in advance. Instead, keep it week to week to work around any other summer plans that come up. That way, you won’t miss a study session every time you want to go to the beach or catch a movie.

Keep a Record

There’s a reason that many of the most successful diets ask you to keep a food journal: keeping a record of your food makes you more accountable. The same goes for your test prep. Keep track of your study sessions, including duration and what areas you focused on. If you take a practice test, record your scores. The simple act of writing it down will make you more likely to do it.

You may also want to enlist a study partner or professional test prep tutor to help you prepare. After all, many hands make light work. But whether you work with others or go solo, making the most of your time this summer can help your chances of getting into a great university. For more help, speak to a professional college advisor.

Extracurricular Activities—Choosing the Best Path to College

As high school seniors everywhere can tell you, applying for college starts much earlier than your final months of high school. Applying for college is a lengthy process best parsed out over a well-structured timeline. Part of the reason behind a lengthy application process is that it allows the applicants to gain experience, which gives them an advantage over their competitors. It may sound unnecessarily competitive to speak of college application in these terms, but this is the reality of the current state of getting into higher education. So, take the time to make sure you, or your children, are well-rounded and experienced. Of course the best way to go about this is through extracurricular activities.

Colleges don’t simply look for candidates who are “smart” on paper and when testing. Rather, schools want to attract real people with real interests and passions in life. It’s no secret that where you spend your time is where your interests lie. In other words, it’s a known fact that many people have interests outside of going to school. So, when applying for college, keep in mind what your extracurricular activities say about you. 

The Huffington Post wrote an article on this very subject last year. They wisely remind us that the quality of your extracurricular activities is more important than the quantity. It’s better to do one or two things for a number of years, rather than many things over the past few months. Further, it’s best to engage in activities where you have a chance to show your leadership qualities, or unique skills. This means that community service based activities are a great way to show your initiative and concern for others. Alternatively, sports are a great way to show leadership skills, athletic interests, and team member skills. The same goes for playing in a band, or any artistic endeavor, inside or outside of school.

 
Keep in mind that what separates your application from everyone else’s is you. You are a unique person with a lot to offer your prospective college, so be sure to choose activities that convey your distinct personality and interests. If you’re still stumped as what the best option is for you, then call a college planning advisor such as www.Collegemadeeasy.org .

New York Student Accepted to All 8 Ivy Leagues: It Could be You

You may have seen the recent headlines about Kwasi Enin. He’s a 17-year-old high school student from New York who’s been accepted to all eight Ivy League colleges. His careful planning and optimism have allowed him to accomplish the unthinkable. There is no reason you can’t do the same.

Being a high school senior is an exciting time in life for a number of reasons, but nothing is quite as exhilarating as applying for college. Preparing college applications is the first step in planning the rest of a senior’s life. If you’re a high school senior, it is of the utmost importance that you avoid some common pitfalls during this exciting, yet scary time.

Be Ahead of the Game

Do not wait until the last minute to submit your college applications. An overwhelming number of students wait until the final minutes preceding the deadline and cause themselves unnecessary stress. Be aware though, while most colleges allow for early application submissions, they may also require you to make an early commitment if admitted. Be sure to read each school’s stipulations to avoid being forced into a decision too early.

Proof Read, Proof Read, Proof Read

U.S News & World Report compiled some of the top complaints from the people whose job it is to carefully review each student application and typos ranked as one of the top issues barring admissions. Using a computer makes typos less likely, but in some cases auto-correct may actually substitute the wrong word for you. It’s imperative when applying for college that you double-check and triple-check everything.

Apply Across the Board

Typically, you should be applying to several colleges with the average range being five to eight. Be sure to apply for schools that you feel are out of your reach as well as ones that you feel confident about getting in to. Each school looks for something slightly different in their applicants, so don’t assume that one is a shoe-in, while the other is never going to happen. You just never know.

Many students have questions surrounding what to do financially if they are accepted to a college they didn’t plan on getting into and can’t really afford. If you really want to attend, you’ll find a way. Plus, there are resources designed to help you make school affordable. Don’t sell your future short. Stay positive, aim for your highest aspirations, and be smart about applying for college.

Applying for Scholarships

Making the leap into college can be daunting on many levels. Perhaps the most challenging hurdle is the financial one. Fortunately, there are resources that make getting into college and finding funding easier than ever. A brief introduction to your options and you’ll begin to feel better already.

It’s no secret  that the cost of college is rising more and more while the average American is making less annually. The first question that you’ll want to investigate is an issue of scholarships. Are you familiar with how scholarships work? To begin, you will want to make sure you’re eligible, which only takes a few minutes. There’s a very good chance that if you’ve been focused on college, applied yourself, worked hard, then you’ll qualify for a one.

Once you’ve determined that you qualify for a scholarship, it’s simply a matter of timing. Keep a record of due dates and deadlines. You don’t want to find yourself scrambling at the last minute because you forgot to set a reminder on your calendar. However, remembering when to apply for a scholarship is the easy part. The real challenge is the paperwork.

No one likes working with legal forms. Unfortunately, that’s pretty much what scholarships look like. This is why it’s prudent to find a company that can help guide you through these difficult processes. There are hundreds and hundreds and such service providers on the market today. Do a bit of investigative research before settling on one. You don’t want pay for someone else to simply help with questions you already know the answers to. Similarly, you don’t want to charge through your scholarship applications and make a mistake that could be avoided. In the worst-case situation, you may be qualified for scholarships that you may not even be aware of. The right college entrance service provider can help with that. 

Once you’ve found someone to help you with getting your scholarships, all you have to do is send in your applications and wait for the savings. Everyone ought to make college as affordable as possible. There’s no reason not to look into getting scholarships.