Freshman Year:
Begin working with a guidance counselor.
Classes you should enroll in include:
- Four years of English
- Three years of math (through Algebra II or Trigonometry)
- Two years of foreign language
- Two years of natural science
- Two years of history/social studies
- One year of art
- One year of electives
Keep up the grades!
Begin to keep a file of all awards and honors achieved throughout high school.
Keep a list of school and community activities in which you are involved, including both paid and volunteer work, and descriptions of what you do.
Sophomore Year:
Talk with a high school guidance counselor to review the high school curriculum needed to satisfy the requirements of the colleges you are interested in attending.
- Find out about Advanced Placement (AP) courses:
- What is available
- Are you eligible
- How to enroll
- Continue extracurricular activities.
- Participate in academic enrichment programs, summer workshops, or camps with specialty focuses (music, art, science).
- Take the PSAT in October. The scores will not count for National Merit Scholar consideration in your sophomore year, but it is valuable practice for when you take the PSAT again in your junior year (when the scores will count) as well as for the SAT I exam, which you should also be taking in your junior year. You will receive your PSAT results in December.
- Register in April for the SAT II for any subjects you will be completing before June.
- Take the SAT II in June.
Junior Year:
Fall Semester
- AP courses (enrollment, eligibility, curriculum).
- Research schedules for PSAT, SAT Reasoning Test, SAT Subject Test, ACT, and AP exams.
- Discuss with your guidance counselor why you should take these exams and how they could benefit you.
- Determine which exams you will take.
- Sign up and prepare for the exams.
- Ask to review your academic record and profile to determine weakness or gaps in your education.
- Determine what it takes to gain admission to the college of your choice in addition to GPA and test score requirements.
August
- Obtain schedules and forms for the SAT Reasoning Test, SAT Subject Test, ACT, and AP exams.
September
- Register for the PSAT exam offered in October. Remember that when you take the PSAT in your junior year, the scores will count towards the National Achievement Program.
October
- Take the PSAT.
- Narrow your list of colleges.
- Begin to schedule interviews with admissions counselors. If possible, take a tour of the school grounds.
November
- Review your PSAT results with a guidance counselor.
December
- You will receive scores from the October PSAT.
- Enroll in an SAT preparatory course.
January
February
- Register for March SAT and/or April ACT tests. Contact the college admissions office to find out which test to take.
March
- Take the March SAT Reasoning Test.
- Sign up for AP exams—good scores may get you college credits.
April
- Take the April ACT Test.
- Talk to teachers about letters of recommendation.
May
- Take SAT Reasoning Test, SAT Subject Test, and AP exams.
June
- Add report cards, test scores, honors, awards, etc., to your file.
- Visit colleges and meet with financial aid representatives, admissions office, and academic advisors. You can also talk with students, attend classes, sleep in the dorms, and meet professors.
- Send thank you notes after your visits.
- Take SAT Reasoning Test, SAT Subject Test, and the ACT test.
Summer between Junior and Senior Years
- Practice writing online applications. Focus on essay portions of these applications. Do not forget to mention your activities outside of school.
- Review applications. Ask family, friends, and teachers to review your essays for grammar, punctuation, readability, and content.