Top Ten College Prep Tips for High School Juniors
“When you’re a junior, you’ll wish you were a senior. When you’re a senior, you’ll want to press rewind.”
Junior year. This is when everything you’ve been doing - academics, relationships with teachers, coaches, and counselors, leadership activities, and so much more - comes together. You’re doing great! Junior year can really be a Jekyll and Hyde year as the fall term can be relatively relaxed but then the spring term can be really busy in terms of college prep. Junior year is the key time to finalize your college list which means you’ll be doing a lot of research and perhaps even taking some campus visits to see some of these schools in person. What exactly does that mean? Well, basically by the end of summer you’ll want a list of 8-10 colleges that you will be applying to in your senior year. I’m very outcome-based so I recommend you create your list in the following way:
3 schools where you have little chance of admission
3-4 schools where you have a good chance of admission
3 schools where you have a high chance of admission
Academics continue to be important as your junior year classes are probably the last chance for you to demonstrate your academic qualities and abilities. As you’ll be applying in your senior year, colleges will not see most of your grades senior year and so they will not use senior year grades as a basis of admission and merit scholarships. This is incredibly important so continue reading to see my Top Ten tips below for college-curious and college-bound juniors.
Looking for help with your college journey? I worked with students and families anywhere in the U.S. so please reach out and let’s chat!
#10 - Leverage your Organization Skills
Junior year is full of various deadlines so it’s going to be critical that you are organized and have a calendar to keep track of important dates. If you miss a deadline for whatever reason you will not be able to go back in time.
#9 - Talk to your teachers, coaches, and counselors about recommendation letters now
Quite simply, your teachers, coaches, and counselors can become overwhelmed with requests so talk to them now, in your junior year, so they have plenty of time to give you a strong and proper letter. Letters of recommendation are more art than science and you don’t want to wait until the last minute. I take letters very seriously and I’ll share that I’ve declined more than a couple of recommendations that came to me at the last minute. I want to give the best letter possible and I simply can’t do that knowing the deadline is in 24 hours and I already have a full slate of tasks to take care of. A last minute request by you doesn’t help in any way and you may actually get declined. See #10 above and plan out your time. Others will be grateful for it and you’ll have less stress in the process.
#8 - Focus on academics
As I mentioned in the opening, junior year classes may be the last ones that colleges will see, particularly if you apply early decision or early action (as more and more students are doing these days). Senior year you’ll be waist deep in college applications so this is your year to shine. Continue challenging yourself with interesting and rigorous classes. Remember, what you do academically in high school is more important than what you may do on the SAT and/or ACT standardized tests. Although you may find that your standardized test scores impact your merit aid at some schools. See my video about test scores and merit aid to learn more.
#7 - Start working on college essays
Some high school English classes will help you start thinking about college essays this year. This will save you time and a lot of stress. College essays can be time-consuming so start now and brainstorm topics. Think about why do you want to go to college? If you want to attend Flagship University, why do you want to attend that school in particular? The college admission essay is your opportunity to showcase your personality, strengths, and passions. Be authentic and honest in your writing; don’t be afraid to let your voice shine through. Essays are an iterative process. Your first draft is exactly that - a draft. Do not plan to spend only an hour formulating your college essay. Working on it now means you’ll have a stronger essay to submit when it really counts.
#6 - Plan campus visits (if possible)
Campus visits can be incredibly fun and enlightening! I remember my visit to UW-Madison and there’s just nothing like seeing the campus and envisioning what it could be like for you. It can also be very costly with travel, hotel, food, etc. The pandemic shut down a lot of campus visits around the country, but things are now open once again. Many schools have invested in virtual campus tours so this is one way to cut down on costs for you and your family. Search for "<name of school> virtual tour" and there’s a good chance you’ll find something that will help you start to understand the campus. You can also check out CampusReel and YouTube to find videos from students and alumni who will help you, too. Try to visit while classes are in session. Visiting during the spring break really won’t give you a sense of the campus and its culture.
#5 - Keep that job going!
Every dollar you make and can save will help cut down on the loans you (or your family) may need. The average student loan debt for graduates these days is around $30,000 (this does not include other loans such as Parent PLUS loans). This equates to roughly a payment of $313 per month for the next ten years and $7,588 or interest paid on that loan. See below for the proof. And if you’re thinking grad school may be in your future, then you may be adding significant loans on top of these you took out for your undergraduate degree.
#4 - Be realistic about your college budget - your future self will thank you
I invite you to reframe the idea of a “dream” college. This is a highly emotional idea and it has gotten a lot of people into financial trouble - even those with a college degree. A college degree can be life-changing for not only the individual but it can bring about generational wealth and opportunity for one’s family. I believe your goal should be this - a debt-free degree. Think that’s a crazy idea? Unfortunately, that’s what our culture has told many and now we have $1.7 trillion in college loan debt. Take a look at the calculator above. $313 a month for student loan debt. Imagine if that number was $0 - what could you do with an extra $313 a month? What would be different if you took that $313 and invested it when you graduated instead of taking 10 years to pay back that loan? Let’s see what the retirement calculator says.
That’s right. $313 per month means you could retire at 67 with $1.187M without even taking into account any 401(k) or other retirement savings you receive through an employer. So, what if you decide that you can wait to pay off your loan in ten years and then start investing the $313 per month. What’s the difference? Check out the graph below and decide for yourself.
Those ten years reduce your investment savings by approximately 50%. There’s just no getting around the power of compound interest. Plan now and your future self will thank you for it.
#3 - Dive into leadership
If you haven’t yet, start demonstrating leadership by becoming an officer in a club and not just a member. Participate in clubs, sports, community service, or other activities that interest you. This will help you develop important skills, such as leadership and teamwork, and will provide you with experiences to talk about in interviews. Like big events? Join your student programming board and help put on events like prom, Homecoming, and more. Like animals? Consider volunteering for the local animal shelter. I was an advisor for student council and student government for nearly two decades. This is a great experience for students who want to make a difference at their school regardless of what they may major in at college. Schools are not looking for quantity -they are seeking quality. Being deeply involved in a couple of different groups is much better than spreading yourself thin among many groups. Show deep commitment and make a difference. That, in turn, will make a difference for you.
#2 - Take the SAT, ACT, or Both
I know, I know. There’s a lot of confusing information these days about standardized testing. You may be thinking that standardized tests are no longer important as many schools have gone test-optional. In fact, there are some schools (California state schools, for example) that are even test-blind meaning they simply won’t accept your scores. In this case, your test scores have nothing to do with admission or merit aid. But here’s the thing - many schools, even those that are test-optional - still consider standardized test scores for merit aid. And in fact, your test scores could equate to thousands of dollars in savings. Let’s use Texas Tech University as an example.
Texas Tech’s freshmen merit scholarship program is based on the following rubric…
Notice that this rubric is automatically applied to first-year students and uses both standardized test scores and high school rank to determine the amount of merit-aid a student will receive. So using this example you can see how a student’s class rank and test score can mean thousands of dollars in savings. Even for a student in the top 10% of their class, the difference between an ACT score of 33 and 34 is a difference of $8,000 over the course of a four year degree. It’s important to note that TTU requires a student to maintain a 3.5 GPA in order to continue to receive the highest levels of merit-aid (see graphic above).
#1 - Take a breath - pause - and remember to have fun!
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, take a break. Get outside and take the dog for a walk. Your mindset is the first thing should focus on. You simply will not create your best college essay if you are stressed and overwhelmed. Set things aside, collect your thoughts, and come back to whatever it is you are working on. If you are following these tips, you’ll have time to relax because you’ve built in time and you aren’t waiting until the last minute. Talk to your friends and share your ideas and how you’re doing. You’ll probably get some great ideas and you’ll be supporting one another as you go through this exciting time.
Be Boundless.
