3 Things High School Seniors Should Do Before School Re-Starts

The lure of summer fun and some relaxation time before your senior year of high school can be tough to resist – but seniors need to take advantage of these last few weeks before returning to school to get ready for the college admissions marathon.

As a senior, you’re going to be burdened not only with a weighty academic schedule. You’ll also have many important decisions to make about your future – and a ton of paperwork to complete.

If you want to make your senior year less stressful, it’s time to get started on your future plans. Here’s where to begin:

1. Get Your College List Together

Unless you’ve already done it, now is the time to come up with a final list of the universities you want to attend. If you have more than 12-15 schools on your list, it’s time to narrow things down so that you can give each application the attention it needs. Consider things like:

• How well-suited each school is to your academic and career goals, including research and internship opportunities and post-college career support
• The type of college experience you want, in regard to each school’s location, student-teacher ratio, social atmosphere and extracurricular opportunities
• The reputation of the school’s academics, teachers, housing, campus resources and affordability

You also need to be conscious of how competitive each school’s admissions ratio can be. Students are increasingly encouraged to “hedge their bets” by applying to schools with a mix of acceptance levels (just in case their top choices don’t work out).

2. Fill Out the Common Application

The Common Application – which is essential to many the application process for many top schools – opens on Aug. 1, 2022. This is an excellent time to get this part of your college admissions process in order before you move on to the personal statements and supplemental essays required by some individual schools.

If you haven’t already, hop online and create your account so that you can review the Common App essay topics and everything else that will be asked of you. Doing this now will allow you to both refine your answers, curate your activities list and find ways to illustrate your potential value to the community of your desired school.

3. Ask for Letters of Recommendation

You probably have a pretty good idea about which teachers, counselors and employers you want to ask for letters of recommendation – and that’s good. However, you don’t have to wait (and probably should not) for school to start back up to ask for them.

Your favorite teachers and school counselor will likely be swamped with requests for these letters, so it doesn’t hurt to make your appeal early.

First, put together a “brag sheet” (and don’t be shy) that highlights your academic prowess and other accomplishments. No matter how well your teacher or counselor knows you, they probably can’t keep every star student’s details straight, so this can really help them craft a quality recommendation letter on your behalf.

Then, contact each person on your list and ask if they can meet with you personally or through video chat so that you can make a personal appeal. If they agree to write your letters, have your brag sheet ready and send it their way.

Finally, it’s never too late to get a little experienced guidance as you begin the college admission process in earnest. You’ve got a lot on your plate, and the right support network can make everything much easier to handle.