- Review general college admission requirements
- Be sure to take college-prep classes
- Talk to your parents about your college financing plan.
- Be sure to do your very best in all of your classes.
- Get involved. Check out clubs, activities, and sports that
you may be interested in participating in.
- Start a college planning file where you keep all of your
important documents.
- Get to know your teachers. This will become very important
once you are applying to college and need letters of recommendation.
- Get to know your counselor. You can get a lot of good advice
as well as a letter of recommendation.
- Check out colleges on the Internet.
- Meet with your high school counselor to discuss course
work and college plans.
- Plan the best possible schedule for yourself.
- Take a practice college entrance exam in the fall. You may
take the PLAN test (a practice ACT test with a career/interest
component). Or, if you're in accelerated classes, consider
taking the PSAT test.
- Begin to think about possible career goals/interests. Visit
your school's career center.
- Remember - summer jobs can mean money for college!
- Begin building a list of possible colleges; think about
those values that are important to you (academic program,
location, size, cost, activities, athletics, etc.) and spend
lots of time researching colleges on the web.
- Request information from colleges; attend college fairs
and/or visit with college admissions representatives at your
high school.
- Think about your career/major choices.
- Meet with high school counselor to review courses, credit,
college information, and senior classes.
- Register for and take the PSAT/NMSQT test in the fall.
- Take the ACT and/or SAT test in the spring.
- Begin exploring scholarship and financial aid opportunities.
- Plan to take strong academic courses during your senior
year and strive to achieve your academic best.
- Visit schools you may be considering. If this is not practical
for you and your family, consider visiting nearby colleges
to gain a better understanding of different types of schools.
- If you are planning on playing sports at the college level,
be sure to fill out NCAA forms available in August before
your senior year.
- Meet with high school counselor early in fall semester to
discuss college plans.
- Attend college fairs and/or meet with college admissions
representatives at your high school.
- Take the ACT or SAT exam in the early fall and forward your
scores to the colleges to which you plan to apply.
- Narrow college choices and obtain applications.
- Determine deadlines and requirements and stick to them.
For schools with rolling admission, you should apply by December
when possible.
- Finalize your college entrance essay and have a teacher
or counselor review in early fall.
- Request transcripts, recommendations, and other supporting
data to be sent to colleges.
- Keep copies of everything you send.
- Apply for all possible scholarships.
- Apply for need-based financial aid as soon after January
1 as possible.
- Visit colleges to which you've applied (if possible).
- Make final choice and notify school(s) no later than May
1.
- Send committment letter and any necessary documents and
deposits to your college of choice. Write polite letter of
refusal to others.
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