Juniors – What To Do in August

Where should you start when putting together a college list? It’s hard for juniors to jump into the college selection process, but we have some ideas on how to get launched.

First, we like a website called Youniversitytv.com. Here you can find short videos on many colleges. The site does require a username and ID, but does not send annoying emails after you sign up. There is a large search box for discovering whether a video tour is available for a particular school. The video tours follow a consistent format and provide highlights of each school as well as some statistical information such as average GPA and average test scores of accepted students. While a video tour doesn’t substitute for a physical visit, it can help determine which schools to visit in the future.

Second, by this point in their academic career, juniors know which classes they like and which classes they like to avoid. Also, they have a sense of their own academic strengths. Often classes they like are also classes in which they excel, but not always. Given this personal knowledge, students can begin to think about areas of study in college. It may be too early to determine potential majors, but certain things can be ruled in or out. For example, students probably know at this point whether Engineering is a potential direction. If so, it should affect their range of college choices. Also, students may have a general interest in the medical field if not a specific career goal. If this is the case, it is a good idea to take advanced science classes in high school to ensure science will continue to be enjoyable and, potentially, to help with college admissions.

Athletes have to continually assess both academics and athletics. It’s important to not only consider not only athletic fit, but also which colleges can provide the best academic environment.