11th Grade College Preparation

While watching the Senior students prepare to leave for college soon, 11th grade students and their parents can’t help getting nervous and feeling agitated, as they will be preparing for the college application process in a few months. In particular, students in 11th grade need to spend their last summer before submitting the application to the fullest, but many are not sure what to do first.

For 11th graders, this summer is a very important time which will make a significant influence on their college admission. So, this article will share with you about what you need to prepare in advance before moving on to 12th grade.

First, students should check their GPA if they need to adjust senior year courses and the registration date for SAT /ACT to see if they need to take more tests. It’s just a waste of time to enroll in a test prep course without much thoughtful planning.

More importantly, it is imperative to analyze the extracurricular activities and volunteer activities that students have been involved in over the past three years. So, in senior year, students need to plan which activities they will focus on and which activities they will add or discontinue. It is not too late to start a new volunteering activity or summer activity now.

These plans must be systematically established before they make their college list. When making a list of colleges students would like to apply to, they need to make a list with accurate and updated information of each school and detailed blueprints for the student’s major, personality, and career plan. Most of the time, the students make a list from colleges that they have heard of or colleges that their friends go without much information about the colleges. There is no guarantee that the college a friend or even their sibling attends is the right college for them.

If possible, it’s a good idea to visit some colleges as a family. Not only can students get the latest information about the university, but also this will leave a good impression and motivation on students and instill a sense of purpose as to why they are studying so hard and putting in all their efforts right now.

Another way to find out the colleges of interest is spending a part of summer at the college through pre-collegiate programs, such as RSI at MIT or various courses at Stanford. There is no better way to learn about college other than experiencing yourself. It often leads to making a connection with current students at the college and professors. This will be another way to appeal to the college of your choice about your interest in that college.