I hate to break it to you guys, but, the first semester of your senior year might be the most stressful yet. Even before you walk into school your first day, you should use your time in summer to make this semester go as smoothly as possible. Some of the things you should have done, or at least started is your common app application and requesting teacher recommendations. Although it may seem like it is too early to begin requesting teacher recommendations, it is good to get your name on their list, that way you know for sure that you are set for next year. In terms of choosing of whom you should pick your recommenders from, it should be a teacher you do good work for and have a special bond with. Perhaps someone you have shared a couple laughs with. 

Now enjoy your first months of summer. Maybe don’t even touch your backpack. Because when the clock hits August 1st, 12:00 AM, you will be on your computer twenty four seven. This may be a little dramatic. Maybe it is because I wish I was on top of all my work that sad month of August. However, I do really recommend being set up right when you start your senior year. This is especially because your college work will become your homework and you will have to work on applying to colleges on top of your every day homework.

My first recommendation for incoming seniors is to make sure you get the SAT score you need to stand out. As of right now, more schools are requiring the SAT or ACT when you are applying so getting the score you need early on will ensure that you will not have extra work when the year starts. If you take anything from this article, I recommend you to use KHAN ACADEMY to study for your SATs. This website is amazing and brought my score up by 200 points. Don’t doubt Khan Academy when it comes to studying, you will not even realize the progress you are making. 

Essays are a big part of the college application process. Many colleges have their own bundle of prompts they want you to answer with integrity. This may seem overwhelming at first, and trust me it does prompt you to carry a large workload. However, answering these prompts are not as difficult as they may seem. The key being that you can repurpose your essay questions for different colleges. Some reoccurring questions that I saw last year were ones about how your past experiences shaped you as a person, what characteristics will you bring to the community, and how you will impact your new college community. The famous college question that almost each college asked was “why us?”. This question you however cannot use for multiple colleges at a time so it makes sense to focus your attention on it. This particular question requires you to research your schools websites and make sure the content that you include within this essay is effective and relevant. The biggest essay that you will have on your plate will be your common application essay. This is when you are given the opportunity to answer one out of a couple prompts that deal mostly will challenges you have faced in life, realizations, and beliefs. My main recommendation for you is to build onto a crucial moment that has impacted your life. From this, build into the greater purpose of your story, explain why it is so important for you to share with college admissions officers. I personally struggled with making my writing original, but I came to the conclusion that if you share a personal story, there is no way that your story cannot be original as it is your own personal story. 

There were a couple surprises during the college application process. First, I came into the college process with the idea that I would not get in anywhere regular decision and that I had to do everything possible in high school in order to get into the college that you wanted to. I believed that the only chance to get into your dream college was to Early Action there. For the most part, this is true. It does become increasingly harder to get into college if you apply regular decision, and even applying early action does not guarantee that you get into your dream college. BUT, I promise you will get into a college. The only thing you need to do is pick out a couple colleges that you have a chance getting into. I do actually recommend picking a couple safeties, targets, and reaches, but do not get caught up in these acceptance rates. It does take some research to determine which schools you would want to attend no matter if they are safeties or reaches. This makes it so you feel comfortable to where you applied in the application process. Another surprise from the process was when you would received your admission notice. For the majority of schools you apply to, you will hear back from them late in the year. This fact really tested my patience as I counted down the days for my next notification. 

Money is a big thing that holds people back from applying to dream schools. I do regret not applying for scholarships when I had the chance to. There are so many, and they are accessible to you from your counselors (they update a google form with all of these opportunities). If i could go back in time I would one hundred percent apply to some of these! I know some people who have received a lot of money by putting themselves out into the pool, so do not doubt your chances.

I wish all of you the best in your college endeavors. Find a way to balance your stress and make sure you give yourself time to rest over the weekends. Your senior year only happens once so enjoy it and do not get discouraged by the application process!!