Fall Tips for College Bound Juniors

The junior year is a busy time for college-bound students, and many students find that it is another "step up" in difficulty from the previous two years. It's also an important year. Since most students apply to colleges in the fall of the senior year, the transcripts colleges will be evaluating as they make admission and scholarship decisions will only include grades through this year. Juniors also should take several standardized tests this year which may play an important role in the college admission process. Here are some "things to do" during this busy and crucial year.

First, you should plan to take the PSAT (pre SAT) in the fall. The PSAT is also used as the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, and you only get one chance to take it each year. The test is given in high schools on one Tuesday and one Saturday in October each year; the dates are set by CollegeBoard and each high school must choose either the Tuesday or the Saturday testing date. This year, test dates are October 13 and October 16. Check with your guidance counselor for your school's test date and deadline to sign up. If your school does not offer the PSAT or you have a conflict on its test date, try calling other high schools in your area to see if they have space available. You should prepare for the PSAT before taking it; at a minimum you should work through the practice book provided by College Board. More intense prep books containing several practice tests are available at major bookstores. Click here to read more information about the PSAT on the College Board website.

Plan to take the SAT and/or ACT in the spring. Most colleges will accept either test, but if you can afford the time and the money, it's better to take both. Because the tests differ in several ways, you may do better on one than the other. Colleges will take your best score, so why not give yourself two chances rather than one? Unlike the PSAT, you do not sign up for these tests at your high school; you sign up online on the College Board and ACT websites, and there are several testing dates for each. You select your testing date, location, and pay online. Again, you should prepare for these tests before taking them so that you are familiar with the format and timing of each section. ACT and College Board have a great deal of helpful information on their websites, or you can buy a practice book at major bookstores.

Now, about those grades. Try to earn the very best grades you can in the most challenging classes you can handle. This is particularly important if you got off to a less-than-desirable academic start in high school. Often, an upward trend in your grades can mitigate somewhat lower grades in say, the first semester of your freshman year. It's also a balancing act. You want to challenge yourself, but you don't want to take so many difficult classes that your grades suffer. Many students take their first AP or IB classes as juniors, and some are shocked by the difficulty of these classes. They are probably harder than classes you have taken so far, even honors classes, and this is something you should expect. After all, you are doing college-level work and may be rewarded with college credit if you do well on the end-of-course exams! In general, I think it is better to earn a "B" in a more difficult class than an "A" in an easier class, but if you are making too many "C" grades, it may be time to reconsider the difficulty of your class selections. There are always exceptions to any general rule, so you should discuss your specific circumstances and goals with your guidance counselor.

As if studying and taking standardized tests weren't enough to do this year, you should also evaluate your extracurricular portfolio. This is especially true if you are seeking admission to a more competitive college, or are hoping to be awarded a scholarship. Although grades and test scores are the most important factors for most college admission offices, your activities outside of school are also important. There is no such thing as a list of "best activities" that are guaranteed to get you into the college of your choice, and you don't have to be involved in everything. Your best choices will usually be the things you truly enjoy doing and do well. (If they serve to make the world a better place, and are related to your planned field of study, so much the better!) Again, these are very general suggestions and I'd encourage you to discuss your specific choices with your guidance counselor.

Finally, junior year is the time to seriously investigate possible colleges and narrow down your choices. You can do a lot of your research online- check the list of links to the right as a starting place- but there is no substitute for making an actual in-person visit to the colleges you are considering. Talk to your parents, teachers, friends and acquaintances. Ask them where they went to college and what they liked and didn't like about it. There are also books that many of my students have found helpful, including Rugg's Recommendations, Colleges that Change Lives, and Looking Beyond the Ivy League, along with many others. Spend an afternoon at a bookstore and skim through a few of them.

Sounds like a lot? It is, but it's manageable if you start planning now, and you'll be much better prepared, have less stress and more choices once senior year rolls around!

Does Class Rank Really Matter?

There's yet another story making the rounds on the internet about a high school valedictorian whose graduation speech had the general theme of "why did I waste my time working toward a goal I now believe to be meaningless?" A few years ago, another valedictorian, suffering from extreme burnout and at a loss for words, actually mooned his audience. So what's the real deal? Does class rank really matter? In my opinion, the answer is yes and no. Class rank matters to a certain extent, within certain parameters, but achieving a particular numerical rank is not nearly as important as some parents and students believe.

The more selective and competitive colleges want top students who will be successful in demanding post-secondary programs. Therefore, they look for students who have earned excellent grades in challenging classes. These students will generally have higher class ranks than students who have earned mediocre grades, or who took less difficult classes. But there is no magic about being ranked #1 vs. #6. Many times the difference between a higher and a lower numerical rank is not ability, or even grades, but scheduling issues that allow one student to take an extra honors class the other student couldn't fit into his or her schedule. Some class ranking calculations even penalize students who take extra classes. I remember one situation where two students had exactly the same grades in exactly the same classes for four years....but Student A was ranked above Student B because Student B had taken driver's ed in summer school! The extra "A" in driver's ed "diluted" the ratio of honors to regular classes.

In general, a student considering the more selective colleges should take honors, AP, or IB classes where that choice is possible. AP and IB classes tend to be regarded a bit better than honors classes, because they are nationally (and in the case of IB, internationally) recognized as having certain standards. The difficulty of "honors" classes may vary considerably from school to school. He or she should also take "five solids" (math, science, English, social studies, foreign language) each year, and select honors/AP/IB options for these where possible. Obviously, a student who makes these choices, and does well in them, will have a fairly high class rank.

It is not necessary, and may be counterproductive, to choose electives based on whether they carry honors weighting. Besides being incredibly stressful, taking all honors classes might cause a student's overall grades to drop. In addition, most colleges are looking for students who will make an interesting addition to the college community. Typically these students are curious and willing to try new things, enjoy learning for learning's sake, and have a sustained passion for something outside their academic goals. These qualities may best be demonstrated through eclectic elective choices or long-term extracurricular involvements in something the student truly enjoys. This student may well graduate with a lower numerical rank than another student who chooses only classes that will enhance his or her class rank, but will probably be more attractive to selective colleges- and I think, a happier and more well-adjusted person.

The bottom line? Challenge yourself; work hard and do your best; but don't obsess over class rank to the point where you destroy your love of learning and of life!