Congratulations, you’re a sophomore now! (As an aside, did you know that the word “sophomore” comes from two Greek words meaning “wise fool”? Hopefully, you can look back on your first year of high school with pride, knowing that you did your best. You know your way around campus now and you know what to expect in terms of academic rigor. You’ve gotten involved with a sport, club, or activity that interests you and that you enjoy. And you’ve learned a thing or two about organization, time management, and study skills. What’s next?
Continue to take the most challenging classes you can handle. Too many students fall for the trap of worshiping at the idol of the 4.0 GPA. Generally speaking, it is better to get a grade of “B” in an honors class than a grade of “A” in a regular class. First, colleges like to see that you have challenged yourself and are not afraid of hard work. Second, students who take honors classes generally perform better on college admissions tests. This general rule applies to B grades, not all grades, because grades do matter. Again very generally speaking, a “C” grade in an honors class should be considered a yellow flag. If you’re not studying very much, try putting in more effort. If you are putting in several hours a night studying and earning Cs, you may want to consider signing up for a regular rather than an honors class next year.
Consider taking the PLAN (pre ACT) and PSAT if they are available at your school. The PLAN is a good choice for many college bound sophomores because in addition to giving you a predicted ACT score, it contains an interest inventory that may help you decide upon a college major. The PLAN is designed and normed for sophomores. The PSAT (pre SAT) is designed and qualifying test.
If you’ve participated in many different extracurricular activities as a way to find out which ones are most meaningful to you, now is the time to start narrowing down your choices. When it comes down to your college resume, “deep” involvement in a few things looks better than “shallow” involvement in many things. And you’ll probably have more fun, too!
