Lock It Up!

Although your grades in high school are very important in the college application process, there is more to it than you might think. The difficulty of your high school courses and your outside involvement are also important factors to begin thinking about right now.

Strong grades are not the only thing colleges look at. The more competitive colleges also consider the difficulty and variety of your course load. Extracurricular activities, including both sports and clubs, are also very important to not only the college application process, but your high school education as a whole. Numerous studies have shown that there is a positive correlation between extracurricular involvement and higher grades.

Even if you are not planning on applying to a competitive college, a strong GPA, school involvement, community service, and high test scores can still help you score a great scholarship!

Here are some simple tips to help you start planning a college-bound future:

• Start working on your study skills. Don’t be afraid to seek tutoring for areas you struggle in or would like to improve on.
• Dare to challenge yourself. Check out the elective courses offered at your future high school and start thinking about the ones you want to take. 
• Get involved in your high school as much as possible. Even if you do not play sports, check out the clubs and other activities offered at your high school and get involved.
• Start volunteering. Especially if you are planning to apply to a competitive school, community involvement looks amazing.
• Look into PSAT prep courses offered at your school or in your community. It’s a good idea to begin taking the PSAT and SAT or ACT as soon as possible so you will have more time to retake the test if you’d like to improve your score.
• Start researching colleges using online resources such as the College MatchMaker at CollegeBoard.com and Peterson’s College Search.