Knowing what you know now, what is one piece of advice you'd share with younger students? by Emily

Knowing what you know now, what is one piece of advice you'd share with younger students? by Emily - April 2016 Scholarship Essay

Knowing what I know now as a high school senior, one piece of advice I would share with students that are younger than me is to plan ahead. Students my age and younger tend to only think about the present and live in the moment. If you have any desire to go to college after high school, you need to plan for it, don't wait until your junior or senior year to start thinking about it. I wish that I would have researched and visited colleges much sooner than I am now. Visiting college campuses the summer before your junior year is the best time and will help you to narrow down your options. When you know where you would like to go, you can meet with your high school counselor to help you to make sure you’re taking all the classes needed to graduate and that will also line up with the prerequisite classes required at the college you want to attend. Because I've waited too long, my options of where I get to go to college are limited.

Know what your interests are and what subjects you're good at in school. This will help you to choose a major you may be interested in at college. If you participate in high school sports think about whether or not you’ll want to continue playing sports in college. If so, you’ll need to register with the sports division the college you want to go to is a part of and make sure you meet all of their requirements also. Utilize the college courses that are offered in your high school or participate in Running Start through your local community college. This saves a lot of money for your parents or whoever may be paying for your college education. Take the PSAT (Pre SAT) during your junior year to familiarize yourself with the test and to see how you do. Study for the SAT before you take it in your senior year. Don’t just “wing” it. Your SAT and/or ACT scores are very important in order to attend the four-year college of your choice. Take the test as early in your senior year that you can in case you don’t do as well as you had hoped. This allows you time to take the test again in order to get a better score. If you take the ACT and don’t get that great of a score, then take the SAT next time. And remember, if you’re going to want to participate in college sports, the college’s sports division will want a copy of your ACT or SAT scores as well.

High school is fun, and it should be, but before high school is over, it is so important for you to start planning for your future. It will make the transition from high school to college easier and you’ll be at the college that is the best fit for you. The last couple of months of high school are so much more enjoyable if you have a college plan and that plan is in place and is being followed.