Finishing High School
Standardized tests have become an essential part of the college application process, with most schools requiring scores from at least one test. Students who want a spot at the most competitive schools often take more than one test, even retaking tests multiple times throughout the year to try to get […]
Why Do Standardized Tests Matter?
Winter break is that beautiful period between semesters when your obligations are few and you have the ability to do whatever you want, for as long or as short as you want, every day. You’ve finished the previous semester’s finals and chances are, you weren’t assigned much schoolwork to complete […]
Using Your Winter Break Wisely in High School
When I went away for college, I thought I was prepared to be on my own. Needless to say, I wasn’t. I wasn’t ready to be fully responsible for myself (including cooking and doing laundry); I wasn’t ready to handle money alone; I wasn’t ready to have the freedom to choose whether […]
Things I Wish I Knew before I Left for College
We all know high school is tough. Maintaining a strong GPA while taking rigorous classes is challenging enough, not to mention preparing for any number of standardized tests each year and applying to college. But what if you were to add in extracurricular activities? If you’re already busy and stressed […]
Why You Should Participate in Extracurricular Activities during High School
Preparing for college in high school is a must, and your guidance counselors will back me up. After all, there’s a lot more that goes into your college application than the application form itself. Take any of the following, for example: Transcripts, which need to show four years of decent […]
Why It’s Important to Prepare for College in High School
Standardized tests are notorious for being the bane of high school students’ existence. School-mandated PSAT/NMSQT tests during junior year followed by ACT and SAT testing is enough to induce anxiety, but when you throw on AP exams, IB exams, SAT Subject Tests, and CLEP tests, it seems amazing that anyone […]
Preparing for Standardized Tests
If this were a television show, I’d be pulling up to an unassuming student’s school right now in a crew van. With my cameramen right behind me, I’d jump out of the car, hustle to the classroom, and tear the poor kid’s résumé from his hand. “We have a lot […]
Extreme Makeover: High School Résumé Edition
Once you exit the doors of your high school for the last time, you may not know what to expect from the future. Maybe you visited a couple of campuses during the fall when you were deciding where to apply, did an overnight stay with a current student, or even […]
What Makes College So Different from High School?
It’s almost here—freshman year. Besides the obvious, like arranging your housing and packing, what do you really need to do the summer before college? You only have a month left before move-in day, so do the important stuff before heading out on your new adventure. Here’s a list of what […]
Do This, Not That: The Summer Before College
Chances are, you didn’t grow up dreaming of attending your local community college. You probably didn’t proudly put on its sweatshirt on decision day and you definitely don’t root for its football team. When it comes down to it, though, these details don’t matter much. What does matter is that […]
Community College: The Unsung Hero of Higher Education
Congratulations on graduating high school! It’s time to say goodbye to your favorite teacher, clean out your locker, and enjoy your last hallway huddle. Rejoice in your final standardized test and celebrate that the school monitor no longer is able to confiscate your cell phone. You’re free! It’s all bittersweet, […]
What We Wish We’d Known about Graduating High School
Anyone in college admissions will wax poetic about summer jobs. With a summer job, high school students beef up their résumés, use their brains over the summers, and acquire new skills. Students who keep with their summer jobs during the school year are even more impressive. They prove they can […]