Junior year is critical — here are things that you can do today to get into college next year

For all those parents of juniors in high school, this will be one of the busiest and most important school years for your child.

Of course, you want to help your child put their best foot forward and make this their best year ever. Following these tips will help you give your child a leg up this year and senior year. It will also put them in the best possible position when they go to apply to colleges next year.

Create a preliminary college list

Junior year is a great time to talk with your child about what colleges they might want to apply to next year. Even though the list might change, having options now can give your student time to think and research about them.

The most important thing to keep in mind when walking your student through creating a college list is to make sure it’s balanced. It should have a good mix of safety, match, and reach schools for both acceptance and cost. For example, a good rule of thumb for a safety school is that your child’s SAT or ACT score is above the 75th percentile for the school and your family can easily afford it.

Grades this year have a big impact

Junior year is usually super busy with harder classes, but it’s really important that your child’s grades don’t slip. This will be the last full year of grades on their transcript. They need to be good! Make sure if your child needs help to keep their grades up, they’re getting it. That can be from you, a teacher, a tutor. It doesn’t matter as long as they’re getting the help they need and keeping those grades up.

Connect with teachers for recommendations

Often teachers from junior year end up being the best teacher recommendations for your child’s college application. That’s one of the other reasons doing well in junior year is so important. Talk with your child about which teachers and classes they like best. Encourage them to ask questions in class and give the teacher an opportunity to know them better. Then at the end of the year, they will be in a great position to ask the teacher for a recommendation for their college applications.

Look for outside the classroom experiences

Junior year is a great time for your child to really explore their interests outside of the classroom. Help them look into research and community service opportunities even jobs and internships. A lot of parents and students worry that junior year is too late to start a club or extracurricular activity, but that isn’t the case. 

If you want more college admissions tips to help your student get into their dream colleges,  do get in touch with us and we will be happy to help you.