My graduation is quickly approaching, which means I’m almost done with high school! However, there are some realizations I had over the year that I wish I had known to start the year off. Hopefully, juniors who read this article can go into their senior year more prepared for their futures.
It is extremely important to get college applications out early. For me, my parents heavily encouraged me to apply early on. After I sent in all my applications, I was offered a large scholarship from one of the schools I applied to. I also started to receive information from the schools on housing and the campus experience.
Look at what you can get out of AP tests before signing up for AP tests. If you look at what colleges give you for certain scores on AP tests, you might realize that you don’t need to credit from the class. Some colleges don’t accept scores for both AP Literature and AP Language. Sometimes, for your major, you might be required to take classes in the area anyways. Or, if you’re not wanting to take an AP test, you might look at what you need for your major and realize passing the test would mean barely having to take any classes in the subject. All these ideas can factor into what tests you sign up for.
Constantly keep checking the scholarship hot sheet put out by the counselors. Scholarships are always being added to the page, and there is always a lot of scholarship money available for students.
Think about what you want to do with your future ahead of time. If you are going to college, think about what you want to do after college, or if you can start off the career you want to go into before leaving college. It’s very comforting to know that you won’t be in the wild, being both out of school and jobless.
Lastly, don’t stress too much about your senior year. Soon, you’re going to be out of high school and into college. After that, your high school grades will have little to no impact on your life. Enjoy the rest of your life in high school! Have fun with friends you might not see next year. Find fun in your classes. Maybe try (legal, non-rule breaking) things that you were too shy to try in previous years. Seize the day!
Overall, keep yourself prepared for what comes next. If you prepare as early as possible, your senior year will become much less stressful and you can spend your last year at Franklin High School enjoying every moment. Because, as the saying goes, every moment matters.