Sophomores, you have completed the first half of high school and are headed for big things in the coming months and years, including preparing for college applications. This is the ideal moment for you to plan the next two years. Here is what I advise you to keep top of mind as you do: 

1) How to Begin Preparing for the SAT or ACT

If a student has completed Algebra 2 by the end of sophomore year and plans to take the SAT or ACT, the summer before junior year is the right time to make a plan and register for testing for fall. Students who are behind that schedule in math can start preparing in the middle of junior year to test in late junior year and summer before senior year. How to time WHEN to take the SAT/ACT?

Although the vast majority of colleges in the US remain test optional, some of the most selective schools are now requiring test scores– that list now includes Harvard, Yale, Cornell, UT Austin, Dartmouth, Brown, Georgetown, MIT, Purdue, and Cal Tech, as well as public colleges in Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida– so plan accordingly. How to decide whether or not to prep for the SAT/ACT  

I advise that most students at least take assessments for the ACT and SAT so we can determine which test is a better fit (and whether a student should test at all). Because the typical student will need to prepare for about four months ahead of a first official test and will take the test an average of two or three times, many students prep in summer and take at least two official exams in the fall. Schedule a mini consult to discuss your student’s test prep needs with Christina 

Strong test takers may qualify for National Merit Scholar or Commended Scholar or National Hispanic Scholar based on the fall of junior year PSAT/NMSQT, so that gives students an additional incentive to prepare over the summer. How do my PSAT scores affect National Merit Scholarships?

Finally, I encourage all of my students to register for these exams early. Believe it or not, seats are limited at testing facilities, especially for those needing accommodations. Sophomore test takers are competing for seats with juniors and even seniors, so seats fill up quickly. May 16 is the registration deadline for the June 1 SAT exam, and SAT registration is available now all the way through the December test date. You can check additional SAT registration and test dates here and ACT registration dates here.

2) When to Begin Touring Colleges

I started college tours with my current senior the summer after his sophomore year, just to get him on a few campuses that were NOT likely to be on his final college list. I wanted him to see different types of schools– large, small, near home and farther away– before we focused on the schools he would ultimately apply to. Current sophomores may be able to sneak in a few tours of nearby colleges before school is out for summer too. It is then junior year when we want to map out a plan for seeing colleges of interest, starting first with casting a wide net and then narrowing to the final list by summer after junior year. Factors to consider when visiting colleges 

It is so important for students to research schools and visit them when college is in session so they can see what the campus looks and feels like when it is full of college students, and so this takes family planning throughout junior year so that students see enough schools without disrupting their own lives and coursework too much. Building the College List for Academic Fit, Financial Fit and Student Interest 

One thing our team has learned over the years is that our students do best when they have a well-designed list with enough foundation (“safety”) schools and well-targeted reach schools. Nothing breaks our heart more than the kid who has done a great job in high school but doesn’t have good outcomes from her college applications because she didn’t have experienced guidance on her college list.

Schedule a list-building session with Christina to make a plan for the types of colleges that will be a good fit for your student. 

We also have recordings available for purchase of our three-part series on college list building.

3) Selecting the Right High School Courses

Review your junior year course registration to ensure you are signed on for the appropriate level of rigor and sufficient coursework as you move into the second half of your high school career. Colleges care about both rigor and grades, so it is crucial to neither under-enroll– too easy of a course load– nor overload your schedule– resulting in low grades. 

How Do I Pick the Right Courses for Next School Year?

4) Developing relationships with high school teachers

Most colleges recommend or require two letters of recommendation from core academic teachers– history, foreign language, ELA, mathematics, and science– and students typically ask junior year teachers, so this is an important year for teacher relationships. If you are a strong student but don’t often speak up or participate much, this is the year to develop that skill. 

How to Get the Best Letters of Recommendation

5) Developing your high school activities profile

After grades and rigor of coursework, colleges pay the most attention to a student’s character, and activities (along with letters of recommendation) are crucial for showing who a student is. Colleges review which activities a student does, commitment (how much time he spends on them), and longevity (favoring activities that have developed over time over activities added in the fall of senior year). Ultimately, activities of whatever type should be what the student wants to do, whether that is athletics or music, service or student government. 

As a student moves into the upper class years, she will want to be able to show growth in activities, from participating to leading, from joining to starting something new. A sophomore should think about how she can lead in her areas of interest. For example, a softball player might seek a position as captain and use her off season to coach players with special needs. A student interested in politics can volunteer for a campaign and become a team leader in her debate club. There is no “one size fits all,” but rather we are aiming for a “your size fits you” with activities. 

What “counts” for high school activities? What should I do now to prepare for college applications?