Summer College Planning Tips for High School Juniors

College planning usually doesn't begin in Senior year. Ideally, it's a series of manageable smaller steps taken throughout high school.

Parents often ask me which college planning steps their students should be taking during the summer before Junior year. Here are some suggestions:

Factor fun and downtime into the summer

Why is this important to college planning, and why did I list it first? Junior year is often the most rigorous and can be pretty stressful, so students need to be able to relax and re-energize for the coming school year.

Consider ACT/SAT prep 

Students who have taken Geometry and Algebra 2 are usually academically ready to take official exams. Studying/tutoring over the summer is often easier than during the school year, so it's a great time to get started. No worries if now is not the right time though- students have until Fall of senior year to have official scores for Early Action/Early Decision college applications.

Chat about potential college majors

Summer is a good time to explore major options to see what might be a good fit. It's ok to not be sure about a major- many students apply to college Undeclared or change majors in college. Having a major or family of majors in mind can be helpful, though, when thinking about college options.

Start forming a college list 

Start researching schools that could be good academic, social, geographic, and financial fits. Summer can also be a convenient time to visit some schools, even though fewer students will be present.

Advice: Consider visiting schools in the Likely and Target range for your student at this stage, rather than focusing on Reach schools with low acceptance rates. Falling in love with Likely and Target schools will ease stress during the college application season.

Continue to develop extracurricular activities and interests 

Jobs, family responsibilities, athletics, volunteer work, writing, the arts, research, hobbies, and learning or creating something new are all great options.

If we can be helpful along the way with major exploration, college lists, or general college planning, feel free to reach out anytime. In the meantime, the Helpful Info section of our website has lots of useful (and free!) information about the high school and college planning process.

Have a great summer!

At Growing2College, we support families in all aspects of high school and college planning. Request a free 20-min consultation to learn more about how we can be helpful.

Kate Pedigo, M.Ed., CEP, NCC is an Independent Educational Consultant and founder of Growing2College. Join us on social media for college planning updates, tips, and resources: Facebook   Instagram   LinkedIn