Junior Year is a chaotic one for most students.  In addition to preparing for your numerous state-mandated standardized tests, you also need to balance normal school life, extracurriculars, and (for many students) getting ready to apply to colleges. This can be a really stressful time for many and, as it is a process that many others have gone through, they try to give their best advice. At my school, they provide Juniors an opportunity to take a class about the college application process, life post-high school, and SAT prep. It was only a one trimester class, and I figured that it was worth a shot to at least try. (At least if I didn’t learn anything, that classroom was right by the cafeteria and I was taking it during the lunch hour.) Despite the number of my classmates that griped and groaned about the class, I do feel like I learned some valuable things from the class. That is why I am here. Even if this gets lost to the wind, I want to try and share some of these things that I learned in that class with others. Since I am taking these things from a very lecture-based class, I can’t provide a ton of extra resources, but I tried to find what I could. Be sure to keep in mind, everyone’s situation is different so everyone’s experience on this will be different.  

1. Test Scores Aren’t Always Needed 

This one comes as a shock to many people. High schools tend to put a ton of emphasis on these standardized tests and while many colleges do require them, there are alternatives. Many schools offer options to either get around the testing requirement or are completely test-optional and you don’t have to submit a score. Test optional schools will allow you to do this for any reason whether it be that they don’t reflect your true learning capabilities or you just simply didn’t want to take it. While it is good to double-check with specific colleges on what their specific testing policy is, FairTest provides a highly accurate list of test-optional schools.  

2. It’s All About Perspective  

You don’t have to be top of your class to get into your top college. For the numbers game part of your application, it is just about hitting higher than the average at that specific college. When looking at data like GPA and Standardized Test Scores, colleges will commonly provide data for both of these, including where the 25^th and 75^th percentiles hit. These are the scores/GPAs that people need to hit to rank at or better than 25% or 75% of their classmates. To draw the admissions officer’s attention to your application, you want to try to hit about in the middle of these two numbers (The 50^th percentile). To really have it stand out (if this is the route you are choosing to go), try to score/earn higher than the 75^th Percentile. This can be very confusing, so I will provide a real-life example:  

Michigan State University is a very popular public university that many students in the area like to apply to, so I choose this as my example school. I googled ‘msu sat score percentiles’ and the first result was a PrepScholar (A highly reliable test prep company) 

score report (Linked at the bottom). Among other stats, there is a chart, almost right off the bat, containing SAT score data. It breaks it down into the two main SAT categories, Math and Reading+Writing, as well as an overall total. It then lists the average (50^th percentile), 25^th Percentile, and 75^th Percentile. In this case, the average total score is 1210, with the 25^th percentile at 1120 and the 75^th at 1310. These would be the numbers to keep in mind as you prepped for the test ahead.  

3. You Don’t Have to Take Every Honors and AP Course  

This one tends to cater to those that are going for more competitive colleges. However, not all of these schools look at how many honors and AP classes you took in high school. Some look at a trend of improving grades while others look at your GPA. Only the most competitive schools (i.e. Ivy League members) might consider these as highly valuable. It will depend on what school you are looking at, and some don’t even accept AP credits. Something like this is pretty much a case by case situation so it is always good to check in with the school that you are looking at.  

4. There are Alternates to College 

Many students will either go to college, join the military, or go directly into the workforce after high school. However, there is another option! Trade Schools, also known as Vocational Schools, are also an amazing post high school option. These schools specialize in training you for one specific job. Programs include things like plumbing, auto repair, HVAC, and welding. They are commonly cheaper and quicker than college and many will allow you to head into your new profession right out of school. Many of these jobs also pay extremely well and are in high demand right now. Easywork.net has a good article covering in-demand jobs as well as more information on them. 

5. This is Your Time to Shine! 

Colleges really do want to hear about you. The admissions process is not just a numbers game and character is very important to the places that you apply to. Don’t be afraid to brag about yourself! Did you take a cool trip or have a unique skill that you are proud of? Tell them! Tell colleges all about these little things that make you, you! They want to know that you are more than just a one-dimensional person without much to you. If there were circumstances that didn’t allow you to take all the classes you wanted, affected your grades, or prevented you from doing extracurriculars definitely share that as well! Family Situations, working, or other circumstances that cut into your time are just as welcome on college applications. It helps the colleges understand you just a bit better and to see the person behind the numbers, especially in these odd times.   

Summer is almost over now, as much as we would like to deny it. For incoming seniors, applications will soon be due and within the next few months, we will know how the next chapter in our lives will begin. For incoming juniors, you will start to think about these things, maybe for the first time, and begin to start to plan out the path ahead. I will not mince words: It is crazy, and it is terrifying. I just hope that I was able to help.

There are some additional resources that I wanted to provide that just didn’t fit inside the main points that I brought up. The site Niche provides a pretty good college checklist that takes you from spring your junior year until acceptance. This has definitely helped me keep track of all of the dates and things during this process, so I highly recommend that you check it out. Niche also gives college ‘report cards’ scoring universities on a variety of categories while providing some good information on them. Finally, the College Board provides a college search tool that gives you dates, admissions information, target test scores and GPA, among other things. I wish you all a happy summer and good luck with your college admissions process! 

-Kelsey M, Teen CHARGE Brand Rep

Links: 

FairTest Test-Optional Schools: https://www.fairtest.org/university/optional 

Easywork.net Trade Jobs: https://www.easyworknet.com/business/top-7-best-skilled-trade-jobs-demand-2019/#:~:text=7%20Trade%20Jobs%20in%20Demand%20for%202019%201,…%206%20HVAC.%20…%207%20Elevator%20Installing.%20 

MSU PrepScholar Score Report: https://www.prepscholar.com/sat/s/colleges/Michigan-State-SAT-scores-GPA#:~:text=Michigan%20State%20SAT%20Score%20Analysis%20%28New%201600%20SAT%29,1310%20will%20move%20you%20up%20to%20above%20average. 

Niche College Prep Checklist: https://www.niche.com/blog/your-2019-checklist-for-getting-into-college-ordered-chronologically/ 

Niche: https://www.niche.com/ 

College Board College Search: https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/find-colleges