Freshmen: Preparing For College

boy with basket ball

Get Ready…

Even if you are not sure what your future holds, prepare as if you will be going to college. What you will learn will help you get the very most from life. You might change your mind several times about the type of job you want to have. Changing your mind is not a problem – but not having a plan could create one.

There are two important things you can do now to set yourself on the right path for college preparation:

1. Sign up for the right courses - Challenge yourself today and every single school year.
2. Work hard to do well - As with most things in life, hard work pays off. There are benefits to doing well in school.

These college planning checklists should prove to be valuable resources to help with your college awareness and planning. An important component of planning is making sure you take the right classes to graduate on time and also prepare you for the college of your choice.

There are many online resources to check out to make sure you are on the right track such as;

  • KnowHow2Go, an interactive, informative, and fun online resource.

 

Get Set...

Talk with your guidance counselor for a complete list of recommended courses for you to take in middle or junior high school to prepare you for college. While there might be some differences in the required courses you need to take to get into different colleges, universities, or technical schools, one thing is for sure; there are specific high school graduation requirements in the state of Michigan that can be reviewed at www.michigan.gov/highschool. The following brochures can be referenced at this site:

  • A Parent's Guide to Graduation Requirements
  • Michigan Merit Curriculum (MMC) High School Graduation Requirement

 

The Official Part of Getting Set

No one can look to college without first taking either the ACT or the SAT. The earlier you take the test the better as this will give you plenty of time to take it again if necessary. Guidelines regarding the best times to start this process can be found in the college planning checklists. Both the ACT and the SAT are supported by various study and testing websites:

 

Still Getting Set...

After all, getting ready for your future is a big job. You don't know which direction your career should take you. Again, your guidance counselor is a great first stop. In addition, here are a few cool websites that will help you assess yourself and find information on different careers:

 

You are getting closer to applying to college!