Sophomores:  Keeping Your Options Open

The journey to find the school that will be the right match for you at the end of your high school career really begins your sophomore year.  It is important to realize that the decisions you make now will effect what options are open to you later.  The College Guidance Office encourages you to keep your options open.  Position yourself now so that you will be in control of choosing the college that best suits your needs – you want to be the one making the decision of where you go to school, not some college admissions officer!

Start looking at what certain schools expect.  If you have a few schools in mind, come by the College Guidance Office and check out their brochures or course books.  If you have no idea what school you might want to go to, come by the office and look at some general guide books – many of these are actually written by students at the colleges so you can get a real feel for what life would be like there.  You may discover that that college in California that you always thought would be perfect for you has horrible dorms, terrible food, and offers no classes on anything you’re interested in. The best way to start a list of colleges that you want to look at is to come read what the colleges have to say about themselves and what the students there think about the school. 

Spend some time browsing the web as well.  Some schools also have videos or interactive tours on their websites, which can be an excellent place to start looking.  The website will tell you quickly what kind of classes the school offers, if they have any specialties, what their dorms look like, and what sort of extra-curricular activities are big on campus.

Knowing these things now may make a difference in the choices that you make about your academics and activities while still here at Seabury.

What can a sophomore do?

-          Start looking at college guidance books!

-          Check out the websites for different schools!

-          Attend college rep meetings at Seabury!

-          Take the PSAT in October! (required)

-          Continue to stay involved in activities that interest you and keep up with your academics!

-          Find something exciting to do with your summer!  Consider taking an SAT prep course!

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