<p>What classes/ECs should i take/do?
Anything i can do now to help improve my chances?</p>
<p>My first semester in high shcool ends this week and so far I have all A's, and am in 2 honors classes.</p>
<p>You’re on the right track. Study hard and keep up the good grades. </p>
<p>Do an EC or two that interests you. Some students make the mistake of getting involved in many things on a superficial level to pad their resume. Colleges like kids who show they care about the EC, whether it’s band, swim team, scouts, or 4-H. Doesn’t matter as long as you like doing it.</p>
<p>Just do as well as you can. There is no given to how well you should do. Do as well as possible with a rigorous course and get good test scores and you should be good. You have a ways to go before you really have to think about this so I would just advise you to get great grades and stick with an extra curricular that interests you like said above. If you don’t mind me asking, are you in state or out of state? </p>
<p>Ucsb is a great school so it’s nice for you to have a goal. But don’t limit yourself to one school, do as well as you can to open up more opportunities, doing well will help your chances of gaining admission to Santa Barbara and give you other opportunities like Davis, Berkeley, and San Diego. If your set on that region look at USC as well maybe. There are many good schools in the country don’t limit yourself to one option and keep working as hard as you can, because it WILL pay off!</p>
<p>Btw your username is wrong hahaha sorry had to point that out :-)</p>
<p>While its nice to have an eye on college admissions down the road, more important IMHO is to use these years to do things for yourself and your benefit. So here’s what I wish someone had told me when I was 14 or 15.</p>
<p>There’s a saying that the last thing you expect a fish to discover is water, so your day-to-day life probably seems routine and unremarkable. Yet this is the last time in your life you’ll see your parents & siblings on a daily basis. Right now it may feel like that’s too much 
but once its over its going to be over forever. So make an effort to enjoy some time with them these next few years. The memories & bonds you make today are going be be a big part of the glue holding your family together. Similarly make time for your friends who you may have known since you were just starting out on this education adventure.</p>
<p>As for school, if you take care of the learning then the grades tend to take care of themselves. Colleges really look for students with an inner love of learning. Its a funny thing that in your 12 years of schooling thru HS graduation, you’ll probably never get even an hour’s instruction in how to learn; its just what to learn. There’s a I highly recommend called What Smart Students Know by Adam Robinson, written by one of the founders of the Princeton Review prep service. I have never seen a better explanation of the steps you need to follow to really learn the material. You can also find lots of material on the web. Here are a few links to get you started:
[Why</a> Students Think They Understand—When They Don’t](<a href=“http://www.aft.org/newspubs/periodicals/ae/winter0304/willingham.cfm]Why”>Ask the Cognitive Scientist: Why Students Think They Understand—When They Don't) </p>
<p>[Practice</a> Makes Perfect—but Only If You Practice Beyond the Point of Perfection](<a href=“http://www.aft.org/newspubs/periodicals/ae/spring2004/willingham.cfm]Practice”>Ask the Cognitive Scientist: Practice Makes Perfect—But Only If You Practice beyond the Point of Perfection)</p>
<p>[How</a> to Ace Calculus: The Art of Doing Well in Technical Courses](<a href=“http://calnewport.com/blog/2008/11/14/how-to-ace-calculus-the-art-of-doing-well-in-technical-courses/]How”>How to Ace Calculus: The Art of Doing Well in Technical Courses - Cal Newport)</p>
<p>[On</a> Becoming a Math Whiz: My Advice to a New MIT Student](<a href=“http://calnewport.com/blog/2011/04/28/on-becoming-a-math-whiz-my-advice-to-a-new-mit-student/]On”>On Becoming a Math Whiz: My Advice to a New MIT Student - Cal Newport)</p>
<p>BTW you are not limited to the teachers in your school; I hate seeing kids whine in the forum “I had a bad teacher” to try to excuse a bad grade. There have long been workbooks and other resources out there, and in just the past 5 years or so programs like iTunesU have opened up avenues that were once unthinkable. You can watch some of the best profs in the country lecture on almost any subject under the sun, including ones overlapping what you’re learning in school. And this applies even if your teachers are good; watch some of these series to supplement what you’re getting in class.</p>
<p>I wish you the best of luck, and remember, its not just the destination but the journey.</p>