Bad start on road to college - What to do from now on? Sophomore

Applying to College
1

<p>Hello Everybody,</p>

<p>I'm pretty new to this forum but I've enjoy reading a lot of these posts and it got me thinking about my own college future. </p>

<p>To start off let me tell you a bit about my academic standing right now. Currently I'm a sophomore of high school. I've never really been active at all in school; pretty much no extracurricular activities, not much athleticism, and not even good when it comes to school grades (Mostly A, some B, and one or two C so far). My GPA this semester is 3.5. I've gone through an identity crisis ever since I started high school and so I'm not involve or happy about school period... I realize I'm at a very bad position and I need to start heading away from it if I want to have a bright future. That is why I came here! </p>

<p>Obviously the past is the past and I can't chance what I should of done, so I'll put my energy on things I can do from now on! </p>

<p>The good thing is that I'm an avid reader; I spend most of my free time reading history and biographies, etc. I've recently took my first ever ACT (PLAN) test and got a 24 composite score. Not too good, but I realized my reading was the highest by far. </p>

<p>I'm almost done with sophomore year and junior is fast approaching. So, my question to you is what are some tips for my to start turning around my situation and hopefully get a better chance at college? (BTW, I'm hoping to go into medical). I'm willing to change my lifestyle. </p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>1) Keep the grades up - an upward trend is good and schools know that guys get off to a somewhat slower start. Get to know some of your teachers too. You’ll need at least two who know you well enough by the end of junior year to write letters of recommendation for you.</p>

<p>2) Try a practice SAT - some people do much better on one test or the other. And practice makes a big difference on both tests. You can do this over the coming summer - no rush.</p>

<p>3) Find a few extracurricular activities that play to your interests. You like history? Check out being a docent at a local museum or assist your town with their archives. Interested in medicine? See about volunteering somewhere with a medical or health angle - a public health clinic, hospital, nursing home, local fire dept (EMT!) You don’t have to do a lot of things - just a few to check out your interests, learn something new and see the world from a perspective that you might not get at school.</p>

<p>4) Have the financial talk with your parents: What can they afford? They may also have other expectations about college that you would do well to find out about now.</p>

<p>5) Don’t sweat this too much - there are lots of great schools where you’ll get a terrific education. The key next year is figuring out where you’ll be happiest and you have lots of time to think about it over the coming year.</p>