Hello everybody! Hope you all are having a pleasant day (or night) :))
Anyway, I have some things to ask about HS. I go a private school in Texas, and I have a great circle of friends that I can rely on, and my grades are doing really good except in Spanish. I’m currently in Spanish 2, and my teacher got fired because he got so many complaints about his way of teaching. That’s the reason of my low spanish grade (84) compared to the rest of my classes. I am currently taking English 1, Algebra 2 Honors, Chemistry Honors, Physics Honors, History Honors, Spanish 2, and orchestra. I’m a JV in the school tennis team, and I’m the captain of an Aerospace club in my high school.
I’m still pretty inexperienced to high school life, and what I should prepare for. I’ve done some researching, and I know that the SAT and the ACT tests are really important tests in High School. I’ve started preparing for them, but not much. So should I start a rigorous training for the SATs starting now, or should I hold off a bit until the sophomore year rolls around? There seems to be no exact answer, as everybody has different views on the question.
Another thing I would like to ask about High School is about the years. My school told us that the freshman and sophomore years aren’t as important as senior and junior year. Is this a true statement, or is it a just a lure to make freshman feel better about the overwhelmingness of high school?
Thanks for reading this post. Sorry it was so long. :)>-
The SAT and ACT tests can match up with classes you are taking. For math, both have some trig/pre-calc questions. so imo I would take some practice tests after taking that class. For now I would focus on a strong GPA. Colleges want a rigorous course schedule and a strong GPA. You already seem to be taking a strong schedule. By the time you are submitting applications it will be with a transcript through junior year. Use your years of high school to work hard, find some extra-curricular activities interest you, and enjoy your high school years. And try not to stress, there are many good colleges. Good luck to you!
Did you already take Biology and Spanish 1? Your class schedule seems really impressive this year. No worries if you’re still adjusting to high school, that’s exactly why many colleges don’t take freshman grades into consideration for your GPA. Overall, I think you’re doing great. You’re definitely prepared for sophomore year.
As for that last statement you made about the importance of each high school year, it’s true that your sophomore year and junior year are the most important. It’s mainly because colleges like the UC’s and CSU’s (in California) as well as many other colleges throughout the states calculate your GPA by combining grades from those two years. I believe senior year is equally important because colleges like to see a consistent trend in your grades, but it definitely has a different feeling of stress to it from the other years. This is coming from a high school senior myself.
Training for the SAT/ACT depends entirely on the level of math that you’re taking, how well you’re used to the test questions, how much time you have on your hands to practice, and your dream score. I believe you can start later on and focus on getting good grades during sophomore year. Then, incorporate a little bit of studying when you get the chace to. Looking back, I wish I took summer classes to accelerate in my classes because many colleges also take summer classes after your freshman year into calculation for your GPA. So, utilize your summer to the best you can. Many of my friends and I started prepping for the SAT the summer of our sophomore year. One of my closest friends actually started her freshman year, and she took her final SAT by the start of junior year, so she would have more time to focus on doing well in her classes.
Have you looked into any colleges to see where you want to apply to in the future? You already seem like a very academically determined student. Keep on going. Good luck!
@selfconfidentgal I did take spanish 1 during middle school. I’m taking biology next year though, because I’m currently in my first year of high school.
You’re doing great. As a senior now in high school, I wish I took the time to take summer classes and accelerate to make my transcripts look a little bit better. I can tell you right now that there aren’t many students like you who take Physics, Chem, and Spanish 2 during their first year in HS. Keep up the good work, and save the SAT/ACT prepping for next summer.