<p>I just graduated high school this past summer and am currently working for a year. After that I intend to serve a church mission for a few years, and then go to school. I work full time, but compared to my schedule when I had school there is a lot of free time. What kinds of thing can I do to prepare myself for college in the next couple of months, as well as increase my chances of getting into a good college? My plans right now are to apply to some high end schools (Standford, MIT) and go into a computer science major. Don't worry so much about the scholastic side of things, I've done all I can grade/test wise, I just want to know of things I can do to keep myself busy that doesn't include video games. Thanks!</p>
<p>Check out the gap year thread in the Non-Traditional Students forum for more info on what other CC gappers are doing - otherwise, as long as you do SOMETHING, you’re fine. A full-time job and a couple of independent projects is great. I would recommend that since you are STEM rather than humanities that you keep in touch with academics somehow, like taking a class or two online or at a local uni, just so that you don’t forget all the math that you learned, etc.</p>
<p>Do NOT take any classes on line or at the local university. For many colleges that will make you a TRANSFER student which means you are not eligible for any of the freshman scholarships. If you really want to keep fresh then just look online for some self study materials.</p>
<p>^ I meant classes online as in Coursera or EdX classes, not formal credit classes. For college classes, you have to check and see how many credits you can take before being considered a transfer - this varies between colleges.</p>
<p>Since your intended major is computer science take on a project that requires significant computer science knowledge and skills execute. The project can be in any domain, perhaps one that can be of value to your church. Apply contemporary computer science technology in executing the project. Start “small” so you have assurance of completing the project. Then either grow the project or take on another, and this time bigger, project.</p>