<p>I am a new member of College Confidential, as I am a current eight grader and will be a freshman this fall. For you high schoolers out there, I am seeking advice on how you're juggling high school academics (and athletics if you participate in any) and any tips you have. </p>
<p>What is the best way to start preparing for college apps and SAT/ACT? I've been starting to read classic literature (since reading comp is not my strong suit) - i.e. The Great Gatsby & Lord Of The Flies. I have read that in order to improve the SAT reading comp section, the students who score in the higher range have been avid readers as a child. Do you have any book suggestions or ways to improve my reading comp skills?</p>
<p>I'm also beginning computer programming and starting with basics such as Ruby and Python. Within one or two years, I plan to be programming Java, HTML, and any other languages that I see fit for my future CP career. I only play one sport - volleyball, which I've been playing for six years. </p>
<p>What sort of things should I start doing freshman year and throughout high school to make myself presentable to college admissions? Extra curriculars? Leadership activites? Also, I am struggling to find ways to make myself "interesting" and stand out among college admission officers as I am aware that colleges and universities look for students who are unique, interesting, and will contribute to their community. The questions I am imposing is "What does, for example, a Stanford, Harvard, or UC Berkeley acceptant's resume look like? What did they do that made them stand out and seem interesting?" </p>
<p>Finally, I want to ask those who have been accepted to top universities, what did it take to get to where you are today? How much hard work, time, and effort did you put into getting accepted to your reach/dream school? What was your high school experience like? Any advice for me? </p>
<p>Thank you for reading! All answers will be greatly appreciated. Have a nice day! :D </p>
<p>They’re revising the SAT, so my comments on that might not be particularly useful for you. But I think standardized tests share enough similarities that you can use a lot of the same advice for the SAT and the ACT (and, by extension, the old SAT and the new SAT). I never really studied for the SAT specifically, just the ACT, and my scores were still comparable.</p>
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I did well on the Critical Reading and Writing sections. I guess I was an “avid reader” when I was younger (through middle school), but unfortunately I’m not now. At the end of the day the SAT is testing a certain kind of knowledge, but in the Critical Reading and Writing sections I relied mostly on intuition rather than things I remembered learning. I have a good sense of what “sounds wrong” grammatically and I can often figure out what words mean just from how they “sound” when you say them. </p>
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Talk to your parents about how you’re going to pay for college, and run net price calculators on college websites.</p>
There are a lot of ways to make yourself unique. I remember looking into that same question a while back, and I remember reading that “colleges don’t want well-rounded students; they want well-rounded classes.” Meaning, focus on that one thing that you love to do more than anything else, and find opportunities to pursue it. For example, I really, really love science. I’m looking into possibly interning at a university lab over the summer so I can get a mentor for a Science Fair project, which is another way that I’m pursuing my interest. I could give more advice on that if you could tell me something in particular that you enjoy.</p>
<p>As for extra-curricular activities, I could just tell you to be involved as much as you can in your school community through clubs and activities, especially those that interest you. Take initiative; I’m going to be the president of two clubs next year. Leadership is a good trait, and displaying it would be a good idea. Some of the academic clubs are ones that you need to be invited to, but you can still find a lot to join based on interest and initiative.</p>
<p>@awakeningvenus I’m starting to become interesting in computer programming and I plan to pursue that as a career. What types of clubs do you on suggest to look good on college apps?</p>
<p>@jninja88
That’s a toughy; my high school has a technology program, so I know that you wouldn’t have the same opportunities as I would. Look into it to see if there are any Programming competitions in your area. You could probably ask a guidance counselor or an AP Computer Science teacher if there are any. (Speaking of which, you should definitely take AP Computer Science if you haven’t already.) For club activities, you could focus on STEM-based clubs. There are a few activities that should have a subtle application to computer science. For example, you could definitely do a science fair project using computer programming as an application; I know a few people that have done it. Also, I haven’t personally learned any programming languages, but learning Java or C# would look good. </p>
<p>You could always try founding a programming or computer science club at your school. It actually sounds like something that people would be interested in, especially with the influence technology has these days.</p>
<p>@awakeningvenus Thanks so much! I’ll definitely do that. I’ve been seeing on CC people like me, eighth graders, saying that they plan to do AP classes freshman year. I’m not planning on taking AP classes until junior year. Am I too behind? </p>
<p>Don’t fall into the trap of living your high school life trying to impress the overly selective colleges and their admissions officers !</p>
<p>Best advice I could give to “stand out” and be “unique” is to simply pursue your passions (or do what you love) extensively. Be a leader not a follower. Challenge yourself and take advantage of the opportunities and experiences you are presented with.</p>
<p>However I would reccomend taking an AP or 2 sophomore year. I don’t think that’s too much.</p>
<p>@jninja88
Honestly, I wouldn’t worry about it; work at your own pace. You should feel comfortable and confident about taking AP classes when you decide to take them. I took one AP class in freshman year, and I ended up getting a B all year and a 3 on the exam. I’m doing better in sophomore year with 2 that I’m taking. I honestly don’t think I was completely ready last year. I feel like as far as applications go, taking honors instead of AP during freshman and junior year won’t matter too much unless you’re completely set on going to HYPS, or if you’re planning to knock out half of your college classes during high school.</p>
<p>As far as CS goes, out of school projects can be a very cool part of your application. I used a fantasy football website coded in HTML/CSS/PHP (not even the most used languages I know) and submitted an entire technical resume in the additional information section of the common app, detailing what I knew in my major. One university even sent me an acceptance letter that specifically mentioned the website. Point is, technical projects are perfect for actual experience and can help in the admissions process to make you stand out. </p>
<p>In terms of personal experience in CS: If you continue on the CS route, you will start to see that the language you code in doesn’t matter much in the end. Make sure you pick up good logic habits in your code, and always do things the efficient way. This will be useful in every language. I have a laundry list of languages I know, but in the end you see the same program architecture and logical structures no matter the language. Remember that as you learn.</p>
<p>In terms of clubs, my high school was lacking. If your school has robotics, do it. General tech club, do it. Personally, I learned much more on my own about programming and CS than I did in a classroom for the most part.</p>
<p>I know they’re changing the SAT, but something to remember is that reading nonfiction is just as important as reading fiction. I took the PSAT this yr, and the reading sections are not particularly interesting: they drop you down in the middle of a book with little context. My English teacher said that standardized tests intentionally give you passages that aren’t that interesting. I think my nonfiction reading helped me- I got >230 (unfortunately, I’m a sophomore so it doesn’t count for anything). I had read 1 of the books though </p>
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