<p>My cousin will be a Freshman next year and is looking for any advice upperclassmen can provide for her about anything high-school related.</p>
<p>be afraid. be very afraid.</p>
<p>Hmmm…I’m not an upperclassman yet (sophmore), but I can offer some advice. Try your hardest. Do your homework. Take classes you enjoy. Work hard in the ones you like. Try in the ones you don’t. Learn of colleges, don’t look at them, just learn that they exist and by junior year, you’ll be freaking out about them. Realize that what if she does well in freshman and sophmore years, she won’t have to worry as much in junior and senior year about grades, GPA, class rank, etc. Don’t be afraid of getting to know some of your teachers, they may write the recommendation letter that gets you into a certain college (obviously not true, but it is a big influence). And, enjoy yourself, it’s high school, you have time and you should enjoy life.</p>
<p>hmmm. the best advice i can give is to get very involved. its a really great way to make friends both with other freshies and with older kids who can help them out with stuff, give advice for teachers, stuff like that. that would be my biggest thing. the other reason to get involved is (this is going to be extremely cheesy but…) it really does give you a sense of being something and having worth. dont know how big your school is, but mine is huge and its easy to get lost in the crowd but being so involved makes me feel like i stand out and like im really much more a part of the school, which is worth while. </p>
<p>the other advice i would give is to stay on top of your school work. keep up with everything. she may not be supermotivated right now, but next year or the year after shell wish she had been. dont be afraid to approach teachers about grades or anything if something doesnt look right. it may seem like a small thing but it adds up to a really big deal. </p>
<p>thats all i can think of at the moment</p>
<p>I would tell her to be serious about schoolwork since high school is when your grades really start to count and that’s really important. Tell her to meet new people from all grades, not just other freshmen. She should definitely start to get involved in extracurricular activities and see what she likes and continue with those through senior year.</p>
<p>Chill out.</p>
<p>If your friend is ivy-leave or upper-tier bound hopeful: DO NOT, I mean DO NOT procrastinate! ever! I cannot stress this enough! One slip-up will effect how you will do for the rest of the year. Do not slack of second semester! Yes, I know, we all get Spring Fever, but please do not let yourself start to slug. Another thing, decide which one or two sports you excel in and join them! Join clubs that are meaningful to you, get involved! Start looking at colleges. Take the hardest courseload you can handle, maintain straight A’s so that you may become valedictorian (yes I know, controversial topic, but just try your hardest!)…hmm, on the flipside, dont let school control your life. have some fun, but in moderation. Join CC! and don’t be afraid to squash your competition (and yes, your friends are your competition), but, of course, do not cheat, lie, steal, etc. to get to the top. oh, and, establish connections with others affiliated with the school you want to go to! Yes, i know, some might think this is terrible advice, but in this cut-throat life high school students are living, we must do what we can to get by.</p>
<p>be nice to people and all your social problems will be solved</p>
<p>Generally the same as the above: </p>
<ol>
<li>GET GOOD GRADES</li>
<li>GET INVOLVED </li>
</ol>
<p>It will definitely pay off. I wish I had thought of all this when I was a freshman.</p>