<p>Lately, I've ruined my high school life and My plans for getting into NYU are abolished!!</p>
<p>I've been gets Bs, Cs, and some As all year (Freshman and Sophomore) & I haven't taken AP courses!!! (Freshman: UW 80 W 86/ Sophomore UW 85 W 87) </p>
<p>But I'm going to be a Junior next year so I don't want to ruin my year. </p>
<p>-How do you plan your schedule so that you can get all your homework done and study???
-What time do you usually go to bed???
-Any advice for changing???
-What measures and steps so I take that can prepare me for getting into a University like NYU?
-How many clubs should I join? APs to take?
-Methods for studying SATs?</p>
<ol>
<li>Make full use of your time at school - do homework before classes, during boring lectures, and during lunch if need be. You'll be amazed at how little you have left for home.</li>
<li>9:00 - 9:30. 10:30 at the latest.</li>
<li>Don't worry so much. Don't waste time.</li>
<li>Keep up straight A's this year. Join some clubs you're interested in, volunteer, and pursue a passion (or just pursue a topic that you think you can fake a passion with ;)).</li>
<li>Clubs = ones that you can get leadership positions in, or if you have a genuine interest. APs = amount that you can handle. I took 6 my junior year.</li>
<li>Get a good night's sleep. Oh yeah, and get the blue book.</li>
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<ol>
<li><p>Basically everything that jerryhathaway said for your question #1..</p></li>
<li><p>I take a one hour/two hour nap everyday so that I'm not to exhausted and can absorb the material faster. I usually go to sleep at 2:00 AM at the latest. I'm more of a night person,though.</p></li>
<li><p>Use your time effectively, don't procrastinate, get a planner and write EVERYTHING down for the day, take notes during a lecture (even if it isn't required...it would save you some time with the textbook), and sometimes color-coding certain material helps it to stick in your mind.</p></li>
<li><p>Try to show an upward trend with your GPA, take AP courses/honors classes, do well in those classes, get a decent score on the SAT, and form good academic relationships with teachers.</p></li>
<li><p>You shouldn't join clubs just to look good to colleges. It's more about quality rather than quantity. Take as many APs you can handle, and in subjects that you are actually interested (EX: Don't take AP Studio Art, if you despise art).</p></li>
<li><p>Get a prep book (the blue book is the best). Do the "SAT Question of the Day" every single day. Take practice tests, so that you can get used to the format, timing, and 1/4 point deduction for guessing.</p></li>
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<p>Thank you ... <em>jots everything down</em></p>
<p>Do I need to take a Course over the summer or just study?... for the SATs</p>
<p>you can take SAT prep classes over the summer</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I totally disagree with the two people who have commented. You asked how to "plan" your schedule so that you can get your homework done, so you should NOT be "planning" on doing your homework in the morning. Without having a good grasp on how much you can do how quickly, you may end up rushing through work and doing it haphazardly. Not only that, but if you're trying for APs, you'll be hard pressed to learn anything, and then you have to spend the time before the APs to study.</p></li>
<li><p>Ok, so I'm a hypocrite. I can go to sleep any time from 11 to 2 on a normal night, but that's 'cause I suck at planning my homework schedule. At least I don't do it in the morning!</p></li>
<li><p>Start a schedule and stick to it. If you veer off, veer yourself right back.</p></li>
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<p>I highly recommend the prep CLASSES...I raised my score 400 points in four days...</p>
<p>ReninDetroit, that's incredible, but I don't think that's anywhere near the norm... </p>
<p>In my opinion SAT prep classes are overrated... You can do the same thing with 1 or 2 SAT books. I raised my SAT over 300 points without any classes, only $40 worth of prep books. Several of my friends still scored lower than me, even though they spend upwards of $2000 on prep.</p>
<p>Arthurbulla, your approach may work for you (or in theory), but mine works fine for me.</p>
<p>Most of the posters above had good ideas. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Don't procrastinate. If you have a paper due, work on it a bit every day instead of writing all 10 pages the night before. I tend to do a lot of work in class when things get dull (but that's probably not such a good idea), but if you ever have a few minutes of free time, try to get stuff done. I usually have little to no homework to do at home, because I get it done in school.</p></li>
<li><p>I usually go to sleep around 10-ish. It seems ridiculously early, but I've really noticed the difference between this year, and last year when I'd go to bed around 2. I do better in classes, I'm more efficient because I need to get my work finished early, and I'm in a better mood overall.</p></li>
<li><p>Eh...work hard. And don't worry about the frosh/soph grades too much. They'll hurt your GPA a bit, but you can make up for that in the next two years. In fact (since you mentioned NYU), I went to a college-planning meeting where an NYU-admissions director talked about how they like to see an upward trend in terms of grades. You just might want to be prepared to explain why you had low grades during those two years.</p></li>
<li><p>Work hard, but remember to have a life. NYU wants people who are intelligent, but who also have good personalities and would enrich their student body.</p></li>
<li><p>Don't overbook yourself. It's insane trying to go from 0 APs to 6. I took 3 APs during my junior year, and that was enough work. Do what you can handle. Having As in 2 APs looks better than having Bs and Cs in 5.</p></li>
<li><p>My mom helped me study for the SAT (she's thinking about becoming a tutor), and it was effectively the same as a course, but free. I'd recommend studying on your own and then taking the SAT early-ish. If you don't like your score, you have time to study more and take a class if you feel like you need it and retake the test in June and/or October (of senior year).</p></li>
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