<p>
How does an eighth grader know what schools to aim for?</p>
<p>But that reminded me of one of the most important things, which is talking to your parents about how you’re going to pay for college and running net price calculators on college websites. </p>
<p>I think the word “passion” is really overused on here, because in my mind passion is something that develops over time after you make a choice to work hard at something. It’s not something the world just thrusts on you, so don’t worry if you don’t really know what you’re interested in yet. </p>
<p>Include a greeting and a conclusion in your emails, and get in the habit of writing in a reasonably grammatical way even when you don’t have to (on the Internet, mostly). I really think doing this has improved my writing. </p>
<p>I wish I had started taking SAT prep seriously in 9th grade and had higher standards as an eighth grader (some of my eighth grade grades get weighed in with my high school grades to calculate my cumulative GPA).</p>
<p>Wow, thats so annoying @sunsh0wers how your 8th grade grades and in your HS GPA, if that was for me, I would have a 2.0 or lower lol </p>
<p>^Yeah /: I mean, my 8th grade grades weren’t THAT bad (as in, still A’s), but I know I would have done much better if I actually studied back then agh.</p>
<p>@Sohoist @halcyonheather
Honestly confused. </p>
<p>Nvm, I understand now. </p>
<p>Do not overextend yourself!</p>
<p>The point about doing well early in the year is gold. It’s seriously so much easier to get very high grades in first and second quarter, when you’re still fresh and before APs and academic competitions get intense. And it gives you some slack in the second semester.
I would also say, as a freshman, attend as many clubs as you can and ask a lot of questions. No one expects you to look smart, so it’s your best chance to learn the ropes and find out which clubs you like. Then you can start dropping some, and climbing the ranks in the others.</p>
<p>Speak up and out. The people who sit in the shadows are usually the ones who loose out.</p>
<p>Don’t make fun of others. It may come back to you. and of course, follow your intuition.</p>
<p>Don’t let teachers away with marking you down for stupid things. If a teacher isn’t doing his or her job, then don’t accept a poor grade because of it.</p>
<p>Shut up, sit up, smile up, and sell up.
(Or to quote a famous movie: “Smile and wave boys [and girls].”). </p>
<p>don’t take AP classes in subjects you are genuinely not interested in.
always make time for fun/relaxing(even if it means dropping ECs)
get enough sleep; cannot stress the importance of this enough.</p>
<ol>
<li> You’re going to college.</li>
<li> Take everything you read on CC with a grain of salt.</li>
<li> Normal people get into top colleges too.</li>
<li> Thank your teachers at the end of every class.</li>
<li> Don’t start thinking about college until at the earliest your freshman year.</li>
<li> Don’t start making “Chance me?” threads until at least midway through your junior year.</li>
<li> Better yet, don’t make them at all.</li>
<li> Don’t start the Common App before August 1st… everything you worked on WILL be erased.</li>
<li> It’s okay to say “I don’t know” when someone asks you what or who you want to be.</li>
<li>Accept change, and never underestimate the degree of change that can occur in your life.</li>
<li>Also, never underestimate the power of Ben and Jerry’s when those changes occur.</li>
<li>“Look where you’re going” - you can’t change the past, and you can’t predict the future. Keep your eyes on the road in front of you.</li>
<li>Get in trouble at least once in your high school career for standing up (or sitting down) for something you believe in.</li>
<li>Trust the process, but know when the process needs to be nudged along.</li>
<li>Money isn’t everything.</li>
<li>High school is NOT the time to start focusing your education solely on one subject. You never know what you may discover by taking a class you don’t think is related to what you think you want to do.</li>
<li>This video: <a href=“Why Did I Say "Yes" to Speak Here? | Malcolm Gladwell | Google Zeitgeist - YouTube”>Why Did I Say "Yes" to Speak Here? | Malcolm Gladwell | Google Zeitgeist - YouTube;
<li>Be open-minded.</li>
<li>Have that song that reminds you of everything else in this list (mine was Holocene by Bon Iver: <a href=“Bon Iver - Holocene - YouTube”>Bon Iver - Holocene - YouTube).</li>
<li>If you don’t learn something about yourself during the college application process, you’re doing it wrong.</li>
</ol>
<p>I decided that I wanted to go into STEM because I thought that you couldn’t make any sort of a living outside of STEM careers. People seemed pleased when I told them I wanted to be an engineer, so I kept telling them that. I tricked myself into thinking that that’s who I was. I saw the sole purpose of humanities classes as being to torture me and keep me from taking an all-STEM courseload. I dropped Latin and said no to dozens of amazing humanities related opportunities. I applied to research universities and tech schools, then decided I want to major in English for a variety of reasons. Now I’m taking a gap year and applying to college again. I have a great internship lined up and I am very excited for my gap year, but it would have been a lot better for me if I realized my true passion earlier or just applied to less focused colleges. 21. Don’t be like me in high school.</p>
<p>
At the same time, don’t assume you’re the ultimate judge of what counts as a stupid thing. Even if it is stupid, choose your battles carefully. It’s best to stay on teachers’ good sides as much as possible.
I agree with this to a point, but most high school students aren’t completely sure of what they’re interested in, so you shouldn’t necessarily avoid challenging classes just because you think you won’t like them. At the very least, they can sometimes get you out of undesirable distribution requirements in college. </p>
<p>@LAMuniv Amazing list, I hope people refer to it, thank you!</p>
<p>Do NOT overextend yourself, one of the biggest regrets ever </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Do things that make you happy. This includes taking classes and ECs that you truly enjoy. It’s not worth it wasting hundreds of hours on something you think colleges will like. It also includes hanging out and talking to people who you genuinely enjoy spending time with. I made the mistake of being caught up in the drama of high school cliques and popularity in the first two years of high school. I was constantly surrounded by the negativity of who hated who. Now, I don’t really belong to a clique anymore, and I suppose I would be considered less popular, but I have a strong support network of friends who really care about me, and whom I really care about.</p></li>
<li><p>Treat everything as a learning experience. It might be hard to stomach your first rejection or bad grade, but don’t let it get you down. Use it as motivation to do better next time! </p></li>
<li><p>Don’t be scared of failure. Try out for things that you are interested. The worst that can happen is that you don’t get in. I’ve applied to many MANY positions/programs…was accepted to some, and was rejected by even more. </p></li>
<li><p>Remember the important things in life. You might get caught up in the stresses of school, but never neglect your health or your family/support network. Appreciate all the people who love you, because they won’t always be there. Take care of your health; you only have one body.</p></li>
<li><p>Don’t procrastinate (still working on this one). Easier said than done.</p></li>
</ol>