<p>Hey CC,</p>
<p>We got our transcripts back from freshman year (currently a sophomore) and just found out my rank... 31/491 (don't know what it is right now, considering possible dropout/transfer students). Top 10%, sure, but it's so pathetic in my eyes, especially considering that I didn't care last year and I could have been in the top 3% or even better. I got a wake up call and I'm really working hard. </p>
<p>Now, unless I make straight 100s for the rest of my high school career, I'm probably not going to be valedictorian. And I'm okay with that, too, but I also want to haul my ranking up because I feel like I failed myself last year. So I've decided to approach my dilemma as if I'm achieving to be the valedictorian, considering that I want to get as close to that ranking as possible. I'm currently taking 3 APs (took humangeo last year) and 2 honors classes (physics and algebra 2, will take precalculus over the summer).</p>
<p>My question to you is this (controversy aside) : If you can give an 8th grader the one single piece advice to be the valedictorian, what would it be?</p>
<p>Don’t worry about being Valedictorian.
A kid last year got into Stanford and he wasn’t valedictorian or salutatorian. </p>
<p>No, but I’m willing to bet he or she was in the top 5%, maybe even higher. Like I said, I don’t care as much of the status as how to approach my problem (thinking and advice on how to be valedictorian so I can see better results). </p>
<p>May I ask why you want to be valedictorian?</p>
<p>I don’t. I want help on how to think and act like a valedictorian to raise my ranking, which again, currently stands at 31/491 (probably less for total class). Did you even read my post?</p>
<p>
Find something else upon which to focus. Instead, find some activities that fuel your passion. Build a challenging schedule based upon your own interests and potential future career plans.</p>
<p>Make a plan to achieve a dream life, not to get into a dream school.</p>
<p>Raise your ranking? That’s it? Honestly, that doesn’t matter. Just try your best everyday and it’ll work the way you want it. Force yourself to go out of your way to get a better rank will only hurt you. </p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>@Hawkace : Believe it or not, it matters to some extent. Thank you, though</p>
<p>I understand what you are asking about. First of all, don’t ever feel terrible about your class rank - you still have a few years! Speaking from experience (a senior currently ranked 1st…hope I don’t jinx anything), one thing I think that is important is to treat it as a competition against yourself, not others. If you often listen in on how many APs others are taking or wondering what their class rank is, it becomes troubling - you end up feeling paranoid and worse about yourself and start to see people differently, which diverts your focus. Instead, approach your goals with the mindset that you want to do your best, not that you want to be better than others. Generic, yes. But honestly, I had an upsetting rank my first year, but I decided not to look at it for a while or pay attention to conversations about class rank, which helped me do better.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, it requires a lot of determination. Accept challenging courses, and don’t be afraid to ask your counselor or other people for options in your classes. It’s really great that you’re taking precalculus over the summer. If you have time in your next few summers, I recommend knocking out some required courses. Does your school offer online classes or dual enrollment with a local college? These are all ways to take more weighted classes. Of course, you’ll need to find ways to manage these courses, but again my main piece of advice is just having the right mentality. 
Good luck!</p>
<p>Get the best grades you can get in the most challenging curriculum your school offers. </p>
<p>@ClassOf2015HS is right. 8th graders wanting to be valedictorian should be thinking about more fun things than gaming the system. </p>
<p>I could be valedictorian if I take the easiest AP classes at my school and the easiest Honors classes, get A+ in all of them, and do some boring work. But it will not help me, because being valedictorian/salutatorian is irrelevant and stupid. Keep your grade mostly As, some Bs, and you’ll be fine.</p>
<p>@mayee107 thank you so much! This is what I was looking for @ClassOf2015HS @purportedlay thank you as well, I’ll keep that in mind</p>