<p>I'm sure this thread is turning out to be one of the most informative thread in CC (besides a lot more)</p>
<p>Our HS uses Numerics for grades, everything is an average or an overall average. The kids including us and our daughter were clueless about the whole admission process around GPA including the aspects of Core and Weighted/Unweighted. My D for example got two 89's which are still 3's until they get to 90's where they become 4's. Who knew at the time? I wish there had been better prep I already sent in a suggestion to Guidance.</p>
<p>I wish I had...</p>
<ol>
<li>Not let peoples opinion shape my actions and behavior</li>
<li>Followed my interests instead of following what I thought my interests should have been</li>
<li>Spent more time being with my friends </li>
<li>Make the most out of every moment of every day</li>
<li>Live in the moment more and stop worrying about the big picture</li>
<li> Not keep hyping over colleges it is not worth your energy</li>
<li>Been honest with myself</li>
<li>Given myself more time to read what I wanted to read</li>
<li> Not been a vegetable freshmen year</li>
<li> Not let people tell me how to live my life </li>
</ol>
<p>So I am at least going to do this in college! After all life is just starting! :)</p>
<ol>
<li>work harder in high school to get better grades</li>
<li>get enough sleep everyday</li>
<li>get higher SAT scores</li>
<li>be more involved with ECs</li>
<li>read a lot and increase your vocab.</li>
</ol>
<p>I wish I had known how little Science Olympiad and contests and music mattered...I would have had a LOT more community involvement <-- colleges seem to care a lot more about that</p>
<p>^ Not true at all. It matters how good you got at music and science, and the kind of recognition you get. If you just play in the band, well then that may not be worth your time. BUT if you're getting recognition right and left for what you do, then music and Science Olympiad probably matter more than community involvement. </p>
<p>Bottom Line - whatever you do, you better do damn well.</p>
<p>Fhimas - I think that bottom line is the best, most direct advice I have ever heard.</p>
<p>*besides, * there can be one more thing added to the bottom line---do varied kind of stuffs (not just math/science stuffs, or just art) and do ur best--show the motivation and perseverance.</p>
<p>fhimas...that's the sad truth. I don't do whatever I do damn well...just okay...probably explaining my feeling of impending rejections....</p>
<p>asifkhan, how much time do you have to do varied kinds of stuff damn well? Doing your best also pretty much means do it damn well...</p>
<p>Stick to the bottom line. Be the best in whatever you do.</p>
<p>this is what matters most</p>
<ol>
<li>SAT score. without this none of the other factors matter. get good score and you are almost set</li>
<li>Keeping up at least a 3.85 GPA</li>
<li>Unique EC's (i.e. take arabic language if you are white, or japanese) do some science competitions etc. do weird things that noone would normally do.</li>
</ol>
<p>kamikazewave, in my defense I'd only say one thing---good colleges want people w/ varied qualities---they want multi-skilled dudes, well, u r entitled to ur fact, and so am I; as far as I know, variety in ur EC really stands out. (I don't want to go to any debate, and if one can't do damn well in variety of stuffs he can atleast show the motivation--as I've noted earlier--and that's what the colleges look for too--passion. They don't want damn serious perfectionists either :D
(I guess the above post supports my stand)</p>
<ol>
<li>Prepare for the SAT/SAT 2s starting in freshmen/sophomore year. The ideal thing to do would be having all your standardized testing completed by the start of junior year, which will be the toughest year in high school (with visiting colleges, more AP courses, etc)</li>
<li>If you are a math/science freak, DEFINITELY consider taking the time in one of these things: Math/Physics/Chem/Bio Olympiads, ISEF, Siemens Westinghouse/Intel, RSI, etc. These programs/competitions are valuable not only for the results/awards/whatever, but also for the experience. Meeting people who are so smart and talented will definitely encourage you or provide you with inspiration. (It could also help puncture an inflated ego, which would be a good thing, as no one likes arrogance)</li>
<li>Don't SLACK OFF!!!</li>
<li>Get to know your teachers well. Be courteous and kind. Maybe tell jokes once in a while. Your teachers contribute to an important part of your high school education. Don't be a grade grubber. Try to learn for the sake of learning. Also, treat your teachers with respect. There are a lot of students out there who are arrogant, snobby, and show no consideration for the teachers. Please realize that come college application time, there better be 2 or 3 teachers in your school that you feel comfortable asking recommendations for. </li>
<li>Do not play Runescape.</li>
<li>If you play Runescape, be a mage pure preferably.</li>
<li>Be involved in a couple of ECs that you really feel compassionate for. Leadership positions never hurt.</li>
<li>Start your college application essays early. I had only 2 done by mid-December. I almost had to do 4 essays for Stanford on the night it was due.</li>
<li>If you're applying to an ED/EA college with a deadline of November 1st, please note that October 31st is a nationally-celebrated holiday, and there will be thousands, if not millions, of kids that will ring your doorbell asking for candy over the course of the night. </li>
<li>Avoid playing MMORPGS such as WOW, Conquer Online or other games like CS, Halo 2, etc. They will hurt your vision.</li>
<li>If you wear glasses, it's probably a good idea to get contacts. Glasses are annoying during gym because they tend to slide off easily. They also fog up when you drink hot soup. Besides 180 degree visibility is awesome.</li>
<li>Be nice to nerds.</li>
<li>Be nice to everyone.</li>
<li>I will finish this some other time.</li>
</ol>
<p>Hmmm... be an academic machine! NO BAND/CHORUS/ART!!! ALL UW ELECTIVES WILL BRING DOWN YOUR GPA AND THEREFORE CLASS RANK!!!...whew! glad to get that off my chest!</p>
<p>Study for PSATs b/c unlike the lameoid PLAN test, these actually have some bearing on your life! I got a pretty good score w/o any studying whatsoever and I,m sure if I actually studied (or at least knew the layout...lol) I could've scored me one of those nifty National Scholarship thingys...</p>
<p>davnasca, i completely disagree with "NO BAND/CHORUS/ART!!!" though they might bring down your GPA, that's not important if you are really awesome at one of those things and you love to do it. even if you're not #1 in your class because you took a band class, colleges won't care as long as you also worked hard all 4 years, won awards, maybe joined an out-of-school orchestra. as long as you exhaust all of your opportunities, colleges won't care that your GPA is sloghtly lower. they will have a dedcated applicant who succeeds in what they do. and that's really all they want. like fhimas said, just be damn good at what you do.</p>
<p>Letters of Recommendation: First, ask a teacher, "can you give me a good recommendation?" so they can bow out right then if they have to. Then bring them the forms with a stamped envelope as soon in the school year as possible.</p>
<p>Go easy on Christmas; let your family know it might not be a vacation for you. Many RD deadlines are between Dec. 31 and Jan. 15. </p>
<p>PIck a range of "safety" "match" and "reach" schools.</p>
<p>If your parent can't help much, find a mentor, to discuss the many decisions that come up throughout this process. Reach out to a college-educated relative, family friend, neighbor or teacher. Ask if they'll be available to you by email.</p>
<p>I wish I have known about the college application and admission process (even though I'm already in college now). I didn't know about anything or what to do until my Spring term of Junior year when my friends start talking about college and stuff like that. I mean in high school, my advisors didn't say anything so it left me clueless. And by the time I heard about the SAT II it was kind of late to take them. AP classes, my only opportunity was Psychology......previously I turned down AP when it was offered because I didn't know what it was and my counselor that plan my classes didn't know how to explain to me what AP is besides the fact I get 1.1 credits instead of.</p>
<p>I wish I knew about what it takes to get into a better college so I can work on my grades from freshman year to senior year.</p>
<p>Ah.....so much......but it's all history. I'm now a sophomore/junior status in college already.....=[ If I have the chance I would go back and do it.</p>
<p>coming from someone who got into college based on ec, essay, and sat....not gpa or rank....</p>
<p>its not always how well u did something, its how committed you were to it...
if you did many different things, but you spent a lot of time on each, its valuable...being all district 2nd team at multiple sports is better than being all state at one thing.
just like helping out with 5/6 community projects is better than being in charge of only one</p>
<p>essays...everone is correct...be unique, i wrote about how my pitching coach made me realize there was more to life than baseball just by getting to know him...i knew the college rep well....she knew me...</p>
<p>you guys are prolly not caring now, bc yer waitin on acceptances...congrats if you got into your number 1...if you didnt, condolences...it wasnt the best fit...im happier at my number 2 than i would be at my number 1 (got into it...so its legit)....</p>
<p>BIGGEST TIP FOR COLLEGE....GO TO CLASS!!!!!! and make sure your profs know your name...it helps if you're on the bubble. well im out guys...email me if you have questions bout going from small highschool to large college...or questions bout wat college tests are like...peace guys</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Don't underestimate yourself... well, a lot of people overestimate themselves, so that's not good, but I know I overstressed SO much before getting into my first choice EA, and in retrospect it was just pretty emotionally draining. Maintain a sense of perspective. Part of that perspective is actually spending less time on CC, which is full of ridiculously ambitious overachievers... :P</p></li>
<li><p>Don't whine/ think about how much work you have to do... you'll be busy, doing 1000000 things at once, but if you like doing it and you have the personal strength to see the good side of things you'll be a lot happier.</p></li>
<li><p>Apply for scholarships early - like the summer before senior year. Do your research ahead of time about that stuff... befriend someone in a higher graduation year who will tell you about scholarships, because the (universally) nasty competitive jerks in your grade sure won't help.</p></li>
</ol>