Month by Month breakdown of things to do for Application year Students - Part I

As juniors around the world begin preparing for their college applications, here is a general month-by-month guideline to help them stay on track, effectively organize their materials, and maximize their chances of admission:

January - Students should start looking at their academic progression and extracurricular profile development from 9th grade up until this point and introspect to identify up to 3 major areas of academic interest arriving at potential majors. It is advisable for students to take this discovery a step further and identify niche questions that they would like to package their profile/ story around. As they go about this process, students should try to avoid going for super competitive majors such as biological science and computer science but should rather reframe their story/ journey to be more consistent with slightly less competitive alternative majors such as data science, public health, sociology, and psychology. It is advisable to seek the mentorship of an experienced college admissions counselor to inform major selection for a specific set of target schools that is coherent with a student’ profile.

February - Having strategically chosen a major and crafted a unique college application narrative, students should now identify two to three recommenders from among their school teachers and mentors (academic or personal) who are well suited to write detailed letters of recommendation on their behalf as of May of their Junior year. Students should choose their recommenders not just based on their renown but rather on the depth of their relationship with the recommenders. Once they identify their teachers, students should spend 3-4 months, building/ nurturing their relationship with their recommenders. Some of the things they can do include but are not limited to, ensuring that they turn in all homeworks and assignments of the highest quality on time, display characteristics such as empathy, initiative, perseverance, leadership, and coachability in their day-to-day interactions with their classmates both inside and outside their classrooms. Furthermore, they should make the effort to read beyond the scope of their in-class materials and contribute to engaging conversations in the classroom. On a different note, students should also work with their college admissions counselor to identify and apply to unique summer programs that are consistent with their story and intended major.

March - If students have not taken either the SAT/ACT already and achieved their target scores, they should plan to sit for their first SAT exam by March of their junior year. With colleges increasingly going back to requiring either the SAT/ ACT exam, it is advisable for students to plan for at least two and at most three sittings of either exam before they submit their college applications. If March is their first sitting, it is advisable that students take the SAT exams with no less than 45-60 hours of preparation. Then depending on their initial score, students should commit a similar amount of preparation time for their second sitting. For their second SAT sitting, it is prudent for students and their families to recognize early on if it is best for them to engage a proven SAT mentor or prepare on their own. Students should also start thinking about the type of schools they would like to apply to and build a long list of 20-25 schools in March of their junior year. Some of the factors that students and their families should look into in this pursuit are the types of colleges (public vs private research institutions), prestige (Ivy League, Top 15, Top 30, Top 50, Top 70), size (small liberal arts college), location, weather, proximity to a metropolis, study abroad opportunities, availability of unique majors/ programs, research opportunities, availability of financial aid, and diversity of student body.

April - During this month, high school juniors should start thinking about their upcoming applications holistically as would college admissions officers the following fall. Students should by now finalize planning for their upcoming junior year summer which arguably is the most important in the eyes of admission officers. Then in a manner that connects their narration (application persona), intended major, and upcoming summer plans, students should think of a unique passion project that will have a tangible impact on their communities or societies at large with the goal of helping them stand out in the eyes of admission officers. Our senior counselors at Abugida can help you craft unique and memorable passion projects. Students should aim to complete their passion projects by September of their senior year fall at the latest so that they get a chance to document/ quantify the impact of said projects by October of their senior year fall in time for their early applications to colleges of their choice. In addition, in April of their junior year, students should further narrow down their school list in discussion with their college admissions counselor. As they do this, some of the factors to consider particularly would be which of the colleges on their list track demonstrated interest which can, at least marginally, improve their chances of admission. Students can participate in in-person or virtual campus visits, attend information sessions, take part in interviews especially for small liberal arts colleges, join college mailing lists, engage with admissions emails, follow colleges on social media, and contact a professor or student organization with a specific question tied to your research question or advocacy work to demonstrate this interest. Still other factors that students should pay attention to in narrowing down their long list of colleges are their residency status and financial need. It is important for students to note that while some colleges are need-blind for both domestic and international students alike, and others only need-blind for domestic students, still some others are need-aware for both domestic and international students. Need-aware means that a college will factor a student’s need for financial support in making an admissions decision and that a student’s financial need will negatively impact their chances of admission into that particular college.

May - Students should devote the May of their junior year to solely focusing on their academics and solidifying their preparation for their upcoming end of year exams regardless of their school curriculum. In addition, if students had already registered for either self-studied or school-taught AP exams the November prior which is advisable to do, it is quite important that they do well in these exams (score either a 4 or 5 on each exam) to demonstrate their academic rigor and college readiness.