10th Grade Focus

Skills to Focus on and Things to Do:

• Time management.

• Studying for all different subjects.

• Do as well as you can in school; see if you can do even better than you did in 9th grade.

• Take the most challenging classes that you can manage, when you have the opportunity to pick them (next year for the first time!).

• Transcript review: understanding grades, graduation credits, and course options.

• Finding a social and extracurricular niche that aligns with your values and personality. Continue to track all your extracurricular activities, summer experiences, academic honors, and other achievements. This includes any family responsibilities you may have at home, jobs you have worked, and anything else you have done with your time!

• Plan for a meaningful summer experience

• Continue participating in non-­academic extracurricular activities. See if you can deepen your involvement or take on a leadership role in the activities you’ve already been doing. Or step outside your comfort zone and try something new.

• Toward the end of your school year, begin thinking about when the best test prep timeline is for you. Most students take their SATs and ACTs at the end of junior year. If the Spring is particularly busy for you because of a seasonal sport, for example, you may want to prepare earlier in your year for these tests. More guidance is available on the standardized test prep portion of this website. Do NOT make these tests any focus of your 10th grade year - that's not what colleges want you to do. 

• If you want to take the PSAT (not mandatory and not necessarily recommended unless you think you will score extremely highly), take it in the Fall of your sophomore year.

• When you hear about a college you don't know about, research it! The more familiar you are with more colleges by the time you'll in 11th grade, the more equipped you will feel. 

• If you think you might play a sport in college, register with NCAA: https://web3.ncaa.org/ecwr3/ 

What parents/guardians can do at home:

• Help students identify strengths and challenges, and practice good habits, when it comes to organization and time management skills.

• Help students find extracurricular activities that align with their passions and connect them to a community that's important to them.

• Help your student find a meaningful summer experience (work, internship, camp, service, etc.). There are many low cost and free summer opportunities. Check out that section of our website and/or stay tuned to College Corners. :) 

• Encourage your student to sign up for virtual and in-person college campus visits. It is a good idea to start developing a sense of what colleges look like, even if that particular college will not make it to your student’s final list. For low-cost options, feel free to check out any of the robust schools right here in NYC. 

Suggestions for 10th Graders in Embracing Lab's College Office philosophy:

• When you’re an underclassman, my most honest advice - even as a college counselor - is to keep your focus on high school. Yes, next year you are technically at upperclassman, but you have plenty of time left here. Lab is a WONDERFUL place with many opportunities - don’t miss out because you are so consumed with what’s next.  

  • If you are not in clubs at Lab yet, what are you waiting for??

• Whenever you ask a question phrased like “should I do this for college?”, my response to you will be “does this make sense for YOU?” There are college options for every kind of student, no matter what your academic ability, financial constraints, and other limiting factors. I’ll help you make a list, when the time comes, of schools that are good fits for you. 

  • I’d like to reframe the narrative that there’s particular things to “do” to get into college.

    • Misconception that some activities / academic interests are “better” than others in terms of admission. If you hear something like this, reminding students that each student is different and CAN find colleges that “match” WHATEVER it is they do and whatever their passions are. Some of our students will be limited in the scope of what they are able to do extracurricularly due to family needs, and this is okay. 

    • More important than what’s on your resume, colleges want to know, who are YOU. Sometimes, this translates to activities where you’re able to hone these values. Do things that matter to you. Colleges are looking for authenticity.

• If you are sitting here and envisioning a specific school to which you want to apply or want your child to apply, that’s fine. However, I will push you to consider “why” and “how” you know about the school - and how this translates into a good school for YOU, not according to rankings. You also will need to be open minded about looking beyond this one school in order to have a successful college process.

• Yes, your GPA “matters” for college admissions. However, all you can do is your best. If you’re

doing your best, that will be enough for schools that are realistic fits for you. 

Junior Year: What to Expect Later  from the College Office

• All year: College Corners. In the Fall, you will notice that there is more information for seniors. While I’m communicating with you less frequently, you’ll receive monthly newsletters for how to engage in the college process during that month before we really kick things into gear. I intentionally send the College Corners to the whole school community, so you can see what’s coming. :) It will be important to tune into these starting in December. Up until that point, feel free to keep your eye on the monthly newsletters I will send and subsequent Jupiter blasts.

• September - December

  • During the height of application season for the Class of 2024, my energy will be primarily directed to supporting them through each step of the application process. When you are a senior / the family of a senior, the same effort will be given to you! I am very responsive to emails; please understand that I am working to respond to you as soon as I can.

  • For those getting a later start to standardized test preparation (it’s totally fine to wait until the Spring to take SATs and ACTs if you prefer), I’ll have an Intro to Standardized Test Prep meeting in the auditorium

• January

  • Junior Family College Night - admissions officers from different colleges/universities will advise you, in a panel format, about the college process and how to best engage. I will also go over the various components of the Spring curriculum for juniors on that evening - there is a lot that we can help support with. :) 

  • Junior Seminars will begin - these are weekly meetings with me and small groups of students that meet January-June and go over different topics in the college process

• February - June

  • Junior Seminar once per week 

  • Individual Family Meetings with EVERY student/family. Translators available whenever needed. 

  • Small group workshops 

  • Financial aid evenings, advisement on students with IEPs/504 plans