Sophomore Year

Planning


First Semester Actions

Understand College Entrance Exams

Know when to test. Become familiar with the college entrance exam testing timeline. Students are encouraged to have a strategic schedule for taking college entrance exams and prep courses. This will alleviate the procrastination of waiting to your senior year to first take an exam. Waiting to your senior year to take an entrance exam will limit your options to take it again should you not receive the scores desire or need to gain entrance into the school of your choice.

Take the PSAT. The PSAT provides valuable feedback on your college readiness and provides you with free personalized planning process to prepare you for the SAT exam and college entrance. The PSAT is not used for college admission but it will prepare you for the SAT and gauge if you are on target to score well on the SAT. All GHHS sophomores will take the PSAT free of charge during school hours in Oct, Feb, or Mar of the school year. All you have to do is show up the day of testing to take the test. You are encouraged to prepare for the test by visiting CollegeBoard website for access to study tips, materials, and guides.


Participate in Extracurricular Activities

Get and stay involved. A Strong academic record accounts for a lot when applying to college, but it is not the only factor that makes you competitive. Colleges consider well rounded students as ideal candidates for admission. Find ways to explore your interest in a sports, school clubs, music or drama groups, or community volunteer activities. As you explore ways to get involve remember not to over extend yourself. Colleges would rather see real involvement in one activity instead of loose connections to several.

**Note**If you are or become a student athlete and think you might be interested in playing sports in college, research the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) eligibility requirements. The NCAA and NAIA requires completion of certain core courses and test scores; you can find the specifics at NCAA Eligibility website or NAIA Eligibility website.


Explore Colleges

Attend College and Career Fair. Each November, GHHS's AVID Program and College and Career Center jointly organizes a college and career fair during school hours. This event is a good opportunity for you to get great information about a number of colleges and career industries. Local college reps, career programs, and businesses will be in attendance to answer any question you have about their university or business/career field.


Second Semester Actions

Assess Future Career Goals

Take the ASVAB Test. The Arm Services Vocational Aptitude Battery test is more than a military entrance exam. The ASVAB Career Exploration Program will empower you to discover your strengths and interests. It will help you map out a post-high school plan that is right for you. The test is available for sophomores to take in March of each school year. Check with the College and Career Center for ways to sign up.


Complete career assessment. Using the results from your interest assessment(s) you took in your freshmen year and your ASVAB results complete the Career Selection worksheet. This worksheet will help you evaluate your career choices by understanding the skills and education requirements need to work in your desired filed. this will also help you begin to think about possible colleges you can attend that have your career major.


Review PSAT/NMSQT results. Log in to CollegeBoard's student score reporting portal to see your scores. Based on your results the report will show you what you should work on to get ready for college; lists Advanced Placement courses that might be a good match for you; and connect you to free personalized study material on the Khan Academy website.


Stay on Target/Prepare for Next Year

Meet with your high school counselor. You will want to meet with your counselor to go over course options for your junior year. You will need to ensure your course schedule is challenging enough to prepare you for college and you are on target to meet A-G entrance requirements. This gives you an opportunity to discuss summer classes to make up any course(s) you received a grade lower than a C. If you are an ambitious student and would like to get ahead or look into taking college level courses this is something you can speak with your counselor about.


Take challenging courses next year. Taking honors courses or college-level courses like Advanced Placement as a junior can help you prepare for college level course work — and these are also the courses that college admission officers like to see.


Research Financial Aid

Learn about financial aid options. College is expensive, but the cost of college should not be the reason you do not attend. There are literally thousands of financial aid opportunities to help you pay for college. Review the Financial Aid page on this site to understand the various forms of financial aid and how it will assist you to pay for college.


Research the cost of college. - Knowing the cost of college allows your family to budget and gives you an ideal of how much financial aid you will need to attend the school of your choice. The College Tuition Compare website is a good comparison tool for public and private colleges and universities.


Look / Apply for Scholarships. Applying early for scholarships allows you more time to rack up money for college. Applying early means you will have more opportunities to win scholarships. There are many state, and national level scholarships for sophomore students. Check this link to research sophomore scholarships and to get you started on your quest to find, apply, and win as many scholarships as you can.


Summer Actions

Become Familiar with the SAT

Understand the SAT. The SAT is an entrance exam used by most colleges and universities to make admissions decisions. The purpose of the SAT is to measure a high school student's readiness for college, and provide colleges with one common data point that can be used to compare all applicants. You can find more information about the SAT at CollegeBoard website.

See what College is Like

Tour college campuses. If possible, take advantage of vacation or other family travel time to visit colleges in the near by vicinity. Even if you have no interest in attending the college you are visiting, it will trigger interest and help you learn what to look for in a college.


Explore Summer Opportunities/Programs

Look for summer academic programs. Make your summer count by developing your skills. Summer programs are a great way to experience life on a college campus, explore new and exciting fields you may want to pursue for your college major, make friendships with students from around the globe and, perhaps even earn college credit for the courses you take. Visit the College and Career Center to learn about specific summer program opportunities.


Look for jobs, internships, or volunteer positions. This is a great way to help you learn about career paths and industries of interest to you. Look for opportunities that will matter to your future. Gain exposure in things that you are interested in. Refer to the Career Exploration page of this website to get information on job, internships and volunteer opportunities.