August

• Use a planner or use digital calendar to organize assignments, schedule events, and to meet deadlines.

• Plan to meet with your high school/college-career counselor at least every six months to ensure you are on target for graduating high school and fulfilling A-G requirements.
• Look for high school activities. Plan to take on leadership roles in a few activities this school year. Leadership is one of the most valuable student qualifications sought by college admission officers.
• Sign up for Studentvue (Synergy) access for you and your parents to check grades, contact teachers, and check missing assignments, look for classroom calendars and worksheets. See your counselor or career center for login instructions.

September

• Go to Kern County College Night.
• Use a small notebook or start a google sheet to record your activities and accomplishments as you complete them. You will refer to this when writing your student résumé. – for more info go to Schoolinks.
• Study hard and earn top grades. Freshman grades will be included in your GPA for college admissions; freshman grades do count toward college admission and scholarships if they are college prep classes needed for A-G and college admissions.

• Get involved with school activities (student organizations and clubs) and extracurricular activities outside of school (community volunteering or working a job or internship).
• Check 1st quarter progress reports through Studentvue. 

October

• Explore your career and college interests. Talk with both your parents and high school counselor. Go to Schoolinks, bigfuture.org, or cacareerzone.org for more information.
• Check out bigfuture.org or Schoolinks for information on all things college and career.
• Check 1st quarter grades in Studentvue. 

November

• Check your grades and keep improving on them. Semester grades are recorded on transcripts, so finish strong. 

December

• Do well on your final exams. Finals are at least 10-25% of your semester grade, so finals can make or break your GPA. GPA is the single-most important factor for getting accepted to college. This includes freshman grades.
• Go to Schoolinks, bigfuture.org for more college admissions information.

January

• Update your student résumé log. Include all accomplishments and activities from the fall semester.

• Continue participating in extracurricular activities. If possible, decide which activities you are most passionate about and wish to keep involved with throughout your high school career. Leadership is one of the most valuable student qualifications sought by college admission officers.

• Join CSF as an Honorary member: see your counselor for application details. CSF is an honors society; Lifetime members will be honored at graduation.
• Study hard this spring semester to earn top grades so you can have the highest possible GPA and class rank.

February

• Continue to think about college majors of interest. Conduct research on possible careers that may spark interest in a specific major. Log on to bigfuture.org or Schoolinks for guidelines on selecting a major.
• If you have not completed a CSF application for last semester, see your counselor for application details and deadlines. CSF is an honors society; Lifetime members will be honored at graduation.

March

• Begin to register for next year’s sophomore level courses. Make sure to follow your four-year plan for high school graduation and college preparation. Sign up for the most challenging curriculum you can handle. See your counselor for course registration instructions and deadlines.

• Continue to study hard to earn top grades. High GPA’s open college admission doors. Check Studentvue for your grades and make improvements if needed.
• If necessary, apply for summer school with your counselor.

April

• If the organizations and clubs you are involved with hold elections for next year’s leadership positions, become a candidate and run for office.
• Continue to build hard-working, respectful relationships with teachers and counselor(s) through the entire semester.
• Research opportunities for summer employment, internships, volunteering, or coursework. Use summer months wisely to develop and improve your student résumé.   
• Continue to research career options and consider possible college majors. Go to bigfuture.org or Schoolinks.
• If you’re interested in attending a military academy after high school graduation, request information to learn about that academy and their admission requirements. Go to the career center for more information. 
• Continue to study hard to earn top grades. High GPA’s open college admission doors.

May

• Sign up for summer activities – Find a job or internship, provide volunteer service, take an advanced credit or community college course, or enroll in college summer enrichment program.
• Do well on your final exams. Earn the impressive grades needed to be admitted to college and to earn merit-based scholarships.
• Update your student résumé to include sophomore year activities and accomplishments.  
• If you want to play collegiate sports, take the steps necessary to increase your eligibility and market your athletic abilities. Go to naia.org or ncaa.org. 
• Continue to think about college majors of interest throughout the summer. Conduct research on possible careers that may spark interest in a specific major. 
• Consider taking a summer road trip to visit college campuses this coming summer. 
• Parents - Plan to help your student with the college preparation and admission process over the next two years. Get informed and help with the important decisions ahead. Go to bigfuture.org for more information on college planning, admissions requirements, and college searches.