I love receiving e-mails from readers, but was a little nervous to open one that arrived from the Executive Director of SAT Programs at the College Board. Had they suddenly discovered a mistake in CJ's math score? How would this affect his upcoming college graduation?Or could they be writing to apologize for getting rid of the analogies, my favorite section?
It turns out that the e-mail was about none of the above, but instead offered solid advice for high school freshmen, encouraging them to be more proactive and how to plan ahead.
I don't usually post serious info here, but if you're concerned that your child hasn't yet mediated a peace conference because he's still trying to figure out how to open his locker, this piece by Jennifer Karan very much warrants a read:
http://media.collegeboard.com/homeOrg/content/pdf/Freshman_Year_The_Big_Picture.pdf
So much here that I wish I had known when my kids were in ninth grade. It doesn't go overboard with resume boosters about prestigious oboe competitions or tips about how to get internships with Stephen Hawking. But it does offer stellar, sensible advice like meet with your counselor early on, plan to take the right courses, and start thinking about what your passion might be.
So if you have a new high school schooler, now's the time to think about the Big Picture before the serious angst sets in sometime during eleventh grade. And as icing on the cake, the College Board has come up with a whole Big Future program, free one-stop shopping that will de-stress the process that lies ahead.
Good work, College Board. Now can we talk about adding a summer test date?
How DARE they ditch the analogies???
Posted by: Anna | January 30, 2013 at 07:06 AM
Cal Newport wrote a great book, "How to Be A High School Superstar" (http://calnewport.com/books/highschool.html) that I think would benefit most freshmen.
Posted by: Craig Gonzales | February 03, 2013 at 08:49 PM
It doesn't go crazy with continue enhancers about famous oboe contests or guidelines about how to get internships.
Posted by: Top 10 IB Schools in India | February 06, 2013 at 02:49 AM
That is an excellent article. It is really important to start as early as possible in the college admissions process. We didn't know that with our first daughter, and were definitely more prepared for our second.
Posted by: Gina B. | February 06, 2013 at 12:35 PM
As much as I agree with the article, it makes me wonder - what happened to letting kids just be kids? It seems that our children just spend their entire childhood trying to be perfect in preparing for college admissions.
As a parent, it's a struggle. Should I be more involved? Should I make my daughter be more involved? I just saw another article on how parents can actually sabotage a child's admissions opportunities: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/2/prweb10393141.htm
So where's the balance? Or is it a choice - top-tier college, or giving our kids a childhood?
Posted by: Isabella B. | February 06, 2013 at 12:39 PM