NUMBER ONE – You don’t know everything!

I know that some of the tips I am about to give you are going to sound redundant, but listen to them! I wish I had someone in my corner feeding me this information when I was a junior. I also know when teachers say these things, it can be difficult to take them seriously because it is hard to imagine they know what they are talking about, but listen to your elders! Take in every ounce of advice that is given to you. I was a junior once and know that this year is the hardest out of the four.

NUMBER TWO – Do not procrastinate!

The most important piece of advice that should be taken from this is to never procrastinate! This is heard all of the time, but I truly believe this is especially true for junior year. Class work can pile up extremely fast with the classes scheduled during this year, so do not put anything off. Top 3% senior, Madison McCoy’s advice is, “Do not procrastinate on anything like homework and picking a college and ACT stuff because it’s really hard when you get behind and deadlines are coming. So make sure you get all of that stuff done!” Use this time as a learning experience for college and to develop better time management skills for the future.

NUMBER THREE – Prepare for college!

The time to start researching and preparing for college is now! One thing I wish was stressed more during junior year is college is just around the corner and when talking about college there is no such thing as “starting too early”. Most college start accepting applications in November and end it in January, so there is no time to waste. McCoy’s advice about this is to “definitely go on a bunch of college visits because if you see something online, it’s probably not how it really is, so going there helps get a feel of the college. Even if you think it might not be something you want to do, check it out just make sure!”

NUMBER FOUR – Study for the ACT!

The ACT is no joke! It is crucial in the future ahead of you, not to mention the fact that a higher ACT score equals more money for college. Every time you take it make sure to put full effort into it, especially the first one. At first it may seem like the first one is not to be taken seriously, but I can promise it will be in your best interest if you want to do well. Studying for the first ACT is the smartest way to go about this because if you have a good score the first time then it is much easier to move on and focus on other things like schoolwork and scholarships. Do not push studying off! Start preparing for it as soon as possible. We all know junior year is already a hassle, so getting the ACT out of the way will help relieve stress.

NUMBER FIVE – Focus on school!

Make school a top priority! This year is  going to matter more than any other, especially when talking about scholarships, so put forth your full effort. Take the UNL for example, this school bases all of its scholarships off the last semester of junior year. If you are even the slightest bit interested in this university, make sure to work as hard as possible to better your chance at financial aid of any kind. If this does not signify school’s importance, then think about the fact that colleges start accepting applications first semester of senior year. This means even though you’re currently in your senior year, the last semester to show up on the transcript they require with be in junior year. While it may not seem important right now, I can promise that it has a much bigger impact than normally perceived.