Ways for High School Seniors to Prepare for College Next Year

Waiting for college can be difficult for high school seniors. Now done with college entrance exams, it can seem like there isn't anything left to but hurry up and wait. However, there is actually plenty you can do to plan for college the year before. College is the first step towards an adult life and requires a lot of preparation.

Pick Potential Colleges and Apply

You should apply to colleges the fall before so that you can apply for scholarships and get first pick on preferences such as housing. You can also sometimes get early, nonbinding decisions if you apply early. It takes time to write admission essays and fill out application forms, so it's best to have picked out the colleges you intend to apply to the summer before your senior year, your junior year, or even earlier. However, there is still time the fall of your senior year to continue looking for and researching universities to apply to. Most school's deadlines are in the spring, but if you apply at the deadline you may not be considered for all available scholarships.

Save Money

College is very expensive, so the more money you have saved beforehand, the more you'll have during and after college. Even if you've gotten a full scholarship, there are still more expenses than just tuition, housing, and food. You might find that you will want a whole different style of clothing than you wore in high school or that all of your friends will want to go on a road trip. These purchases may seem trivial in the long run, but they are a part of the college experience, and they cost more money than you might think.

Make a Shopping List Now

There will be many new things you'll need for college. From favorite snacks to a laundry hamper, some things you take for granted until you don't have it. So start making a list of everything you think you'll need and want when you go to college. Take note of things you use every day, from the fridge and microwave to your toothbrush and shampoo. Err on the side of a long list as its better to have too long of a list that you can shorten as space and budget requires than to forget something important. When it gets closer you can start considering what things won't fit in your new, possibly tiny, dorm or apartment and what will be too much hassle.

Research Your Major and Career

As you apply for college, the applications will ask what your major will be. While you can always change your major later in college (which is rather common in college as people find themselves exposed to more career possibilities than they were in high school), often different departments have their own scholarships which they only give to their own majors and you have to apply to separately.

Also, senior year is a good time to think of your career as a whole. You should not decide your major, but rather pick a long term goal and decide which major would be best to get you there. If you want be a doctor, you may look into a biology major, though you should keep in mind that med schools love variety and liberal arts on applications. If you want to be an artist someday, you will probably be an art major.

Even though it's a long ways off and it may change dramatically as you get older, you should try to be specific with your long term goal. If you want to be a psychiatrist, you may want to take psychology courses or even be a psychology major. However, if you want to someday be involved in biotechnology, you may want to major in biological engineering, biomedical engineering, or a double major in engineering or computer science and biology or biochemistry. If you want to be a sculptor one day you should take a major that allows to specialize in that. If you want to someday design product box covers or web pages, you probably be a graphics design major. However, though the long term matters, you should always enjoy what you are currently doing. If you don't enjoy the path to your goal, you might want to reconsider your goal, as since it is long term, you'll be spending most of your time getting there, not being there.