Sophomores
Yes SICAN
Get Ready!
There's an old Chinese proverb that says, "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."
No matter how unsure you feel about taking that first step, every single one after that will be a little easier. It also helps if you have a plan to follow through your sophomore year—and here it is.
Prepare for standardized testing.
- Take the ACT PLAN test in the fall, normally in October or November. This is a valuable test to help you prepare for the ACT which you can take in April or June of your junior year.
- Review PLAN test results with your parents and school counselor.
- Take the PSAT in October. It is valuable practice if you want to take the PSAT again in your junior year when the scores will count for National Merit Scholar consideration. The PSAT is also great practice for the SAT Reasoning Test™, which you should take in your junior year. You will receive your PSAT results in December.
- Start preparing for the SAT Reasoning Test™.
- Register in April for the June SAT Subject Test™.
- Take the SAT Subject Test™ in June.
File your important documents.
- Copies of report cards.
- Lists of awards and honors.
- Lists of school and community activities in which you are involved, including both paid and volunteer work, and descriptions of what you do.
Continue your college search.
- Find out about the different types of colleges and decide which characteristics are most important to you, such as the size of the school, distance from home, cost, and extracurricular activities.
- Visit colleges and talk with college students.
- Be ready with a list of questions to ask on your campus visit.
- Use the information your research to decide how to evaluate different colleges.
- Review the high school courses you need to take to meet the requirements of the colleges you are interested in attending.
Take honor-level classes.
- Ask if AP or other honors courses are available.
- Find out if you are eligible for the honors classes you want to take and how to enroll in them.
Other Tips
- Continue extracurricular activities. Admissions officers look at students' extracurricular activities when considering them for admission.
- Continue participation in academic enrichment programs, summer workshops, and camps with specialty focuses such as music, arts, and science.
- Continue to meet with your college/career counselor at least once a year.