A College Counselor and Former Admission Officer's Pro Tips to Make Junior Year of High School A Success
Planning for the different stages of your high school career doesn't have to be difficult. I have advised hundreds of students over my sixteen years of collge counseling, university admission, and highly-selective application review. Here are the top seven things all students should plan for to make junior year of high school a success.

Focus on Grades + Rigor
Admission at public universities varies drastically from the holistic admission practices of the most selective colleges and universities in the United States, i.e. typically private, Ivy League, and/or Top U.S. National Universities from U.S. News and World Report.
Despite the differences in application review that ultimately determine a student admissibility at these different universities and colleges, there is one thing they agree on. In a 2019 NACAC poll of admission officers, the majority of said that the overall rigor of an applicant’s high school curriculum and their performance, i.e. grades/GPA, specifically in college preparatory courses, is of considerable (the highest possible measure of importance in the poll) or moderate importance in determining admission.
Application Element | Considerable + Moderate Importance |
Strength of Curriculum | 84.0% |
Grade in All Courses | 89.5% |
Grades in College-Prep Courses | 90.0% |
Junior year of high school is typically the first year you will find yourself enrolled in multiple college-prep courses at the same time. For this reason, junior year of high school is notorious for being the most difficult academic year of the four.
There are going to be a LOT of things you need to focus your time and effort on in junior year to make it successful, but maintaining your academic performance in rigorous courses should be at the top of your priority list.
Do Your Testing
Many colleges and universities still allow students to apply without ACT and SAT scores. At Blue Admission, we are a supporter of test-optional admissions, but as some colleges and universities begin to reinstate testing SAT and ACT requirements, our advice is that all students make a plan to complete these tests.
When to take the ACT and SAT depends on three things:
Are you ready?
Typical advice is that students are “ready” to take standardized tests for university admission when/if they are fluent in English and have successfully completed (read: earned a B grade or higher) in Algebra II.
Are you planning to do official test preparation? Typical test preparation advice is that you should sign up for a prep course approximately six weeks before the standardized test date you are registering to take. This six-week lead time should then be filled with a regular test-prep schedule that runs up to the official test date.
When is the ACT or SAT being offered? Some high schools will host school-day exams for their students. Aside from these dates that will not be listed on the SAT or ACT websites, the exams are offered nationally on the same days annually. You need to account for a registration window that closes about 30 days before the official test date.
Meet Your Counselor
Meeting with the counselor at your high school assigned to assisting you with the college application process is critical during senior year. Why?
First, this counselor will provide you with valuable information about the college application process at your high school. How to request transcripts, navigate your school’s college counseling software, and request letters of recommendation are just a few important topics they can guide you through.
Importantly, some colleges and universities will ask for a letter of recommendation from your school counselor as part of their application for admission. Take time in your junior year to meet your counselor and share with them important information about you, your college application plans, and the level of support you will need from them.
Connect With Teachers
Many colleges and universities will request that you submit letters of recommendation from your high school teachers as part of their application. Typically, teachers who you have interacted with during your junior year of high school are the best teachers to submit letters on your behalf.
PRO TIP
Letters of recommendation are a favor that teachers complete for students. In other words, they do not have to agree to writing letters of recommendation for a student simply because they have asked.
For this reason, it’s important to get to know your teachers, be respectful, mature, and kind in your interactions with them.
Do Your University Research + Visit Campuses
Junior year is the ideal time to start crafting a list of colleges and universities where you might apply and then start the process of whittling it down to those where you are sure to apply.
This can take time… and energy… to fully accomplish. While there is an entire section of the Blue Admission blog dedicated to searching for colleges and universities that might be a good fit for you, here are few quick tips to get you started.
Start Local.
Most student apply to (and attend) universities within a 300-mile radius of their hometown. While this may or may not apply to you, start local in your research. What in-state colleges and universities are on your list?
Rankings can help you get started.
US News and World Report is probably the most recognized university ranking platform, but there are countless others out there that can help you uncover university options that might be options for you based on geography, size, majors, cost of attendance and more.
Be realistic.
As you research colleges and universities, it is important to also understand the factors they consider in admissions decisions and the selectivity of each school’s process. For example, it’s not a good idea to build a university composed entirely of university that admit less than 10% of those who apply. If you’re a student with a 1350 SAT score, it’s not a great idea to have a university list comprised of institutions that typically admit SAT scores in the 1490-1550 range.
Create Extracurricular Plan + High School Resume
By junior year, you have likely participated in numerous extracurricular activities, clubs, sports, arts, etc. As you think about junior year and making it successful, it’s a good idea to evaluate your extracurricular experiences so far and determine where you will dedicate that greatest amount of time and energy in the coming school year.
You can work through the SIGNificance Exercise here for more insight into making strategic extracurricular plans.
Think A Little Deeper About What’s Next
Making decisions about where you will apply to college, what you will major in, and more can be overwhelming. It’s important to take the time you need to work through these decision, and it is especially important that you understand a little deeper the “why” behind the choices you are making.
For example, if you are planning to apply to computer science majors, it is important to understand what is leading you to that decision.
Why?
Because most colleges and universities that require additional essay writing will ask you to explain this choice.
As another example, if you are planning to apply to Yale University, you need to understand more specifically why you are making that decision. Why? Because as part of the Yale application, you are asked to explain what has lead you to apply.
Like most things in the university application process, simple, surface-level response to these types of essay questions just won’t cut it in the world of selective admission.
Being a junior in high school means that you are in a prime position to think about what to major in college, letters of recommendation, your university list and university research, when to take the ACT or SAT, creating high school resume, and working with the best college counselor tips to ensure you are academically and extracurricularly prepared for university admission and the college application process.
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