If you are hoping to attend college after high school, you should be making A's and B's (preferably A's) in the most rigorous classes you can manage. There is no big secret to college admissions; colleges are looking for good students with a proven ability to succeed in their academics. Make sure to visit the webpages of the colleges you are interested in early in high school...or better yet, visit the colleges themselves! Look for "freshman class profiles" on college undergraduate admission pages to see what a typical accepted student at the school looks like as far as test scores and GPAs are concerned.
Some factors to consider when choosing a college are:
- Major/Field of Study - does this college offer the program I'm interested in?
- Competitiveness - how close do I resemble the college's typical student (look at "freshman profiles")?
- Location - how far away from home do I want to be?
- Cost/Financial Aid - how much is the college's tuition rate and what aid/scholarships can they offer?
- Family Responsibilities
Not sure where to begin your college search? Start with these informative sites:
- GA Futures: Georgia's college and career search engine. Info on planning, applying, and paying for college. Great site for students in all grade levels. Formerly known as GAcollege411.
- Big Future: Customizable search engine that lets you explore colleges and provides information on deadlines, majors, campus life, applying, and tuition rates.
- Affordable Colleges Online
- Naviance: A college and career readiness software that provides students with college planning and career assessment tools. Naviance helps students discover their strengths, explore college and career interest, create actionable goals, and find their best-fit path after high school. Select your grade level for instructions on how to access and level specific Naviance tasks below.