College Preparation Timeline

• Begin learning about college and if it is the right fit for you.
• Explore your career interests and passions – Try this quiz!
• Discuss with your school counselor the best courses to take in high school to pursue your college plans.
• Develop good time management and study skills. High school is right around the corner.
• Plan a fun trip to a college campus for a sporting event, lunch, or just to walk around.

PARENT & GUARDIAN TIPS  

• Talk with a financial advisor about the cost of college and your options.
• Encourage your student to explore their interests.

• Introduce yourself to your school counselor. This relationship will be vital as you navigate high school and prepare for college.
• Share your goals, hobbies, and challenges with your counselor early in your high school career.
• Get involved in activities that excite you.
• Ask a professional if you can shadow them for a day to understand what their career is like.
• Prioritize getting good grades. It is much easier to start strong than try to recover later grades.
• Find volunteer organizations in your community and pitch in. This will help others and look great on your college application.
• Develop your support system – talk to your parents or guardians, high school counselor, your favorite teachers, and trusted adults in your community about college.
• Join the mailing list of 5 colleges that interest you – Try this one!
• Explore summer programs hosted by colleges – Try this one! 
• Big Goal – Study at least 5 hours a week, every week outside the classroom.

PARENT & GUARDIAN TIPS 

• Planning a road trip? Casually visit college campuses near your destination, so you and your student can get a feel for several types of colleges and locations.
• Get to know your student’s school counselor.
• Take time to understand your student's academic, extracurricular, home, family, and community expectations to properly support them.

• Take a career interest assessment – Try ours!
• Consider gaining some experience that may lead to your passion. Try a job, shadow someone in a field you are interested in, or simply volunteer in your community.
  
• Discuss your interests with your school counselor. They can help you align your schedule with courses and subjects that will best prepare you for college.
• Talk to your parents about college costs and family resources.
• Continue participating in activities – theater, clubs, sports, part-time job, volunteer work, etc.
• Begin creating a list of colleges that interest you. Tip – Finding 10-15 schools that interest you is a great place to start. Consider what is important in a college to you such as location, size, cost, programs, etc.
• Maintain strong grades and begin practicing for the ACT or SAT exam. Plan to take an SAT or ACT early in your junior year.
• Big Goal – Take one official college visit with a campus tour and admissions presentation.

PARENT & GUARDIAN TIPS 

• Help your student create a separate email address for colleges. This email should only be used for college engagement, campus visits, and signing up for college activities and events.
• Talk with your student about finances so you and your student understand who and how college will be paid for/ how much you are willing to spend on education. Use a financial aid estimator tool for more research – Try this one!
• Explore national scholarships and awards with your student. Some require significant efforts beyond grades to be competitive. Starting early is key.
• Be available to join your student on an official college visit.

Live in Indiana? Explore Fast Start, a more affordable path to assured admission at Purdue.

• Talk to your counselors about taking an appropriate amount of college AP, IB, and dual credit courses, if available.
• Visit college campuses you may want to attend. Plan three to five official visits.
• Go to college fairs in your area. Your high school counselor can help you learn about these.
• Watch for information about college admission counselors visiting your high school. They are typically in the library, counseling office, or cafeteria.
• Begin looking for scholarships.
• Unsubscribe from college emails that come from places you are no longer interested in.
• Ask teachers, counselors, and others if they would be interested in writing a letter of recommendation for you.
• If you have a good idea about what you want to study in college, explore jobs, activities or other opportunities that align with that. 
• Explore the admissions process for colleges you are interested in.
• Practice writing college essays.
• Prepare for the ACT/SAT with practice exams and eventually take the actual test.
  • Note: The science section of the ACT is now optional. 
• Big Goal – Make this your best academic year.

PARENT & GUARDIAN TIPS 

• Allow your student to begin understanding their interests and passions. This may mean leaving jobs or activities they no longer find interesting to make more room for their true goals.
• Junior year is incredibly challenging academically. Many students are taking their first heavy schedule of advanced coursework. Support your student by helping them identify places to study and outline how much time they need to reach their goals. Offer to help or find tutors to assist.
• Help your student find a professional that works in a career field they are interested in.
• Be supportive if your student is still exploring. With few exceptions, students have plenty of time to find a passion and decide on a college major.
• Be available for college visits, college fairs, interviews and camps.
• Create dedicated time to talk about “college stuff”. Keep college conversations here to ensure everyone is on the same page.

• Application time! Some schools have application and scholarship deadlines as early as November. Understand the dates, deadlines and application requirements of all your top schools so you can apply with confidence.
• Plan your senior year courses in preparation for your college major freshman year courses. As an example, if your freshman year of college requires College Calculus take Pre-Calculus or AP Calculus as a senior.
• Retake the ACT/SAT, if necessary.
• Campus visits and college fairs are still available. Take the time to get those final questions answered.
• Submit your Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Need more information? Click here!
• Search and apply for scholarships.
• Take your time before committing to a school. Consider the cost, location, campus and how they will help you reach your goals.
• Attend admitted student days at your top colleges. These visits are a bit different from prospective visits and typically offer more access to academic advisors, faculty, students and campus life.
• Finish the year with strong grades.
• Big Goal – Apply to all your colleges by their priority deadline.

PARENT & GUARDIAN TIPS 

• Have the financial fit conversation with your student before they begin applying to college.
• Discuss dates and deadlines for college applications with your student. Avoid planning events around application deadlines.
• Be prepared for tough days. Undoubtedly every school may not be a good fit and a denial letter can be tough to swallow. Be there for your student, they need you. This might be the first opportunity they've had to learn how to overcome obstacles. Learning this now will serve them well when they get to college and encounter challenges.
• Set aside funds for admitted student visits and the enrollment deposit to the college your student selects, and for a few pieces of spirit wear for you and your student. They will want to show off their college choice in the final months of high school!