College Planning Checklist

• Make sure you are taking college preparatory courses.  Don't drop these courses if they seem too hard.  Colleges look for students who challenge themselves.  Talk to your teacher and school counselor if you are having a hard time.  Keep grades up, but strive for balance in life.
• Take the college ACT entrance exam (State-wide testing is happening on March 1st).
• Begin researching colleges and start making a list of the colleges that are of interest to you.  Think about parameters (cost, distance, campus, etc.) and create a list of important factors.
• Meet with your school counselor to discuss post-secondary plans.
• Keep involved at school with after-school programs and extracurricular activities.
• Start learning about the different types of financial aid such as grants/scholarships, loans, and work study.
• Begin researching scholarships in the spring (fastweb.com, scholarships.com).  In addition to scholarships online, ask family members to find out if there are scholarships offered by their employers or by organizations to which they belong.  If you have a job, ask your employer about scholarship opportunities available to you through the company.
• Start working on your resume.
  In the spring, begin to take part in campus visits and job shadows.