- Back to School Checklist for Seniors
- Seniors - are you ready to conquer your last two semesters of high school? We’re here to help your college admission game plan with our Essential Checklist for Seniors. Check out our resources for a full guidance on areas that you definitely want to touch base on with counselors, parents, recommenders, and admission officers!
👩🏻🏫Book a meeting with your counselor in advance. They’re super busy in the fall. Ask if your parents/guardians can come.
🏫Create a shortlist of your colleges with Reach, Target, and Safety. Research beforehand and form your own personal opinions on schools. Explain to your counselor WHY it will be reasonable for you to apply to these schools. It cannot be ‘because it’s Ivy’ or ‘my parents want me to go here’.
✅Check your highschool’s internal deadline for ED1 or EA submission. It will normally be 1-2 weeks before the official deadline, so make sure you calculate your D-Day correctly.
✉️Say hello to your recommenders and offer reminders and updates. If they request a ‘Brag Sheet’, give it to them ASAP. Give them a heads up on the ideal timeline for submission for the rec letters, the types of school you’ll be applying, and make sure to say thank you! Get their full name and double check their email address to send the link.
✏️Have a decent draft of your Personal Statement ready. With senior year workloads and exams, you won’t have time to experiment with a brand new prompt.
♥️Sign up for Virtual Information Sessions to show ‘DI - Demonstrated Interest’. Schools offer multiple rounds of info sessions throughout the fall. Maybe you’ll get a better idea of how to write a ‘Why School’ essay after!
🧩Organize all of your Activities, Extracurriculars, Awards, Summer Camps, and other Achievements in one document. It can be from inside & outside of school. This will save you time when you’re filling out the Activities Section. Show the list to your parent/guardian to help you remember some of the things you might have missed.
🗓️Check the dates for College Visits to your high school! It will be a great opportunity to meet the regional admissions team and make a good impression.