Tips for Your Sophomore Year of High School

Sophomore year of high school can be a confusing time. You don’t feel the newness of being a freshman but there isn’t the immense pressure of junior or senior year with ACT/SATs and college applications. But don’t let that fool you; you can take advantage of being on “easy street” and get a jump start into the rest of your life! And the best part is that it looks different for everyone.

I knew in high school I didn’t have the best grades, so I wanted to get a head start on extracurriculars and jobs. The most valuable thing that I took from high school jobs and activities is that there is always the opportunity to learn and you shouldn’t shy away from an opportunity because it ‘wasn’t what you expected to be doing’.

Academics

The college application process is extremely daunting whether it’s writing essays, figuring out what you want and where you want to spend the next four years. May I introduce the most untapped resource available to you in high school: your guidance counselor. They are an overlooked and underappreciated resource. It’s important to build a relationship with your guidance counselor as early as possible. According to CollegeVine, “The worst thing you can do is to wait for a severe academic or personal problem to spur you to reach out to your guidance counselor — they will be better able to help you in a scenario like this if they have known you previously.”

In general, you wouldn’t take advice from someone who doesn’t know you so why take college advice from someone who doesn’t have an idea of things that you might enjoy in the college experience? Not only do they understand who you are as a student, they are able to learn about you as a human being and what kind of environment you’d thrive in.

Another great way to get ahead of the game is to take a summer college course. Many colleges and universities across the country offer summer classes for high school students ranging in topics from athletics, journalism, art, math, science, film studies, and more! Fastweb has a great list of college programs going on this summer.

Extracurriculars and Jobs

Sophomore year should be your year of “yes.” You should say yes to the opportunities that scare you or challenge what you thought you’d be good at. High school is a great time to get out of your comfort zone and take part in improving your community through volunteering, interning, and working. Local stores are frequently looking for young people who want to learn. It also teaches responsibility, time management, handling multiple commitments, and more.

Jobs and internships in high school give you the opportunity to discover things that interest you and see if something is worth pursuing after college. The job market has changed vastly in the past 10 years; not only in types of jobs but ways to get jobs. NAF’s Virtual Guest Speaker Series showcases professionals across the tech, education, media, and engineering industries. They talk about their roles, their companies, how they got to where they are, and general career advice. There are also some familiar alumni faces featured throughout the series.

The uncertainty of sophomore year shouldn’t be something that makes you shy away from opportunities. In one of the most freeing years of high school, take advantage of any opportunity to learn what comes your way whether it be academic or job/volunteering related.