Boosting Your College Application: A Rising Junior's Summer Bucket List
If you’ve seen the report released by the Common Application this spring, then you’re already aware that college application submissions are trending upward. The report notes a significant increase in students applying to college for the 2023-2024 school year. We don’t see that changing anytime soon.
This information is hardly surprising; we’ve been noting this steady increase for the last few years. While this is great news for higher education, it makes for a much more competitive college admissions process for our college-bound clients.
In our last post, we explained how important it is for college-minded students to start their college planning during their sophomore year of high school. Starting early allows students to map out their high school experience: the courses they should take, the best way to earn honors and credits, and what extracurricular activities and community service projects to get involved with.
With that timeline in mind, the summer after sophomore year is an excellent time for students to get involved in activities that they ordinarily wouldn’t have time for during the school year.
There are many summer activities that would undoubtedly give rising juniors a huge boost to their college admissions chances.
Before they dive in, talk to your clients about what types of activities they feel would strengthen their college applications.
Are they interested in taking on a new academic challenge? Suggest taking a summer course—some are online, many are free!
Are they interested in giving back to their community? There are plenty of ways to get involved in established community service projects or, if they’re super ambitious, they could start their own!
Are they interested in learning a new skill? There are a lot of summer extracurriculars and activities that they can try.
Are they interested in finding a job? Maybe they need to start filling the coffers for college—suggest finding a paying position that will help them earn money and some new skills, too.
Here are some solid summer activities to bring to the attention of your rising juniors:
Courses
Taking academic courses in the summer—whether students need to catch up in a subject area or they’re just plain interested in the topic—just feels more relaxed than during the school year. Summer coursework has a different vibe: it’s calmer, less chaotic, and class sizes are typically smaller—allowing students more opportunities to ask questions and connect better to the content and their fellow students and teachers.
Community College Courses: Community colleges offer summer courses; some in-person, many online, and even a few hybrid. If students have the time, taking a summer course is a great way to knock out a general education class, discover a new interest, and earn college credit while doing so!
Free Online Classes: Free learning platforms, like Coursera and edX, are awesome sites where students (of any age!) can explore and learn new topics. Most of these classes even offer college credit (for a cost).
There are also many accredited colleges that offer free online, non-credited courses for students who are simply interested in learning something new or advanced. For example, Harvard offers over 100 free courses in a variety of subject areas such as Introduction to Game Development and Ancient Egyptian Art and Archaeology.
Summer School Programs: These high school classes are typically remediation courses recommended by a counselor or teacher. For example, if your client failed geometry, there’s a good chance they qualify for a remedial math course in the summer. This is a crucial opportunity for our struggling students to get back on track and close curricular gaps in their high school academics.
Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteering reaps both personal and educational benefits for students. There’s a true sense of giving back when you get involved in a community project or program. This is vitally important for kids to experience—not just to put on a college application resumé.
In some cases, participating in community service can open doors for students with new connections to people in their community or even a new career path to consider.
There are so many types of volunteer work, there’s easily something for everyone. Some opportunities to consider include:
food pantries
animal shelters
camps for younger kids
activities for people with special needs
events for the elderly
local nonprofit fundraising
youth outreach
local libraries
Still can’t think of any ideas? There are even private- and government-sponsored programs and charities, such as the Red Cross Club Youth Program, Habitat for Humanity, and Special Olympics, that students can get involved in!
For more ideas, check out our post: Volunteering: The Personal and Educational Benefits for High School Students.
Extracurricular Activities
In the summertime, everything feels more mellow; the pressure of the year is off, and you can focus more on activities you’ve been wanting to try. Encourage your students to follow that mood, and think of what they would like to do with their time.
If your students can’t think of anything off the top of their heads, tell them to start with a personal passion. Maybe they love art, but haven’t had the time in their school schedule to fit in an art elective; suggest taking an art class in town! Have they always wanted to try coding? See if the local library offers a class. Curious about pickleball? Find a local league.
Just because you’re suggesting that your students get involved in summer activities doesn’t mean the activities shouldn’t be enjoyable; they absolutely should be! The summer is a great time to discover new interests, learn new skills, and build and hone established ones. What’s more, colleges appreciate this type of commitment to personal growth and development.
Find a Job
Not all students have the luxury of being summertime free spirits; some need to work and earn money. Having a job is an extremely respectable way for them to spend their time. It shows maturity and discipline. If students can find a job in an area of interest—even better.
Encourage your students still looking for a job to think about their personal strengths and skills.
Are they good with children? Look for a job at a summer camp or daycare.
Do they have good communication skills? They could look for a job answering phones or emails for a local business.
Do they play an instrument or sport? They could teach lessons or help coach a summer league.
Even if your clients’ summer job is just that—a job—encourage them to look at the skills they’re using and strengthening. I guarantee they’re using skills that they’ll be able to note in their college applications, and on their work resumés going forward.
It may seem like summer is the only chance our students get to take a break; summer always seems to be over in a flash! But, with at least two months off from school, that’s plenty of time for them to find ways to relax and recharge while also getting involved in a few beneficial activities that will unquestionably give their college application a boost!
We hope you’ve enjoyed our post! For more helpful posts, be sure to subscribe to our blog!
We Are Ready for the All-Digital ACT® and SAT®! Are you?
As the SAT® and ACT® transition to all-digital testing, we are ready to support your tutoring business with the first and best custom-branded, fully-digital test-prep courses. Our white-label, all-digital, adaptive Digital SAT® practice tests include accurate, algorithmic scoring. This gives your tutors and clients access to the actionable data they need for tailored instruction and score optimization.
Ready to take your test prep to the cutting edge? Schedule a free demo and try it for yourself!