take my word for it.

I really wish that someone would have given me more advice prior to my senior year. Like had actually sat me down and just talked to me about it. Because I feel like sooo much of my stress could have and would have been avoided had I known some of these crucial things. So heres some helpful advice for senior year, coming from someone who just graduated highschool last week :]

• Start your college search early;; Im talking about this summer. Start researching colleges that you're interested in and also look up some new ones you may never have heard of before. The main thing is to find schools that have the major that you plan to go into. Going to a school just because its hype and has tons of parties or is in a popular city is not wassup. You go to college to get a degree, so find a school that will best accomidate you with that goal. Keep in mind that different schools have different majors. Get atleast 5 schools lined up that you plan to apply to. Look up the application fees and get a good sense of how much youre going to have to pay to send them it; trust me, it gets costly realll quick, so start setting money aside for it if youre gonna have to pay it on your own. Trust me, all this will help you tremendously when school rolls around-youll be way ahead of the game.
• Find the major for you;; You cant begin your school search until you figure out what you want to major in! There are tons of books and websites out there with the countless majors and thier descriptions. Really think about what you want to do career wise, then simply google something like "what should I major in to become a ___?" Thats what I did! Or you could google whatever profession you're interested in, say child life specialist, and find a website that has its qualifications. Your best bet would be one of those huge books that the college board puts out each year.
• Dont slack off;; Seriously, dont. You will regret it. Im regretting it as we speak. Its true that the transcript that is sent off to colleges is of your junior year, but final senior transcripts are also mailed out once you graduate! If they see that your grades have dropped considerably, they have every right to deny you admittance [though very rare] or take away a scholarship you may have earned [much more common, since most are gpa based]. Maintain your gpa by all means possible. Try to even improve it if you can!
• Dont take the easy way out;; This may only be relevant to magnet school or privavte school kids. Alot of people try to take bullshit classes their senior year so they wont be stressed out and can easily boost their gpa. But its not necesarily a good look if when you send your transcipt out you have straight electives on your schedule. Just keep that in mind, lol.
• Apply for hella scholarships;; It doesnt matter how big or how small, every bit counts. Once you start researching tuitions and room&&board costs your little mouth is going to drop I guarantee. You need all the money you can get, so apply apply apply! Write one good universal essay that you can use for all of them to save you time. Some will ask for specific essays though, so be prepared. Type up a professional resume and request letters of recommendation from your favorite teachers as soon as school starts. Multiple copies, at that. Youll need all of that. This was probably my least favorite part of senior year.
• Cherish the moments;; Senior year is going to fly by, I promise you that. Youll look and and before you know it, its graduation day. So live it up!! Party party party your ass off. Really live in the moment each and everyday. Everyone will be going separate ways most likely with the exception of a few, so cherish each moment you have with those amazing friends of yours. I wish I had done this more. I spent the majority of my senior year stressed out about my grades, so I had barely any time to really enjoy it to the fullest. Dont get me wrong, I had a fucking blast! But I could have made more of it.
• Stay out of trouble;; Theres nothing worse than having to explain a suspension, expulsion, or arrest on a college resume. Just saying...

Thats all I can think of right about now. Hope this helps someone!