It’s crunch time! You have one more year of high school before delving into the world of adulthood! But try to take things one-step at a time. After all, you started planning way back in freshman year for college, right? This year shouldn’t be like any other, except for the fact that all of that resourceful planning will be applied. You’ve worked hard for this moment. Keep plunging forward and the college of your dreams will be at your fingertips.

Request recommendation letters from teachers and counselors

You’ve been visiting your counselor for nearly four years now. They should know you and have a pretty good understanding of your goals. Who better to ask for a recommendation letter? Many colleges require recommendation letters from persons in professional standing to comment on you as a student and a person.

While your counselor is an obvious choice, you can also ask your teachers, advisors, sports coaches and employers. If you volunteered for an organization every summer, you can ask the head to write you a letter of recommendation as well. Be creative in your choices! A letter from your counselor and one from your community volunteer program leader looks a bit more impressive than two letters from teachers. Show you are a diverse and well-rounded individual based on your letters.

Another thing to keep in mind is to be courteous to those you ask for letters from. Give them at least three weeks to write the letter and get it back to you. Nothing looks more unprofessional than a last minute letter request.

Also, a week or so after receiving the letters of recommendation, write the individual a brief thank you note. After all, your counselor or instructor took time out of their life for you. You can do them the same courtesy.

Set up a tentative college cost budget.

Everything involved with college is expensive. There is just no way of getting around that fact. But you can help yourself by coming up with a budget.

First and foremost, college application costs can really add up. Decide how much you are willing to spend on this cost and figure out how many colleges you can apply to. Take the colleges from the top of your list and prepare to apply.

Next, figure out how much your parents are willing to spend on your college education and how much you will be expected to pay as well. Take this amount and compare it to the tuition costs of your top schools. Will it cover the costs? Or, will you require financial aid? How much funding will you receive from financial aid resources?

Figure out tentative numbers now. You don’t want to be accepted to your dream college only to find out you can’t go because you can’t afford it.

Write your applications essays

You’ve written rough drafts over the summer, had those you trust read them over, and now it’s time for the real deal. Get out your pen and paper and rewrite your applications essays. Make the changes that your favorite editors have suggested and make sure each essay is focused. If one application has a very specific prompt, be sure your essay addresses it. You can think of this sort of a prompt as a question and your essay as the answer.

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