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seaside-studying · 7 years

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7 Things I Wish I Knew As a High School Freshman

Hey guys! College sophomore that graduated from an IB high school here! Today, I’m gonna be your big sister and tell you stuff about high school to help you succeed early! I’ve never had a baby sibling (or any siblings for that matter), so I’m just gonna take all of you younglings under my wing for a bit if that’s okay? ;u;

k ty. Now for the prep talk:

Although I went to an IB school, these tips can really apply to pretty much any high school, whether you took AP, early college courses, or if you didn’t even take any high-level classes.

High school can be the first tough hurdle you’ll encounter in your life (it was for me), so you’ve gotta be prepared to handle the stress and upcoming workload that you may not be used to yet.

But don’t stress too much! Your high school days are your last days of bonding with an entire class of people (unless you take classes at a small college). As much as you think you’re ready to just go off into the adult world and live on your own, you’re seriously going to miss your old friends and the life you had at your high school. Hell, it’s why we have high school reunions because we miss those times so bad, haha! But anyways, here’s a list of things I wish I knew as a high school freshman.

1. As soon as you get into high school, you need to start thinking about what you want to do for a career so you can tailor the classes you take towards that goal.

Now, you don’t have to have your entire life planned out, but you should at least be thinking about what fields interest you and what you can see yourself doing in the future.

Volunteer or get experience somewhere (or everywhere) if you don’t have a clue about what you want to do yet. Getting rl experience is the best way to help you decide whether you like the type of work you’re thinking about doing or not. It also exposes you to different experiences that you may not have known you would’ve liked!

Keep your options and your mind open! You are merely a sponge during this point in your life. Take the time while you’re young and not bombarded w/ a heavy workload yet to get in the swing of living your life independently. :)

2. Start creating studying habits that work for you so you can boost that GPA! Colleges look at your entire high school GPA, so you need to hit the ground running as soon as you begin high school.

Creating great study habits now will help you immensely in your junior and senior high school years. Don’t start slackin’ yet! You’ve got a whole 4 years ahead of you (and even then, you prob won’t catch a break in college, especially if you’re a science major lol).

Your junior and senior years will probably be your hardest years for different reasons. Junior year is the year you’ll be showcasing most in your college apps, so you’ve gotta get all your grades up before you apply to make you look like the excellent student you are. As for senior year, the first semester is when you apply for college apps, and you hear back from them at around December or March. DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT succumb to “senioritis” (the disease where you magically lose all motivation to do well in your last year of high school because you think the marathon’s over after getting accepted into a college). Well sorry to burst your bubble, but it’s definitely not over. If your GPA spirals down dramatically, the colleges that accepted you can revoke their acceptance of your admission, so just stay in school everyone and make sure your GPA doesn’t drop way below your previous scores because colleges get really alarmed when they see a student’s grade trend drop rather than improve. Do yourself a huge favor and don’t get lazy, please.

To study for midterms/finals, make sure you review old notes every day for at least 2 months before the test so you’re not cramming everything a week before.

3. Make friends! Surround yourself with people that will motivate you to be successful!

High school is the chance for you to mature and meet a variety of people. Take your chances now to network and get to know people in your classes. Know that everyone there has the potential to do great things, so be nice to everyone (especially to that lonely kid that no one talks to). You’ll never know who exactly will be your next partner in whatever amazing thing you discover in life or who you could be saving by flashing a smile their way or a starting a conversation.

It’s okay if you’re not in the “popular” clique. Honestly, the best thing I ever did was have a small circle of friends who were considered “nerds.” They were the people that encouraged me to achieve more than what I thought I could achieve academically and in life generally. You become who you surround yourself with, and by surrounding myself with smart people, I too began to think about life like them. So moral of the story, try to find a group of people who will raise your potential and make you feel good about yourself.

That being said, there’s no need to try to join a group just to “fit in.” Do your best to not to fall into the wrong crowd.

And stay away from drinking or drugs! I know it’s a social activity sometimes, but those substances are definitely not going to help you out on your journey. You can be happy without them!! Don’t use them to cope with any stress or existing problems you have. I guarantee you it’ll make them worse!

4. Befriend your teachers! You’re gonna need it later!

When you apply to college, you’re going to need 1-3 letter of recommendations from your teachers for college applications, scholarships, or even recommendations for jobs/summer internships, so you seriously need to give them a great first impression day 1 and maintain it for as long as you have that teacher. That means going to class on time, asking thought-provoking questions, participating in class regularly, getting good grades on your tests/projects/reports, etc.

Your teachers are also your most trusted resources! If you ever have any questions, feel free to talk to them after class or during lunch. If your teacher is an expert in the field you want to get into for a career, interview them about their experiences and ask how you can get involved at an early age. Who knows, your teachers might actually have connections to people or companies they can hook you up with so you can get out in the field and learn first hand! Seriously take advantage of your resources.

5. Do some extracurricular activities!

Join a sport, club, volunteer organization, or anything really to give your future college application some color. Colleges LOVE well-rounded students who can juggle school on top of other time-consuming activities because it shows that you’re not only disciplined enough to manage your time wisely, but you’re also very diverse in your interests, and colleges want diverse/unique people!

If your school doesn’t have any clubs, start one! It looks really good on your college app too if you say that you “established” a club on your own and got people really involved in the activities you coordinated.

While this is not going to apply to all colleges or fields, some recommended activities that appeal to top-tier colleges are:

Doing volunteer work for a cause (charity work); Eg: National Honors Society looks great for college apps!

Joining clubs that show you’re a good public speaker/intellectual (science, debate, drama clubs, etc depending on the degree you’re interested in applying to for college). But also, don’t turn away from clubs that genuinely interest you, even if they’re hobby clubs that don’t relate to your intended college major. Do what YOU want. :)

Joining a sport (or multiple sports) for several years— shows you’re committed and a team player. Plus, colleges give tons of scholarships to sports players!

Tutoring people in difficult subjects.

Summer learning programs for your intended college major. I personally took an environmental science summer program at my dream college to “put my foot in the door.” It lets the college know that you were involved with them and were on your mind since your early high school days. They like dedication, but know that this isn’t a guaranteed way to get into your dream college.

If you can’t find anything you like, start something of your own! Whether you invent something, create your own organization or even business, colleges love seeing you take initiative into your own hands and start a large-scale project at an early age.

6. Strive to be at the top of the class!

Now it isn’t necessary to absolutely be #1 in each of your classes, but at least aim to be in the top 25% so you reap the benefits of a good letter of rec from your teachers and have access to them as resources.

At the end of each year, sometimes teachers give out awards to the best students in the class. These awards look super awesome on your college apps, so please try your best to get that gold star (but also don’t stress yourself out a ton to try to get it)!

And most of all…

7. Have fun!!!!!!

Like I said, high school will probably be one of the most memorable times of your life. Those 4 years become your essential transitional period from being a kid to a budding adult, so be responsible and make the most out of the time and people you meet at your high school. All they want is for you to succeed and do great things!

Other miscellaneous tips:

Don’t get too invested in relationships during your hs days. I know I used to be an obsessive romantic hoping that I’d find love in high school, but really, just know the time will come when you find love. Most relationships during this time aren’t serious anyway, but if they are, do your thing! Just be sure to hang out in moderation since s/o’s can be distracting and ruin your time managing habits & schedule.

Hang out and socialize with people but in moderation!

Find an effective coping mechanism when you’re upset or stressed out from school, whether that be a sport, your pet, talking to the high school counselor, going out with friends, etc. Sometimes you need a break from your hectic studying schedule, so be sure to give yourself one every now and then! You deserve it.

I know you’re going through that stage where you feel like you can’t do anything because your parents are super overprotective or w/e, but seriously don’t treat your parents like crap because they’re doing what they can for you and have been for 14 years prior. When you’re in college living in a dorm somewhere far far away from them, you’re seriously going to regret all those times you yelled or said mean things to them. Going off to college marks the end of your days living with your parents (it’s pretty sad tbh), so just remember to cherish the time you have left with your family because your parents are getting older too.

Well, I hope this was helpful! If you have any tips you want to add or any questions, feel free to contact your big sis! :) I’d love to help anyone out with their problems or questions. Life is weird and doesn’t come with an instructions manual, so the best way to learn how to navigate through it is to ask the veterans, haha.

Since I graduated from an IB school, I’m probably going to make a “how to survive IB high school” post to give my tips + tricks on how to get good grades in some high-level classes and other miscellaneous IB projects (EE, Group 4, TOK essay), etc., but only if I get a high demand for it because that post is gonna take a lot of time to write out, so send me asks or reply to this post letting me know if you guys want it.

Wishing everyone a great school year filled with awesome grades, fun times with friends, productive study sessions, and success!

~Seaside Studying (Steph) xo

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