Palos Verdes High School

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CEEB Code: 052358 PVPUSD
College Career Center » College Checklist: Sophomore

College Checklist: Sophomore

SEPTEMBER

Meet with Guidance Counselor to ensure you’re meeting ‘A-G’ eligibility requirements for UC/CSU
Update your Naviance Family Connection information. On Family Connection you can start keeping track of your awards and honors, school and community activities that you’re involved on – both paid and volunteer work, and descriptions of what you do. If you have any problems with your Naviance account, contact the College & Career Center.
Concentrate on academics
Continue to develop extra-curricular interests; try new ones
Participate in Community Service
Attend the RACC (Regional Admission Counselors of California) Mini College Fair in Senior Park! This is a great opportunity to get to know some great colleges outside of California right here at PV High.
Visit Road Trip Nation: online career exploration found under the “careers” tab on your Family Connection account. Start thinking about and investigating what kind of careers you might enjoy most!

OCTOBER

Participate in College Week! All sophomores will take a “50/50” practice college entrance exam to become exposed to both the ACT and the SAT to get a glimpse of what those tests are like.
Stay on top of academics: turn in homework on time, follow up on test with test corrections.

NOVEMBER – JANUARY

Receive and review results from the College Day testing. This will help you understand more about college entrance exams and help you prepare for the actual ACT and/or SAT which you will take in your junior year.
Attend an Alumni Day College Panel to hear from Sea King alumnus what life at college is really like!
Complete “Do What You Are” on NAVIANCE (Click on tab: “ABOUT ME” then click on “PERSONALITY TYPE.) Discuss the result of “Do What You Are” with your Counselor during your Sophomore Conference. Be prepared for your Sophomore Guidance Lesson. Click on tab: “About Me” then click on “Personality Type.” Discuss the results with your parents and with your Counselor during your Sophomore Conference.
Get organized. You might begin receiving mail and e-mail from Colleges. Start a file of important documents and notes… you can keep the information in a file box or in a digital folder, but you should keep your test scores in a folder along with your transcript, report cards, etc.

FEBRUARY – MARCH

Keep up your grades; retain good writing samples for personal use
Continue with community service; focus on service that you feel is important and where you can try to make a difference.
Learn what resources are available to help you plan for college by visiting the College & Career Center and speaking with your Counselor. Check out the catalogs, guidebooks, college search programs and college information web sites that can be found under the “Resource Links” or Useful Websites on the CCC page of the pvhigh.com website.
Explore upcoming summer internships and jobs. Talk to your parents about your family plans for summer and discuss the possibility of participating in a summer enrichment program, workshop or camp with specialty focuses such as music, arts and science.
Military Academy Information – If you are interested in applying to a U.S. Military Academy as a senior, plan to attend the Military Academy Information session or contact your local Congressional representative to obtain a timeline of application procedures.

APRIL – MAY

Meet with your Counselor to discuss your academic plan and course selections for your junior year. Talk to your counselor about Advanced Placement (AP) and honors courses; keep in mind that you will want to challenge yourself with tougher courses that make sense for you. Every student should take the most challenging courses he or she can perform well in.
Prepare for college entrance exams by taking a practice full length ACT / SAT. These are valuable tests to help you prepare for the actual ACT / SAT that you will take in your junior year. It’s important to understand which test works better for you so that you can focus on preparing for that test you can do your best on.
Attend College Fairs where sophomores are admitted: The NACAC College Fair is one of the largest and a great opportunity to meet admissions representatives from hundreds of colleges around the nation: http://www.nacacnet.org/college-fairs/springncf/Pages/default.aspx
Sign up to take summer courses if appropriate. Volunteer or work over summer, take classes or enrichment programs – whatever the case, make those plans now so you don’t miss out later.

JUNE – AUGUST

Enjoy your summer doing whatever it is you decided to do!
Start now or continue a discussion with your family about College: Find out about the different types of schools. Decide which characteristics are most important to you, such as size, distance from home, cost.
Begin your college search and visits.