College Planning: A Spring Guide for High School Juniors and Families
Springtime is approaching, and if you’re a high school junior, chances are that it’s a busy time filled with looming to-dos: midterm exams and papers, summer program applications, AP exam prep, all on top of your normal academic and extracurricular workload.
And on top of all that, you’re supposed to make progress in the college process: building out a robust starter list of colleges to visit and apply to, studying for the SAT/ACT, asking for teacher recommendations and filling out junior packets, and coming up with starter topics for the Common App essays.
If it feels like you’ll never be able to get it all done, or like every waking moment of your life is accounted for (isn’t high school also supposed to be…fun?), know that you’re not alone. Here at Principia, we know that one of the best ways to cut through the overwhelm is to come up with simple plans that keep you making progress so that you don’t feel behind or miss out on great opportunities.
Here are a few of our favorite strategies for making the most of the next few months so you can breathe easier come summertime.
Create a College-Specific Calendar
If you’re not already in the habit of using a calendar to plan ahead, this is the year to start.
Get into the habit of putting deadlines and goals into either a digital or physical calendar as a part of the college process. Choose the style that works best for you. This is a great place to keep track of:
Summer Program Dates and Deadlines
SAT/ACT Exam Dates and Test Prep
College Visit Information
Contest and Award Deadlines
College-Related School Meetings and Deadlines (e.g. junior packets, teacher recommendation deadlines, meetings with school counselors)
Then get into the habit of looking ahead. Each week, spend 15 minutes looking at upcoming dates and deadlines, and transferring any relevant to-dos into your planner or task system.
Prioritize Your Spring Break Focus Based on Your Weaknesses and Challenges
It’s not uncommon to get blanket advice about what to do during spring break, like “Visit your top three colleges” or “Study 8 hours a day for the SAT.”
But your spring break should be individualized to you and what you need to work on the most at this crucial juncture. Spend an hour looking at your full profile and determining what needs your attention.
For example, while college visits are a great use of spring break, if you’re struggling in Calculus and on the verge of dipping from a B- to a C+ with an exam right after the break, it might be worth it to spend those precious free hours working with a tutor or trusted study buddy. Visits can happen in the summer or fall; your grades should always take priority.
Here’s a list of areas to evaluate, and a few strategies for making progress during the break:
GPA: Seek out tutoring, YouTube videos, or teacher assistance. Look ahead at any looming post-break tests and deadlines to stay ahead of the game.
SAT/ACT: Focus on targeted prep - take a diagnostic test if you haven’t already, and spend your time on the areas you need to improve.
Teacher Recommendations: Think about connecting with your teachers more deeply between now and the end of the school year. Never had a one-on-one conversation with a teacher? Send a thoughtful email or create a plan for stopping by for homework help.
Extracurricular Activities: Look into awards, leadership opportunities or conferences, and competitions with spring deadlines. For example, student journalists might apply for summer conferences like the Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference. Writers and artists might look into refining their stories for the fall Scholastic Arts and Writing Competitions or specialized summer workshops.
Summer Opportunities: Create a plan A/B/C for your summer. If you’ve already applied for summer opportunities but haven’t heard back yet, you’ll want to keep looking for backup options – don’t wait until you hear back from your top choice! You may also want to begin tapping local connections for lesser-known opportunities to volunteer and intern in your local community.
Book Visits Early
Spring break is a BUSY time for college campuses, so it’s crucial to think ahead if you’re planning to visit colleges in-person. Make sure to book tours and information sessions as early as possible: slots are limited, and can fill up weeks in advance.
Be sure to register for the official tour and information session through the admissions website, and then layer in additional opportunities if available: department-specific sessions, student panels, or even a class visit. It’s worth your time to dig into each campus’s website to see what’s available so you plan to make the most of your experience.
A few additional tips:
Map out driving time using Google Maps’ ‘Depart By’ and ‘Arrive By’ features (campuses that look “close” on a map can feel very different in traffic).
Build in time to walk around without a guide. Some of the most valuable insights come from simply sitting in the student center and observing.
Take notes immediately after each visit. Colleges blur together quickly, and what feel like distinct impressions in the moment will fade faster than you expect.
Challenge Your College Assumptions
If you’re like many students, you’ve already narrowed your “ideal” college based on a few strong assumptions.
Maybe you went to a big, STEM-heavy high school and now you’re convinced you need a tiny campus where you won’t feel lost as a humanities-loving theater kid. Or maybe you grew up in a major city and can’t imagine four years in a town without a decent poke bowl.
Totally fair.
But spring break is a great time to test those instincts. Are you choosing based on real experience, or just what you think you’d prefer?
That small college town you were ready to skip might surprise you with some of the best fusion food out there. And that “too big” university might actually have an honors college or smaller academic community that makes it feel much more personal than you expected.
So add a school or two to your list that you think will challenge you. Then as you visit (or explore virtually), gather real data:
How did you actually feel walking around?
Could you picture yourself in those classrooms?
Did students seem collaborative, intense, relaxed?
You don’t have to change your mind. But remember – you’re choosing a college not just for the version of you that exists right now, but a version that could be different 4 years from now. So push yourself to pressure-test your assumptions. Build your list based on the way you want to grow and change over the next few years, not just what you’ve always liked or already heard.
Visit at Least One Safety and Several Matches
Particularly on the East Coast, where it’s possible to plan an entire trip made up of schools with sub-10% admission rates, it’s important to be strategic with your visits. Yes, you can always visit safeties and matches after being admitted. But if they’re close enough to your other visits, it’s to your advantage to take some time to check out schools beyond your top-5.
Why? Because a visit often reveals information that a cursory glance at a website wouldn’t – special honors programs, research initiatives, merit scholarships, smaller class sizes, and access to research or leadership roles that might be harder to secure at the most selective institutions. Many of these less selective schools will take demonstrated interest into account, which can help with the admissions process, and it’ll be easier to write your “Why College” essays for these schools if you’ve visited them.
Adding less competitive institutions to your visit list can also help to make the entire experience less stressful. Visiting only ultra-selective colleges can feel anxiety-inducing (hello, 100+ person info sessions and mega tours), and unintentionally distort your expectations. It’s helpful to see a range of campuses so that you can compare size, vibe, academic rigor, and community feel across selectivity levels.
So make sure your itinerary includes at least 1 true safety and several realistic match schools if you have the time and bandwidth.
Can’t Travel? Find Other Ways to Engage
Visiting colleges during spring break isn’t always feasible due to cost, scheduling conflicts, or family commitments. The good news is that colleges are easier than ever to access online, and it’s worth your time to deep-dive into the resources they offer.
Here are ways to meaningfully engage without leaving home:
Attend live virtual information sessions and student panels.
Watch student videos and “Day in the Life” vlogs on YouTube (not just the polished admissions videos).
Explore student-run blogs or Instagram takeovers.
Reach out to current students or alumni through your school network.
The key is to engage actively rather than passively. Create a file for each school, and take good notes. Look for special programs, fun traditions, and their core mottos/philosophies. Having fun with this now will make the process of writing essays in the summer and fall so much easier.
Plan Some R&R
While it’s easy to focus on using spring break to get ahead, spring break should feel like…a break.
Yes, you can use it to get organized. But it’s also a rare pause button. And you probably need one. Before you dive into test prep or college tours, take at least an afternoon or a day to zoom out. For most students, this year has been a lot.
Spend some time reflecting thoughtfully:
What are you actually proud of? A grade you pulled up? A hard class you didn’t quit?
Give yourself credit. You’ve done more than you think, and if you’re like most students, you’re doing the best you can.
Recharging is crucial for ending the year strong. So make a list of little things you can do alongside the other areas of focus we’ve mentioned above.
Sleep in without guilt. Get food with friends and ban college and school talk. Go on a long walk. Sit in your room and listen to music. Laugh with your family. Say thank you to a teacher who’s helped you.
You’ve got this.
