#1 Create a History

Every person has a past, so it is important to create a past for your character – even if you do not share the entire contents of that past. People evolve over the years because of their experiences and surroundings throughout their lives, and your fictional character is no different, so you need to develop a fictional past for him or her. When you are initially developing a new character, you are getting to know that character, just as your readers will get to know that character when they read your story. It is important to understand why your character will react or make decisions the way that he or she does, so it is important to have a back story that goes along with the personality that has been created for that character over the years.

#2 Show (don’t tell) His or Her Emotions

If you have not heard the phrase now, you will a lot throughout most of your English related courses: show, don’t tell. Simply saying that your character is feeling sad is not a proper description of a realistic character. People don’t feel the same emotions in the same way. Some people cry when they are sad, while others scream or go completely silent. You need to show how your characters are feeling, rather than just say how they are feeling.

Bad Example: Nora became angry after reading the letter. She just couldn’t stand it anymore.

Good Example: Nora’s face became hot after reading the letter. She viciously began to tear                       apart the envelope when she couldn’t look at its content any more.

Showing a character’s emotions through actions lets your readers get a better idea of what kind of personality someone like Nora has.

#3 Give Your Character Habits or Quirks

People are remembered for the little things they do that are different from anyone else, and everyone has something peculiar them that seems unique. Giving an interesting habit or strange quirk lends personality to your character. It can be as small as eating M&Ms all the time, but refusing to eat any other kind of chocolate. Or as big as having your character insist on eating at the exact same restaurant every day, and is thrown off if something disturbs this regimen. Whatever habit or quirk you give your character will allow your readers to get to know him or her better. Sometimes you can give an explanation for the behavior, but you don’t always have to. Either way, your readers will have another reason to think, “Hey, this character is interesting.”

#4 Show Relationships

We can learn a lot about individuals by the way they interact with others. If your character is very sociable, then you should show the character interacting with a lot of random people at work, talking on the phone, and even chatting with strangers on the street. But, if the character is more of a recluse and only has one or two friends, show the bond between those few characters, and maybe even show the uncomfortable feeling that character gets when dealing with new individuals.

#5 Reveal Character’s Hopes, Dreams, Aspirations

People live their lives with a particular purpose. They don’t just go through the motions of school or work without having some reason to do so. If you are going to show that your character is unhappy with his or her job, then be sure to explain why that character continues to keep that job – what is his or her motivation? Is she saving up for a car? Is he trying to pay off a loan? These are the kinds of questions that readers ask about characters who are interesting. And, if you are answering those questions, then your readers are going to enjoy your character and your style of writing that much more.

Internships are a great way to earn some money and/or school credit while you, the student, earn some experience in a field that may lead to your future career. If you make a good impression with your internship, it is possible that a permanent position could be earned in a higher level, and at the very least, you could earn some very strong references for your resume. However, the full potential of a good internship can only be attained if you are a good at your internship. Here are some tips and tricks to becoming the perfect intern that your co-workers and managers cannot help but recommending.

#1 Be On Time

Although it sounds simple enough, too many people have the habit of showing up five or ten minutes late to work every day. This does not give a good impression with the people you work with. Being a few minutes late means that you are probably running into work out of breath, which does not look professional. Even if you are just strolling in late, then your managers are likely to begin to view you as a slacker or someone who only does the bare minimum at the job. The bare minimum is not going to impress anyone. It is a much better idea to show up about five or ten minutes early to your job instead. The extra few minutes you have will let you get settled just before you start working. And, if your manager and coworkers notice that you are showing up early, they are more likely to look at you as a dependable intern or future employee.

#2 Dress Professionally

It may just be an internship to you, but to everyone else working there, it is their job they take seriously. Therefore it is important that you show the same respect by dressing appropriately to work. Coming into work wearing jeans and a t-shirt is not a statement that anyone should take you seriously. Coming into work with slacks and a button-up shirt shows that you are prepared to work in a serious manner. Although people are not supposed to judge each other by their looks, it is still an unavoidable trait in most individuals. In my own experience, I have noticed that when I dress more professionally at work, I receive more respect from the teachers and students who talk to me in class.

#3 Take Initiative

Interns who do the bare minimum do not get noticed by their managers and co-workers. Interns who take initiative and keep themselves busy at work will get noticed for their diligence. I have known interns who do their work, and then sit around looking bored for an hour. The interns who stand out to me are the ones who are constantly looking for work to do. If they finish their work, they look for more by asking their superiors what else they can do to be helpful. I have even known some interns who take it upon themselves to tidy up the work area as a way of keeping busy. These are the interns who are not lazy, who want to do a good job, and who will definitely be noticed and admired by the managers.

#4 Show Interest

Asking your supervisor questions and trying to learn more about the work that is entailed with your internship is a great way to show your managers that you are interested in your work, which means that you care about your work, and that indicates you want to do a good job. Managers appreciate having workers that try to learn more about their job because an interested intern is a better worker than ones who stands around looking bored all day because they could care less about their job.

#5 Be a Friendly Worker

Getting along with your co-workers can be tricky sometimes, but if you are able to be friendly with the people you work with, they are more likely going to say good things about you, which can be transferred into finding a better position for you with them in their company, or earning yourself a strong recommendation as a worker who is easy to get along with in other jobs.

Step #1 Prewrite

Yes, you hear your instructors tell you all the time to prewrite, but do you ever listen to them? Prewriting (which is listed in another blog) is not just a way to organize your thoughts and get down ideas, it is another way to look at your writing project and force yourself to write. Getting past your writer’s block is often just a matter of looking at your task from a different perspective (or looking around your writer’s block, if you will). If you can brainstorm or outline some ideas for your writing, then you have a better chance at feeling confident and putting your pen to the paper to start writing. With all of the different methods of prewriting, there really isn’t any reason not to use at least one of them when you’re stumped.

Step #2 Write Backwards

Even after the prewriting is finished, you may still feel uncertain how you want to word your thoughts exactly. If that’s the case, jot down your ideas out of order – write the end first and the beginning last if you must. Sometimes your ideas may be scattered, which is why you are having trouble focusing on just one idea. Maybe your mind is blank with your introduction, but you know what you want to write for your body paragraphs. If that is the case, then just skip ahead. Write down whatever good ideas you think you have and reorganize them later.

Step #3 Take Your Opposing Side

If you are really uncomfortable with your topic and feel you have absolutely nothing to write about, then you may want to take yourself out of your own head and put it into someone else’s. This has nothing to do with cheating. You are supposed to write the opposite of what you really feel. Or, think of what other people would say about your subject. It may be easier putting down what you think other people feel or believe than what you actually believe. Your confidence in your own ideas may be what stops your writing. Do not use this technique all of the time though. There are some assignments where you need to give your honest opinion, and this method of breaking writer’s block may not always be suitable.

Step #4 Just Write!

It may sound harsh, but sometimes you just have to force your pen to move on the paper or to have your fingers move across the keyboard. Often people refuse to write anything because they don’t think their ideas or words are good enough. Well, when you’re struggling, writing something is better than writing nothing. Put down whatever comes to mind whether or not you think it sounds good. You can always fix it later, which is how we come to Step 5 in breaking the writer’s block.

Step #5 Walk Away… and Come Back

Sometimes students are just not in the right state-of-mind to write. If there are a bunch of things running through your head, you may need to just set up your writing assignment as best as you can and walk away from it for a while. When you come back to whatever writing you have put down, you may feel more inclined to fix your ideas and even add more ideas down on paper. Depending on how much time you have for your writing, walking away from your assignment for an hour or a full day may be just what you need to come back to your writing and look at your project with a clear head. When you come back to your writing, look it over with a critical eye, as if it were someone else’s paper, and see what you do and do not like about it. And then, take your writing from there. Unless you are taking an in-class essay, this method can be a great way to clear your mind. Otherwise, you’ll have to rely on a different method of break down that writer’s wall.

Study, study, study… it’s what students do almost every day of their life. And, if they aren’t studying, then they are worried about when they have to start studying again after their short break. Unfortunately, that is just the way of the student. There are good and bad ways to study though. If you are a student who wants to improve your grades, then there are simple tricks and tips to keep in mind that will not only improve your grades, but possibly make your own studying habits a little simpler on yourself.

Overall, it comes down to planning. Think ahead a little bit and try out these 7 things to help improve your study skills and, ultimately, your grades.

#1 Get Rest

Although this has been gone over many times, it is never said enough – Get enough rest before you go to school. Showing up to school tired means that you are not focused on the material that your teacher is lecturing or on what you are reading. If you are having trouble focusing in class while you yawn every ten minutes or more, chances are that you are not getting enough sleep during the night. If you are still skeptical on the importance of getting sleep, there is an entire blog on Eduify that is dedicated to the detrimental effects of sleep deprivation.

#2 Eat Before an Exam, (but don’t drink much)

Food is fuel. When people do not eat properly they become tired, weak, and grumpy. None of those symptoms of hunger are conducive to proper concentration while you try to study or attend class. If you are in class and you stomach is grumbling because you skipped breakfast again, you are going to end up daydreaming about food rather than listen to the lecture. Do yourself a favor and eat something that will tide you over while attending class. However, you may not want to drink anything in excess. The feeling of a full bladder and needing to run to the bathroom in the middle of class can be just as distracting as an empty stomach.

#3 Arrive to Class Early

When students are showing up to class late they are often out of breath or are interrupting the instructor’s lesson. A late entrance not only distracts the students, but it distracts the teacher, which is no way to get on a teacher’s good side. Being late also means that you have missed some material that was first given in the beginning of class, which may leave you a bit frazzled and possibly missing even more information as you ask a fellow student, “What did I miss?” I recommend showing up five or ten minutes early to class, so you have time to take your seat and set up your books without disturbing anyone with your backpack’s zipper or adjustments of your chair. An early student is prepared and in a ready state-of-mind to be taught.

#4 Make Flash Cards

Many students make flash cards when they are preparing for a test. I suggest making flash cards even before your test. Make early preparations for your test. If there is some information that you feel will be difficult to remember, you should put it on a flash card, that way when it is time to take your test, most of your flashcards will already be set for you, which should make you more relaxed than having to prepare cards last minute for your test.

#5 Record Lectures

If you happen to have a teacher who goes over material quickly or does not seem to stay on a topic long enough for you in class, ask the instructor if he or she would mind that you record the lecture. With a copy of the lecture in your pocket, you can later rewind and listen to any important parts that you may have missed jotting down in your notes. Most teachers do allow students to bring a recorder in to class, as long as they are warned ahead of time. It is not ethical to record a person talking who is not aware of it, so be sure to ask your teacher for permission before doing so.

#6 Read the Material after the Lecture

It may seem simple, but there are far too many students who only listen to the teacher lecture over a subject, but never actually read the material in the book. After the lecture, make time to read over the same material your instructor went over. Going over a lesson twice will help solidify the information in your memory better.

#7 Discuss Material with Friends

Although most students do not want to talk about their homework, having a discussion about the material you are studying is a great way to help remember information. If you are reading something confusing or interesting, relay that exact information to a friend or family member. When you force yourself to repeat the material and think about the topics in a conversation, you help yourself remember the information better. Since I had trouble remembering dates in history, I used to spout off facts to my brother with, “Did you know…?” He would usually roll his eyes or ignore me because he didn’t want a history lesson, but I just continued talking at him and it was a lot of help for me to remember the facts easier.

Finding the right internship is not as tricky as it seems.

By Amelia Anderson

Although internships are like taking on a part-time job while students are finishing their education, they are actually very beneficial to future goals. Internships will not only give you experience in the field you are interested in pursuing, but they usually act as some form of school credit, can potentially open a possible permanent position within that same company in the future, and some will actually offer a small payment or stipend. All in all, internships are great ways to get you on the right career path. Even if you find that you no longer hold interest in your field, then the internship has served the purpose of showing you whether you would feel compatible with that career or not. Whether you are in high school or college, here are some tips on finding the internship that will be beneficial for you.

Ask Your Teachers

Teachers are a great source of information when it comes to your school and whatever jobs might be available in it. Chances are, at least one of your teachers will know of an internship at the school, which will make it easy for you to get to your job and classes on time. And, since your teachers have gotten to know you pretty well over the course of months or years, they are inclined to have your best interests in mind with your future plans. If you are interested in becoming an editor, ask your writing teacher if he or she knows of any internships that are related to the editing field. In my own experience, I had a teacher who referred me to taking an internship in a Writing Center because I was interested in becoming a writer.

Browse Online

There are plenty of job-listings that actually list available internships, as well. Just punch in the word “internship” into your search engine and plenty of helpful sites will pop up. Websites like http://www.craigslist.org, www.internships.com, and http://college.monster.com are great resources for finding internships for a specific field. Be sure that you are dealing with a legitimate company for your internship, though. Some internships are offered that do not provide school credit or any compensation, which is not a productive use of your time. Get another individual’s opinion, like one of your professor’s, to see whether or not the internship you have found online will benefit your career goals.

Check the School’s Career Center

Schools are meant to help people earn a better career, so college campuses provide a career center for their students as an extra step in those future plans. Career centers will not only help you find an internship that is suitable for you, but they will also help you prepare a resume and possible even provide some coaching and tips for your interviews. Yes, even an internship requires an interview. Internships not only provide experience, but they help prepare students to deal with the pressures of a regular job, which also requires an interview and resume.

Ask Friend and Family

There is no shame in asking the people who are closest to you for help in finding an internship. These days, jobs can be hard to come by, and internships are not an exception to this. It is very common for people to network, using the people they are close with as resources for inside information on job and intern openings. If you know someone who is working in a field that is related to your own future goals, then ask that friend or family member about any internship openings. If that person can recommend you to his or her boss, then you are already ahead of the game by having a personal reference within the company.

Check the Newspaper’s Classifieds

It may seem old fashioned to some people, but leafing through a newspaper can be useful in finding an internship. It not only lists available jobs, but it lists available internships, too. Although most people prefer to search for their information online, sometimes when the cyber world of searching lets people down, it is helpful to use a different resource and open up the black and white pages of the classified section of the newspaper. If you ever feel stumped with your searches, try a different source. There is always more than one.

There is no avoiding the anxiety that comes with the start of a new school year. Students cannot help worrying whether they will like their teachers or whether they can handle the new homework. It is the unknown that can be so frightening, and being unprepared only heightens that feeling. However, if you have an idea of what to expect from your classes and can get yourself ready for them, you will not feel so overwhelmed and nervous at the beginning of class. Here are some ways to prepare yourself for your new classes even before they begin.

Buy Your Books Ahead of Time

Most teachers make the book lists for their classes available to the students in advance. It is a good idea to buy all the books you can before classes start, so you can be prepared for class. So many students make the mistake of buying their books the day after classes start, but this often leads to problems. Long lines at the bookstores are a nuisance and books are easily sold out. Having a delay in getting your books can make you fall behind with your homework early in the semester, and turning in homework late is a bad way to start your classes.

Read Some of Your Homework Before Class Starts

Reading the introduction or skimming some of the homework in your new textbook is a good way to see what is coming in the next few months. Instead of wondering whether your homework is going to be difficult, take a look and see what your book has to offer, so you can mentally prepare yourself for upcoming homework. Don’t get so ambitious that you actually do the homework, but familiarize yourself a little bit with what you will be studying. Getting too far ahead probably isn’t a good idea since you may see some material that is confusing, which could just make you that much more nervous in the first place. The idea is to make yourself aware of what you can expect, so there are no real surprises when you start your classes.

Practice Skills You May Have Forgotten

Subjects that require practice like math and grammar rules may be difficult to remember when you come back from a long break. If you feel you are getting a little rusty with your algebraic formulas, or are having trouble remembering punctuation rules, it may help to do some light studying before the new classes begin.  Skim through an old grammar book, or find some math sheets online that you can practice a little bit with. Getting some practice will not only jog your memory, but it will help you feel prepared for the upcoming school year.

Skim Through Last Year’s Grades

Take a quick look at the kind of work you turned in last year. What kinds of grades did you get? Were you happy with them? What did you do well? What did you do badly? Keep these past grades in mind as reminders of what good habits you should keep up with the New Year, and what bad habits you should be fixing this coming year. If you slacked off or turned in-work that was incomplete, these old assignments should be a wake up to make better practices for the upcoming school year.

Have Your Backpack Ready

It may seem minor, but having your backpack organized and set with your binder, books, pens, and pencils will make you feel prepared for the first day of school. Throwing all of your things in your bag at the last minute can make a student feel anxious and unprepared. If you are rushed into putting things together, you are likely to forget something important, or leave yourself with the fear of forgetting something. In short, if your backpack is prepared early, you will feel less anxious and more prepared for class.

1. Have daily rituals for your resolution

Use some form of a daily calendar to keep yourself aware of your changes. If you are trying to lose weight, find a daily calendar on cooking healthy, or if you want to learn a new language find a word-a-day calendar in that new tongue, or find some form of inspirational calendar to remind you to be nicer to yourself or others. You can even try placing sticky notes around your home in strategic places you look at every day to remind yourself of your resolution. Or, set up reminders on your phone or on an Outlook calendar to help you follow through with your tasks.

2. Make your resolutions important to yourself

It may be helpful to actually write a list of all the reasons why you want to start this resolution. People who are trying to improve their health will probably have an easier list to make, but even resolutions that involve learning a new skill or taking up a new hobby should have some importance, so be sure to list those reasons. If you keep in mind why you initially made your resolution, it will be easier to stick to it.

3. Give yourself a goal to reach part way through the year

Maybe you want to lose so many pounds by March, or be able to speak simple sentences in Italian by April. Reaching your goals should encourage you to stick with your plan through the rest of the year. And, if for some reason you do not reach your goal, do not feel discouraged. Instead, you should feel more determined to try that much harder with your resolution in the coming months and create newer goals that may be more realistic.

4. Plan rewards for yourself for reaching your goals

Maybe plan a trip France to practice your new-learned French, or buy yourself some new clothes after losing 20 pounds. You should congratulate yourself for sticking to your resolution and give yourself incentives to keeping up your new habit or skill. Make sure your reward is something that you control, though. Your resolution is for yourself, so your reward should be from yourself, too.

5. Make realistic resolutions

Resolutions should be reasonable. Yes, they are supposed to signify a change in your life, but keep in mind that if your resolution is too difficult, then you are likely to quit after a matter of weeks. Ask yourself what you really need to do to keep your resolution and can you use any of the steps in this blog’s list to help you. If you cannot find realistic ways to follow through with your resolution, then you are probably dooming yourself for discouragement and failure.

There’s no doubt about it: scholarship essays are a tricky matter to approach. Scholarship competitions often arrive at your doorstep during the last half of the school year, by far the most hectic time in the academic year when students are already bogged down with extracurriculars, final exams, looming end-of-year grades, not to mention stress-inducing standardized tests. More often than not, high-schoolers focus on their “real schoolwork” and procrastinate on the “optional schoolwork” of scholarship applications, to the point where they end up scrambling, up to the final hours, to turn in shoddy, half-hearted applications, essays, and personal statements to a host of scholarship competitions they actually would have had a good chance of winning, had they simply believed in themselves more and taken more time to do a job well done.

There are easy tricks to consider when penning a scholarship essay — a feat which is definitely less challening than students may think. Considering the sheer number of students who write “fluff essays” to scholarship competitions, half-heartedly listing their accomplishments and not ever really investing their full energy into the application process, even putting forth any effort at all immediately puts you above the average crowd. Here are some simple tips on how to channel your inner wunderkind and win that big scholarship, without stretching yourself too thin or causing you too much stress. We promise.

Consider the organization

So what’s the deal with the organization that is giving you this free money? Because it would probably benefit you to do some research. Is this the Alaskan Oceanography Society? Because, if it is, you probably should not write your essay about how you think offshore drilling is a good idea. Is this the National Rifle Association giving you this money? Don’t tell them about your liberal belief that gun control is the only moral way. Be smart, think about where the money is coming from, and sell yourself out. You heard me. Sell yourself out.

Analyze the scholarship application questions and prompts beneath the surface level

Really. It won’t take you take much time to analyze a simple question to a slightly deeper level. If you are willing to walk 10 feet, you might as well go the extra, I don’t know, 5 feet. Although the best thing to do would probably be to take a little more time and walk a mile. Most students are so bored with scholarship essay writing that they spend as little time as they need to, to think of answers to essay prompts that are neither piercing, intellectual, nor remotely interesting. Spend a little more time thinking about the question than you otherwise would. Analyze. Study. Even research, if you need to. A good think will take you a long way when it comes to getting your hands on that cash.

Edit, Edit, Edit

Maybe it’s not a good idea to have your classmate who is applying to the same scholarship edit your essay, but it’s a good idea to show it to a teacher or a parent or a tutor, to get a fresh perspective on what you’ve written. Don’t just write a hasty essay and mail it off to that Impressive Scholarship Committee without having it looked over once, twice, ten times if need be.

Brag

So this scholarship money is supposed to go to the ‘most qualified candidate’ right? So show them how qualified you are! Wow them with your accomplishments, your honors, your academic record. But do it in a graceful way. Don’t boast pompously about how much brighter you are than your lowly peers. Tell the committees, straightforwardly, why you believe that you are a good candidate. Not why they should think you are. Frame it as a personal belief only. And don’t try to be annoyingly modest. False modesty brushes people the wrong way as much as straight-up bragga-lagging, so just be real as possible. Ya heard?

What are 4 things to do on your college visit and 3 things to avoid doing? Read our tips after the jump!

Do socialize

Talk to other students, ask plenty of questions, and most importantly, make sure you stay with a current student during your visit to get a real sense of campus life! As we wrote in 5 things to ask yourself when picking a school, “A variable that often gets overlooked when you apply to school is your inherent personality. Your happiness definitely matters when going off to school, and there is no worse feeling than going to a school you dislike, where you don’t get along with the student body and are unhappy. One thing you have to ask yourself is, in general, what the student body will be like in the ideal school you attend.” It’s important to socialize with other students during your campus visit in order to gauge whether the types of students you meet at the college you are visiting are the type of people you want to spend the next 4 years of your life with.

Do eat

Whether the food is good shouldn’t be one of the bigger deciding factors of choosing a college (because, chances are, the food won’t be good). However, eating at the school cafeterias is a great way to talk to currently enrolled college students. This goes back to our socializing point. Go to the cafeteria, grab a snack, and strike up a conversation with someone. Generally, students are understanding of visiting high schoolers (they were there at one point too!) and are more than happy to answer some general questions. I’m not saying you should monopolize their precious mealtime, but there’s no harm in sparking up a short chat.

Do learn

You are going to school to learn, and the departments and curriculums that interest you are definitely a relevant factor in ultimately picking a school. College visits are a great way to sit in on classes and see/hear what the whole shebang is all about. For those who are extra ambitious, see if you can schedule a meeting with a professor during office hours! Just make sure you have a list of relevant questions in hand as to not waste anyone’s time.

Do explore

Ditch the parentals and go off exploring on your own! This is your college visit and it’s totally your prerogative! BUT, don’t get lost. Make sure you have a map, a guide, or a clear understanding of your surroundings. You don’t want to be THAT high schooler who flies out for their college visit only to get lost in a neighboring town.

Don’t get arrested

It goes without saying that getting arrested or getting caught doing anything illegal should be number one on your “don’t” list. If you are caught before matriculating doing anything of questionable legality, the administration won’t hesitate to rescind your acceptance. Better not take any chances. After all, you’ve worked so hard for the past four years to get in, so it’d be a tragedy to lose it all in an instant.

Don’t be parented

Don’t let your parents dictate your opinion of the campus too much. Say they want you to go to Wharton, but you’re totally set on the Fashion Institute of Technology. It’s your life, your career, and your responsibility to choose the right school for YOU. Their input should be minimal!

Don’t judge

You are on a college visit to gather information, and not to disperse it. Keep an open mind and don’t judge. If you’re a die hard straight edger and you witness some college students getting rowdy at a kegger — keep in mind that they are living their lives according to their own desires, not yours. Likewise, if you are a social butterfly and can’t fathom why the campus is full of science nerds who live in the library — don’t judge. Colleges all come with their own personalities. You are looking for one that you fit in with, not trying to fit them to you. That distinction is crucial if any good is to come out of your visit!

So you’ve been accepted to a university.  It’s smooth sailing from here on out, right?  You’re going to breeze through your senior year, live it up during your last summer at home, and move off to your college town.  It’s a good plan, but if you  actually want it to work, you’re going to have to dodge the senioritis storm.

Though it’s not an actual clinical disease (as the name suggests), senioritis is real.  Perhaps it’s caused by the boost of confidence you get when you receive that college acceptance letter or maybe it’s that there are so many distractions during your senior year…you know, with prom, graduation, and, of course, the parties.  And you should be confident and proud and you should enjoy the festivities that go along with senior year, but it’s important to stay focused on your academic and professional ambitions as well.

Eduify has prepared the following list of things you can do to avoid senioritis and to make the transition into college smooth and seamless.

Balance Your Time

All of the other items on this list are predicated on your having a balanced and well-managed schedule.  Aside from helping you organize your social life, a good day planner will help you stay on track during your busy and often-hectic senior year.  Use a computer program such as Microsoft Outlook to help you manage your time and stay in touch.

Challenge Yourself Academically

You’ve been grinding it out for the last three years so you would be able to take it easy during your senior year.  But, really, what’s another year?  You are, after all,  going to college where the standards are higher and the classes are more difficult, so why not challenge yourself with a couple of classes that will help you prepare your brain for college?  If you take a year off (mentally) from school–which is often a symptom of senioritis–you’re going to have a more difficult time making the transition to college.

Speaking of transitioning to college, why not get a head start by taking some college courses at the local community college?  This is a great way to get some college credit while you’re still in high school.  And you thought you had an open campus when they allowed you to go to McDonald’s for lunch.

Befriend Your Counselor

A big part of your school counselor’s job is to answer your questions about college.  They can be an invaluable resource for you when you’re planning your senior year and post-graduate options.  Among other things, your school counselors can help you figure out your course of study for college;  give you information about college classes that are available to high school students (above); help you find scholarships, financial aid, and student loans; help you fill out college applications; and, perhaps most importantly, they can help you stay on track during your senior year.  As a policy, their doors are always open, so stop in and introduce yourself–you won’t regret it.

Get Some Experience/Volunteer

Though you may not be sure what you want to do as a career or even what your major will be in college, it’s a good idea to get some real-life experience under your belt before you make any long-term commitments. Like animals?  Spend some time volunteering at an animal shelter or by answering phones at a veterinary clinic.  Such experiences will help you decide if you want to make a career out of helping animals.  This, of course, is only one example, but you get the idea.  Your school counselor might be able to help you find an internship at a local company or organization that fits your interests.  Senior year is a great time to explore and discover the options that you are going to have after graduating from college.  Another benefit of work and volunteer experience is that it looks great on a resume.

Extracurricular Activities

Joining student clubs and groups, running for student office, and playing sports are all great ways to stay focused during your senior year, and each, in its own way, will help you develop important skills that will not only help you in college but also in your life after college.  As an added bonus, these activities are great ways to meet new people and make the most of your time in high school.

Here’s a tip: start an online group for your classmates who are planning to go to the same college as you. This is a great way to meet people who are going to be around you for the next four years, and it never hurts to have a friend in a strange place.  Spread the word in your school’s newspaper and on bulletin boards.