For high school students who plan on going to college, the application process can be very stressful. The first challenge is figuring out the right time to get serious about the process. When do students really need to start thinking about where they might like to go and what they need to do to get there?

Mrs. Gnade, one of WFS’s college guidance counselors, says that for high school students, it is never too early to start considering college options. She says that the ideal situation is to find a school that will make you happy and also allow you to pursue the things that you are most passionate about. Those interests often develop in high school. If you are a ninth grader and find that you love computer programming, it is definitely not too soon to start thinking about colleges that are particularly strong in that area. “In a global sense, students should start thinking about what would interest them both academically and personally freshman year,” says Mrs. Gnade. “When it comes to thinking about specific colleges, they should start investigating schools in the fall of their junior year. Point being, it is a lot easier to figure out what you want regarding college if you know what you’re into.” 

Another consideration is sports. For students who intend to play college sports, the process can start as early as the summer before junior year or possibly even sooner than that. But, it can also be later. Donnie Morton, a WFS senior who has committed to Williams College for wrestling, says that he did not decide that he wanted to be a college athlete until the second semester of his junior year. At that point, he began reaching out to college coaches. He suggests not getting fixated on college before junior year. “I think you should just focus on doing well in school and doing extracurriculars and not really think about college until junior year,” says Morton. “You’ll just drive yourself crazy if you start thinking about college in 9th grade. I didn’t start thinking about college until winter of junior year, and I really just did general searches to see if I wanted to go to a small or big school, or a rural or city school. That’s also when I started studying for the ACT and SAT.”

Leah Agne, who graduated from WFS last year and is now a freshman at Tulane University, agrees that junior year is the time to get serious about college. “I think that it is a good idea to start thinking about colleges the first semester of your junior year of high school,” she says. “Then, it is a good time to start touring colleges and preparing to take standardized tests. The summer going into your senior year is when you should start narrowing your college list and writing your essays.” 

For freshmen and sophomores, it is hard not to think about college, particularly as you watch juniors and seniors go through the admissions process. But, as Morton points out, younger high schoolers should not obsess about college and should just focus on getting the most out of their WFS education. Students’ personalities and interests are constantly changing throughout their four years of high school, so it is important to not be set on one school or make any definitive choices before really exploring one’s options.