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Make the Most Out of Your Summer

I remember a few months before school got out my junior year, I had no clue what I was going to do during the summer. I knew I’d probably tutor a student or two and hang out with my friends, but that was the extent of my plans. Then I received a brochure in the mail for the Washington University in St. Louis (Wash U) Summer Scholars Program. St. Louis was only about a 4 hour drive. My dad grew up there, so I have family there. I decided I’d apply but only go if I received financial aid. I wasn’t super committed…

Then I got the acceptance along with generous financial aid, so I couldn’t say no. I spent 5 weeks living on campus, taking French and Poly Sci classes (which I got A’s in), and making some great friends. Because I did the program, my high school allowed me to test into French 4 even though I had been unable to take French 3 because of class conflicts. It also demonstrated to the schools I applied to that I could successfully complete college-level courses. Plus, they gave me a free application to Wash U!

There are a lot of great options for summer activities. Hopefully yours are already well underway, but even if they’re not it’s not too late. Plus you can always start planning for next summer! Here are some of my favorite summer activities for you to try out.

Get a Summer Job 

One of my favorites that many of my top performing students is  doing research at a local university. This is especially great for those science-minded students. It gives you great practice for working in a lab in college and lots great on your resume. The best thing for you to focus on is creating a relationship with the lead researcher or (even better) professor. That way this person can connect you with a professor/researcher at your dream college.

When I was in high school, my summer job was tutoring. This taught me a lot, and gave me great skills that I still use today. It also demonstrated my entrepreneurial spirit and how I contributed to my community on my application. If there is a skill you have, think about the ways you can translate it into a business. Just try it out! Tutoring, teaching a musical instrument, programing, event planning, think about how you can help people with your skills.

Practice Your Writing

Start a blog. Write an ebook. Self-publish on Amazon. Contribute to your local newspaper. The barriers to entry have never been lower to getting your writing out there. If you have an idea or cause you care about and are interested in, share it with others. This shows a lot of commitment and follow-through on your application. The summer is a great time to get a lot of writing done when school work isn’t consuming you.

This also will improve your writing for your essays and school work. You can also get a head start on your college essays. And the more time you have with your essays, the more edits you’ll be able to give it, and the better it will be. Try to keep a calendar where you write for one hour everyday. If that’s easy up it to two hours. Your writing will greatly improve.

Take College Courses

This could be as simple as online course or community college courses, but if you really want to show your commitment and interest in a particular college, see what summer programs they have. If you end up at a summer program at your dream college, go in with a game plan. First of all, get all A’s. You want to show that you can successfully excel at college-level courses, your dream college’s specific courses in fact. Second of all, foster relationships with professors and other sponsors. Become a star student. Do your homework before coming to the program and see if there’s any professors in particular you want to meet with. Maybe there’s a researcher working on something that fascinates you. Check if there’s a coach for the sport you play and meet with him or her. Anything that you want to get involved in, try to meet with someone in charge and cultivate sponsors. Then be sure to keep in touch! Lastly, if you’re a junior, see if you can schedule an interview and/or meeting with the admissions office. You’re already on campus, so you want to take care of as many items on your checklist as possible.

Also, if you’re concerned about the price tag, apply for financial aid. Many of the programs have generous financial aid, so don’t discount them on that basis.

Action Steps

  1. If you haven’t made a plan for this summer, do it today!
  2. If you’re a rising senior, start on your college essays.
  3. Email me at jyeager@post.harvard.edu if you need any help figuring out what to do this or next summer.

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