Being A Person

Yes! You should definitely study and try participating in different things!

Honestly, most colleges are concerned with academics, but they are also looking for well rounded people. 

For example, I know two people who applied to the same school. They were identical academically, they both had very high GPAs and their test scores were pretty good, but only one of them was accepted to the school. Their only difference? Extra curricular activities. One was involved in two sports and a club and did volunteer work and the other only did occasional volunteering to meet the volunteering requirement of our school. 

So, yes, extracurricular activities are pretty important when it comes to college admission. 

Of course, this is different for every school, but your safest bet is to do your best to be as well rounded as possible. 

For me personally, I think academics are the most important and extracurriculars are for fun/experience when you have time, but some people give them 50/50 importance. 

I know when I was younger I was always told that the most important thing colleges looked at was your GPA so I was terrified of mine dropping (seriously, I almost cried when I dropped from a 4.0 to a 3.99) but our high school counselor always stressed it to us that colleges look at more than your GPA, especially in recent years. Now the big thing is test scores on things like the ACT and SAT (at least in America? I don’t know about other countries). 

But things are always changing. Even in the last year or so things have changed. Like I only took the ACT, and that plus my GPA and the few extracurricular activities I did was enough to get me into a really nice school. But now schools, in my state especially, are looking at SAT scores instead of ACT scores, so you’ll have to try and stay up to date on what the schools you hope to attend are looking for.

I’m kind of rambling at this point and hopefully it’s making sense, but in the end I would do your best to keep your grades as high as you can (especially Junior year… all years are important, but Junior year is what colleges tend to really look at) pay attention when you start taking practice exams like the PSAT or whatever they are doing now, and a little bit of test prep before the real exam can go a long way, and if you have the opportunity and the time to try an extracurricular that interests you (or even volunteer work because that can be fun and rewarding) then you should definitely go for it, because colleges love seeing that you can work with others and that you’ve learned things in and out of the classroom. 

Try not to stress too much, though. Just get as involved as you can and work hard, but don’t get crazy to the point where you are super stressed and wearing yourself down. 

I hope that answers your question! Honestly I could talk about this topic for a while, so if you want to know more feel free to come back ^.^

Okay, I’m going to say this because I’m hoping you will appreciate it, not to freak you out.

My first thought when I read this was “Oh yes you are super fucked.”

But in reality I think you’ll be just fine. You’re definitely not the first person to move and start a new school Junior year. Many have done it before and they’ve been fine.

For me, personally, Junior year was tough, but it’s not ridiculously hard as long as you stay on top of things. I’ll be honest and say that there were points during the year when I was ready to be done. Tests get stressful, some people realize they really don’t know what they want to do with their lives, and you have to worry about college crap on top of it all (if you’re planning on college?). 

But, it was also my most memorable year and most people really start to learn more about themselves and what they want (it sounds sooo cheesy, but Junior and Senior year are really eye opening when it comes to certain things) so I wouldn’t be too worried about that part of the situation. Just take things as they come and try to avoid spreading yourself too thin (But still try and have fun whenever you can!)

As far as the huge ass new school, I can’t give you first hand advice because my high school is (was? idk I’m out of school now what even am I?) tiny and I only had to learn how to navigate a square. I’ll ask admin Jo if she has anything to add, because she has moved schools before and she came from a bigger school so she might have some words of wisdom? But I say try and get your hands on a map of the school and as soon as you know where your classes will be start trying to figure out how to get around, and if you get the chance to walk around the actual school during orientation or something then I suggest taking extra time to get familiar with the school. And during your first week(s) don’t be afraid to ask for help finding a classroom or something, most people are generally friendly and capable of giving directions.

As far as not having any friends goes, I think you should keep your eyes out for any community/school events that happen over the summer (I’m assuming you’ll be starting this coming fall?) because usually there will be students from your new school there and it will give you a chance to interact and meet people before school starts and you have to try and balance social stuff with academic stuff. Also, I don’t know if your school has a counselor or someone you’ll be talking to about your schedule, but you could talk to that person (or someone like that) about having a student who is familiar with the school show you around on the first day or so. That way you’ll have someone to ask questions and sit with at lunch and all that jazz, and even if they aren’t exactly your idea of a best friend, they’ll give you an in until you can find your place and make close friends of your own.

I wouldn’t be too worried about the whole thing though, I imagine it must be very nerve wracking to be starting over at a brand new school, but Junior year still gives you plenty of time to find your spot at the new school. 

Hello! My name (for the purposes of this blog) is Admin Bri (feel free to just call me Bri)

This blog was started as a part of a project that Admin Jo (the original creator of this blog) was doing for a class. The class will be finished in a few days, so I asked Jo if I could help her with some of the asks that she has received.

The two of us go to school together and Friday is our last day of high school, so we are kind of busy, but we will try to answer your asks whenever we have time. 

It honestly depends on where you’re from? I know at some schools it is considered an “insult” (but why?? idk???) But at my school (specifically my friend group) we call each other nerdy all the time and we just mean that that person is acting cute and/or said something “nerdy” that’s cute or endearing (like when I go off on a rant about video games my friends will call me nerdy, but it’s in a good way ^.^)

YES! I tried it for two years in middle school and it was honestly a lot of fun. Cheerleading isn’t very popular at my school, but all of the girls on the squad became really good friends and I don’t regret it at all. 

GENDER ROLES ARE THE WORST KIND OF BREAD!!!

First of all, wow. I’m impressed that you are still alive after all that. So obviously you are a hard worker, but it seems like you are in a little over your head.

The first thing I would do is set up a homework schedule. Create a specific amount of time for each class, and do what you can in that amount of time. Even you don’t finish the whole assignment, move on. 

Make sure to prioritize the things you have to get done, and don’t worry as much about things that are due later or assignments you can get an extension on. 

Talk to your teachers. I know every school is different, but most teachers in general genuinely care for their students and their students’ success. Just remember that your mental health is more important than school. 

I don’t know what your relationship with your parents is, but if you are able to and feel comfortable talking to them you should explain to them that you are stressed. They might have suggestions for you, or sometimes even just talking to someone can help a lot. Then for your next semester, maybe you could talk to your counselor to help you create a schedule that will set you up for success.

Good luck with your schedule and feel free to come back!

First of all, everyone gets stressed out over different things and something you might not find stressful might be stressful for someone else. For example, someone who takes AP Calculus might find calculus easy, but they find pottery class extremely stressful and difficult. Then there might be someone who excels in pottery but struggles in basic math. I’m not saying that the honors kids such as yourself don’t have it hard, but just keep in mind that everyone is different. 

Whether this meeting should have been for all students or not is a hard question. It sounds like the “drama” you are writing about is only happening for the honors kids, so it sounds like it was a good idea to have a meeting to try and get rid of that drama. Maybe there could be one meeting for the honors kids and one meeting for everyone to help deal with that stress?

Hello and welcome.

Do you ever wonder how to do that thing? Or how you should handle that other thing? Have any questions about high school? Confused about college? (Me too. Sorry, can't help you there) Have any general questions about life or being a person?

If your answer is yes to any of the questions above, then you've come to the right place.

I am a high school senior, eighteen days away from a summer of freedom before I am faced with the strange beast known as a public university, and the purpose of this blog is to offer genuine and (hopefully) helpful advice about anything your brain can ponder from a person who has probably dealt with it at some point. The focus is meant to be on questions/worries about high school, but feel free to hit me with anything.