Freshman year is an exciting time, but it’s also super intimidating. Having your driver’s license isn’t a distant dream anymore, and maybe there are some juniors you’re trying to impress. We’ve been there, we understand. What a time to be alive.
It may feel like these next four years will be a really long time for you to get things done, but college is closer than you think—especially if you want to get into a top-tier college. While we’ve talked on and on about how freshman year is just as important as every other year, and that it is recoverable with some effort and dedication if you mess up (but just get all As), today we’ve put together a list of things to avoid if you want to nail freshman year.
Do Not: Underperform In Your Classes
Failing classes is bad, duh. We don’t have to tell you that. What we do want to tell you is that underperforming is bad – that’s thinking that you can get by with Bs or Cs and assuming that colleges will just excuse it because it is 9th grade.
We don’t want to sound Scary or Intimidating, but we can’t stress enough that every. single. part. of high school matters. Colleges will look at every year of your high school career when they’re deciding whether to accept your application or not. Yes, even freshman year. They don’t want to see you ~grow~ from a C student to an A student, they just want you to be an A student across the board.
Do Not: Stop Yourself From Pursuing New Interests
It’s really easy to do nothing but watch TV and scroll through social media when you aren’t at school. Not to sound like mom, but that’s a bad idea. A good idea? Use that time to learn about things you might be interested in studying. It’s not too early to figure out what you like! Think about the classes you enjoy or even the genre of TV shows you’re drawn to (Grey’s Anatomy fans, maybe check out bio?!).
Finding something you like isn’t weird or uncool. It is cool to care, teens! Don’t get complacent; figure out what you think is cool and pursue it.
Do Not: Be Uninvolved
Both in and out of school! Find clubs at school that excite you and participate!!!! Look into extracurriculars that sound fun and let you explore what you care about. Involving yourself with clubs not only lets you get involved with your interests, but offer you the opportunity to win awards or gain leadership opportunities.
While we suggest staying involved with your extracurriculars, it’s with a significant asterisk of “within reason.” Sports and some clubs (like band) can take up a lot of your time and might not be “worth it” from a college admission perspective. We’ve gone on record with this hot take before, but we think sports are a major time suck and should be approached with caution. We’ve gone as far to say, controversially, that you should only play a varsity sport if you think you have a chance of being recruited. Said more diplomatically: only commit to what’s good for your academic interests, and don’t commit too much if it won’t help you out in the future.
Do Not: Do Nothing During the Summer
We’ve talked a lot about making effective use of your summer plans, and it especially applies your freshman year. Between the summer before your freshman year and the summer after, you really want to have an idea about what your interests and specific niche are and take steps to actually explore those interests.
Between summer programs and self-exploration with books and online classes, you can spend part of your break gaining experience and learning about what you actually want to learn about. This helps with your college apps and it helps you discover your passions. A win-win.
Do Not: Be On Social Media
A slight correction: “Do not: be stupid on social media.” We recommend refraining from social media in general, if you absolutely must have your TikTok, Twitter/X (thanks, Elon), Instagram, and so on, be smart. Make it private. Use a fake name. Don’t post dumb stuff. Imagine everything you post or comment on is on the front page of the New York Times.
We’ve heard all kinds of stories about students having their admissions rescinded or their applications rejected because they posted something dumb online. We cannot verify whether that is true or not. But we personally have burner accounts we use to follow and monitor our clients. If you’re a parent reading this, do this.
Final thoughts
Freshmen year is really more about capping your downside and setting yourself up in the future. As a freshman, you have an entirely new world ahead of you to explore and learn about, but make sure you’re smart about how you go about it. Start figuring out what you’re interested in, but remember: you have plenty of time.
If you need help coming up with your high school plan, reach out to us. We’re great at helping students set themselves up for success.