Saturday, February 23, 2008

Preparing for College

Some of you know that I have two sons. One is in middle school and the other in high school. We just spent a week visiting colleges. It was of course primarily for my junior in high school who is really focused on grades, SAT scores and deciding where he will "spend four years of his life." It was also good for my younger son too.

We visited SDSU, UCSD, UCLA and UCI. We have already visited UCB and UCSB. We still have on our list another visit to UCB (we were there during a big football game and want to see what it is like on a regular day) and Stanford.

These are all good schools. I could go on and on about what is going through his mind right now, but that isn't the point of this blog entry. It is more about grades, SAT scores and extra curricular activities.

To get into any of these schools, you will need excellent grades. Anywhere from a 3.6 to well above a 4.0. And for your test scores you will need 1100 (not counting the writing section) to above 2200 (with writing) and good scores on the subject tests!

This in itself is tough. But there are LOTS of students who have these kinds of grades and test scores. What will make you different. It can be your extra curricular activities. These are clubs, sports, work and so on.

FreshBrain can be a part of this. Do a number of activities and projects in an area where you have interest, show a passion and progress and put it in your personal statement (a key part of your UC and private school application)!!

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