7 tasks for rising juniors to prepare for college art admissions
As summer comes to a close, we are recharged and taking stock of what our goals are for this upcoming year. For you and your families, you are at the beginning of the journey towards college admissions. So how can you as a rising junior prepare?
Understand this year is different.
Have you had the experience of someone wincing when you tell them it is your junior year in high school? That is because junior year can be HARD, GRUELING, and BRUTAL.
Juniors tend to be taking challenging academic classes like AP’s or IB’s that may fall outside of their comfort zone. Juniors tend to be stressed out to perform at exceptional levels - because they know their performance affects their abilities to produce an application that stands out from others. Juniors may move from JV sports to varsity sports and acquire more responsibility and they may be involved with extracurricular activities that also require a large time commitment.
Add making ART of any kind to that list and you could be one overloaded junior.
Not to mention you have people telling you to start researching colleges. How do you manage and where do you start to understand what your options are when it comes to art and college?
So here are 7 tasks to manage your junior year in the fall semester while also preparing for the college art admission process.
Balance academics with fun. Yes,you may have very hard classes but everyday find time in your schedule to have some fun. Wake up early to do some drawing. Take a break after school and exercise with friends. Or if you have sports or other extracurriculars, seriously look at what you are committed to make sure you have some downtime.
Search for clues about colleges by looking to artists. Looking at your favorite artists, games, animators, etc. and find out where they went to school. This is a GREAT way to learn about colleges without going to just another website. Once you find out some info, then go to the school’s website and check it out more.
Start developing a creative practice and take a skills inventory. Start now to develop your own voice. Keep a sketchbook - almost every field requires that you have concept ideas. Think of drawing as a way of recording your thoughts - graphs, scribbles, notes are all super important. Take a notebook everywhere. And make a list of your technical skills - what do you know and feel confident about in art and what can you learn in this upcoming year.
Understand what tools and services your high school offers. If your school has college fairs, or information sessions on college, get a handle on the process but don’t stress about it. Schools are uneven in terms of their ability to build college prep into their school day. So if you attend public school, know that you have to do your own homework outside of school hours. If you attend a private school, you may have resources available to you during the school day and you should take advantage of them.
Prioritize your extracurricular activities and reevaluate. If you have agreed to participate in everything, that is probably too much. Prioritize one thing that is academic, one thing that is service oriented, and one thing that develops your skill set as an artist. If you have a part time job, you know what it is like to fit in work hours. Consider doing the same thing in your calendar twice a month to dedicate to the college search process.
Prepare for the summer before your senior year and find an academic or artistic opportunity that relates to your specific interests. This could be an internship, a college class, a part time job, or an academic opportunity that relates to a particular interest you have.
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