For Junior High and High School Students

It has been said the years spent in high school are the best times of your life.  And why shouldn’t they be?  After all, in addition to preparing to move out into the world on your own for the first time, everyone expects you to know exactly what you are going to do with your life, how you are going to accomplish it, and most of all… how you are going to pay for it!  No pressure there!

Let me start by saying that no matter how overwhelming or confusing the next few years may seem for you, it is more manageable than you might imagine.  There are resources all over the place that can help guide you.  You can always search the web and find a wealth of information.  However, I would strongly encourage you to first of all contact your school's counseling department and speak with someone there.  Their whole purpose is to help you! (How many people can you seriously say that about!) After speaking with them, you can start developing a plan for action.  It is never too early or too late to start looking at colleges. 

If you are in 9th grade and are already thinking about where to go, good for you! You are way ahead in the game.  If you are finishing up your senior year and it suddenly hit you that you still don't know where you're going... don't panic!  It is not too late.  Granted, you will be presented with a few more obstacles and perhaps fewer options than if you had started planning 4 years ago but remember, in this race, you don't need to be FIRST to win... you just need to make it across the finish line!

I encourage you to check back later this year.  I’ll have a resource page set up just for you that can help you develop a plan that will work for you.

I wish you the very best.

George Sparks, Ph.D.