It’s never too late to start planning for your college future and MES has tools and resources to help you along the way. We’ll help you get started with the following tips based on grade level.

Middle School

Middle School is a great time for students to explore college options by starting to think about possible careers that align with your interests.

Career Exploration

Now is the time to start exploring your career interests and options after you complete school. We offer a free Career Exploration System that allows students to take interest, skill, and values assessments to help match you up to potential careers. Once you have an idea about what you might want to do when you become an adult, you can then use this system to explore college majors and start to think about what classes you’ll want to take when you get to high school. Register for a free account using the following activation code: N3688463WPY

Classroom Success

Middle School is also a time to be sure that you are focusing on your work in the classroom. Colleges won’t necessarily see your middle school grades however the grades you earn in middle school help determine which level of a particular class you will be enrolled in in high school.

High School

Course Selection

For students in high school the college process becomes much more focused. Obviously, for all students, the most important thing is to be sure you are doing well in your classes, taking appropriate college preparation classes, and maintaining a strong grade point average. Colleges will want to see that you are challenging yourself and taking courses that align with you career and college major aspirations.

Community Involvement

Students should also be involved with school and community based activities. Find something you enjoy and see if there is a volunteer or club activity that you can become involved with. Colleges want to see you focusing on your passion. Remember, with any extracurricular it is the quality and time you focus on it, not how many different activities you do.

Be sure to track dates, the amount of time you volunteered, the organization/club that you were involved with, contact names, phone numbers and or emails for supervisors you worked with.

This will help tremendously when it’s time to fill out college applications and when it’s time to create your resume.

College Search

Students should start thinking about college and beginning your college search. Once you have created your list of preferred colleges you will want to start attending college fairs and going on campus visits.

Help is Available

We have more specific information related to these topics available on our website as well as resources available for you to help manage and organize your college search process. Additionally, you can always speak with your school counselor about the resources and support they have to offer as well.

No matter where you are on the timeline of college planning, MES is here to support you. Please feel free to contact us for our free one-on-one counseling sessions at crave@mesfoundation.org or 800-922-6352

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