While we know the pandemic has changed a lot for students, this is sure to be an exciting time in life. A lot of parents ask us if freshman year is too early to start thinking about college. After all, nobody wants to put undue pressure on young people who are just getting their footing in this next phase of life. That said, the college application process is a long journey. It can be challenging and there’s a lot to accomplish. Our strategy is to have kids spread out the workload across four years, not only to build a more robust application, but also to make it all more manageable. Here are some ideas on how to spend the summer before your freshman year.

To Camp or Not to Camp? 

We get the camp question a lot. Will it look bad for my kid to continue to go? Think of the summer before freshman year as an opportunity to build a really solid foundation for the next four years. It’s a good time to start thinking seriously about which interests you’d like to explore and the path you’d like to carve out for yourself for the next year. It’s okay to go to camp, but if you want to be especially proactive then you should consider dedicating your summer to exploring your intellectual passions. There’s no reason it can’t be fun, too.  

Honing in on an Interest

The most important building block for the next four years is establishing an academic interest. The key to the college application process is positioning yourself as an expert in a particular, highly specific academic field. Colleges aren’t looking to admit a bunch of generalists or undecided candidates. They want to admit a group of specialists, each of whom are going to go on to be the most accomplished in their respective fields. We want to stress—you will not be held to the major you declare in your applications once you are in college. You can change your mind once you get there. But for the application’s sake, you’ll need to position yourself as someone who’s interested in one particular area. Start thinking about your favorite classes and subjects. Do you like U.S. history? Are you a science buff who’s really excited to take physics? Try to get as specific as you can.

Considering a Summer Activity

Now, start thinking about summer activities that might correspond to your area of interest. Let’s say you’re an aspiring entrepreneur with a good business idea. This summer is the summer to try it out. Perhaps you’re into theater production. Find a community youth theater group and stage-manage for them. Whatever you choose should be engaging for you. The point of picking an academic interest is it should be genuinely interesting to you and hold your attention for the next few years. Whatever you start to land on as a summer activity, know that you should be doing actual work in your area of expertise. Don’t get an internship where all you’ll be doing is getting coffee and making copies.

 The summer before freshman year should be a time filled with fun and exploration. If you have been going to camp for a while and need to go back, you have our permission. But we usually urge our students to get a head start on discovering and pursuing their passions. To that end: enroll in a course, find your niche, or start something new.

Need some helping planning for summer? Reach out to us here. We’re great at helping students carve out summer plans that impress