• Choose a general goal direction: Will I go to work right from high school, get some type of technical training, join the military to learn a trade, or go to college? What kinds of things do I like to do? What am I good at doing? What can you see yourself doing twenty years from now to earn a living? Your answers need not be final now, but they will provide a general direction for making future educational plans.
  
  
• Work with your parents and teachers to select freshman courses that both challenge you and make sense for your general goals. (Be sure to see the general Requirements for Graduation and Tech Prep sections on this site.)
  
  
• Make plans to join activities that will develop personal skills. For example, all team sports help you learn to work cooperatively, fine arts encourage you to find more ways to express your creativity, and Key Club allows you opportunities to communicate with others to provide a service.
  

Freshmen

• If your study skills, work habits, and attendance haven’t been exemplary in the past, improve on them as you make a fresh start in a new building. If these skills are already strong, improve them anyway. These are necessary pre-employment qualities as well as keys to success in school.
  
  
• Investigate careers. Read up on jobs in sources such as www.ILWorkInfo.com. Talk to people in fields of work that interest you, and use the software and print resources in the guidance office to narrow your list of potential careers. (You will find a list of these resources in our “Career” section.)
  
  
• Develop and/or refine your four-year sequence of courses as part of your Individual Career Plan, your portfolio of future planning and preparation.
  
  
• Do your best on the EXPLORE Test (given in November) to help you identify strengths and weaknesses. The strengths will help you refine your future plans, and the weaknesses can be improved upon by getting extra help now.
  

Sophomores

• Take the most challenging and varied course load possible. Keep your study skills and attendance strong.
  
  
• Investigate whether an option such as Whiteside Area Career Center is right for you for next year.
  
  
• Take the PLAN . (Get more information on this under “Testing.”)
  
  
• Build your involvement in extra-curriculars and/or community groups.

•      Register in May to take the PSAT in October of your junior year
  

Juniors

• Take still more challenging courses along with electives that allow you a chance to explore new fields

Take the optional PSAT/NMSQT  - register in May of your sophomore year

• Update your Individual Career Plan and check that you are meeting appropriate graduation requirements to match your goals.
  
  
• Prepare for the spring ACT/PSAE by completing practice tests available at actstudent.org and/or diagnostic tests on CD Rom (available through the guidance office).
  
  
• Develop a plan for college search, if appropriate. (See “Selecting a College” under the “College” section of this website.) Begin making on-campus college visits or meeting with representatives when they come to the guidance center. View the online High School Calendar for dates of visits to our school.
  
  
• Schedule your senior year carefully. Consider options such as WACC,  Dual Enrollment, and IVHS courses as a means of providing yourself necessary coursework or skills for your plans.
  
  
• Review your test scores with the high school counselor and/or college counselor.  Select a college appropriate for your test scores.  You want to be challenged but not overwhelmed.
  

Seniors: College/Technical School Bound

• Check with the counselor early to assure that you will satisfy all graduation requirements as well as the requirements for admission for your school(s) of choice. Find out your sixth-semester GPA and rank for purposes of applying.
  
  
• Narrow your list of schools and submit applications as soon as possible, making sure to meet all deadlines and requirements for applying.
  
  
• Make additional on-site visits to institutions. Special visit days are posted on colleges’ websites or can be found out by calling the admission offices.
  
  
• Create a filing system for correspondence from colleges or tech schools. Keep an eye on all deadlines for filing or responding to schools.
  
  
• Investigate sources of funding for college. The guidance office has a list of helpful websites. (The College section of this site is another good place to look.) Be sure to ask admissions counselors about their institutions’ scholarships, grants, and/or work study options.
  
  
• Keep photocopies of all applications and financial aid papers sent.
  
  
• As soon as possible after January 1 of your senior year, file the FAFSA (See “Financial Aid” on this website.) This can be done on-line or by paper. A limitd supply of forms are available in the guidance office or on-line at www.fafsa.ed.gov.
  
  
• Acknowledge acceptance of any offers and keep in touch with your admissions counselor.
  

Seniors: Employment Bound or Undecided

• If you have not done so, take a career interest assessment. (See “Careers” on this site.)
  
  
• Get practical experience through course work – including Whiteside Area Career Center, clubs or activities, or part-time work in a field related to your interest.
  
  
• Be especially watchful for opportunities for internship or on-the-job training. From time to time the guidance office gets calls for apprentices. The military also provides training in some areas.
  
  
• Keep an open mind to post-secondary training/schooling by visiting with representatives of colleges and technical schools.