Your College Search Companion

It's never too early to start preparing for college. Here are four ways to strengthen your future applications.

• Take challenging courses – Go beyond admission requirements with advanced courses such as AP, IB, dual enrollment and honors to demonstrate your readiness for college-level work.
• Build a strong GPA – Earn strong grades throughout high school, and continue taking challenging courses in your senior year.
• Get involved – Pursue activities you care about, take on leadership roles and gain work, internship or volunteer experience you can highlight in your application.
• Explore your major – Research majors that match your interests, strengths and goals. If a college admits students by major, understand the requirements and how competitive admission is.

Understanding your interests and strengths can help you explore careers – and the college majors that can lead to them.

• CaliforniaColleges.edu – Identify careers based on your interests and what’s important to you.
• O*NET – Discover your work-related interests and careers that align with them.
• CareerOneStop – Explore careers through self-assessments, career profiles and goal-setting guides.
• College Board – Identify your interests and careers you may want to explore.
• CareerExplorer – Match your personality, goals and interests with potential career paths.

College admission requirements vary by university system and individual colleges, so plan your courses early and revisit your course plan regularly to stay on track.

• Start with your school counselor – Discuss college admission requirements and plan your courses with your counselor. Reconnect every term to stay on track.
• Explore advanced coursework – AP, IB, dual enrollment and honors courses can make you more competitive when applying to selective colleges and programs.
• CaliforniaColleges.edu – Plan and track your high school coursework.
• BigFuture – Create a free account to compare your current and planned courses with the admission requirements of the different colleges.
• Naviance – If your school participates, plan courses with your counselor and track progress toward your college-preparation goals.

Jobs and internships can help you explore careers early, build stronger college applications, and make more informed choices about majors and colleges.

• Start with people you know – Tell family, friends, counselors, teachers and mentors what you’re looking for. Ask someone you trust to help you write your resume.
• Connect with professionals in the fields you’re interested in – Create a profile on LinkedIn and let your network know what opportunities you’re seeking.
• Summer Youth Employment Programs (SYEP) – Many cities and counties connect students with paid summer jobs and internships. Ask your school counselor or search for a program in your area.
• Summer program and internship search tools – Find opportunities for high school students and filter for free programs through Snowday and StandOut Search. 
• USAJOBS – Search paid and unpaid internship opportunities offered by the federal government.

Understanding your financial aid options can help you compare college costs and make informed decisions about affordability.

• Start with your school counselor – Get help completing the FAFSA or CADAA and finding scholarships and other sources of financial aid.
• Cash for College – Get free help completing the FAFSA or CADAA at webinars and in-person workshops.
• Federal Student Aid Estimator – Estimate how much federal student aid you may be eligible for to get a sense of how much additional aid – such as scholarships or loans – you should apply for.
• Scholarship search tools – Find opportunities through free services including Appily, BigFuture, and Scholarship America.
• Avoid Student Aid Scams – Learn to recognize misleading financial aid offers and remember that you don’t have to pay for help finding financial aid.

A resume can help you showcase your education, activities, skills and experiences when applying for jobs, internships, scholarships and other opportunities.

• Start with someone you trust – Ask a counselor, teacher, family member, or mentor to review your resume and offer feedback.
• Indeed – Learn how to build a resume without work experience, with a template and sample resume to get you started.
• Appily – Follow a step-by-step guide to creating a high school resume.
• ResumeGenius – Browse high school resume examples and templates for inspiration.
• Resume.com – Build your resume with a free online resume builder.