Ninth Grade Planning Checklist

The following ninth grade planning checklist was adapted from First in the Family: Advice About College from First-Generation Students – Your High School Years, by Kathleen Cushman (Next Generation Press, 2005)

• Let your teachers know you plan to go to college.
• Are your courses considered “college prep?” If you don’t know, ask your guidance counselor to make sure they are.
• Colleges like to see challenging courses on your record, even if you get lower grades in them.
• If you want to play sports in college, you should know that college athletic teams have requirements about what high school courses you take.
• Let your teachers get to know you better.
  For a start, write down the names of the ones you trust or admire most:
  
  

  Teachers You Admire Most

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• Do you know other students like you who are planning to go to college? It helps to share your ideas and plans with them.
  Write down the names of the ones you trust or admire most:
  
  

  Fellow Students You Admire Most

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• Read as much as you can this year. It will give you new ideas, make you a better thinker, and build your vocabulary.
  Start a list of the books, periodicals and genres you enjoy reading:
  
  

  Books and Periodicals You Enjoy Reading

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• Get involved in activities you care about—at school and after school (including sports, clubs, community service, church group, jobs, etc.).
  List the ones that most appeal to you:
  
  

  Activities That Most Appeal to You

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• Think about your current interests. What career fields might match up with them? Use NYMentor to find careers that match your skills, goals and personality. You can also use the New York State Department of Labor’s Career Zone, the U.S. Department of Labor site or Mapping Your Future to search for jobs and careers. As you get new ideas, write them here:
  
  
  

  Current Interests
  Your Interest	Career Fields
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• Start to look for information about colleges that fit with your interests. The guidance office will have books, catalogs, and posters, or you can check out colleges on the Internet. The New York State Higher Education Services Corp. (HESC) Web site has an array of links to sites such as NYMentor and Mapping Your Future to help you find colleges to match your interests. When you find any that appeal to you, list them here:
  
  
  

  Colleges That Match Your Interest
  Your Interest	College
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• Use a folder or large envelope marked “Grade 9 Portfolio” and save your best work in it, so it won’t get lost. This should include class assignments, but don’t forget to include poems, artwork, awards or evidence of other things you do outside of school. Make a new folder each year.

• Use your summer to have fun while you learn. Ask your guidance office about enrichment programs (camps, summer courses) that help students like you prepare for college.

Helpful Career and College Links
HESC	www.hesc.org
College Board	www.collegeboard.com
Mapping Your Future	www.mappingyourfuture.org
NY Career Zone	www.nycareerzone.org
U.S. Dept. of Labor	www.bls.gov/oco