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Undergraduate Admissions

Preparing for College

You can begin preparing for college early in your high school career. The decisions you make about what classes to take, and how well you do in those courses, can affect your readiness for studying at a university as well as your ability to get into your first-choice schools. Outside your classes, the activities you participate in—sports, academic clubs, volunteering—can help you build your college applications and discover what you might like to study in the future.

There are many resources available to use as you develop your own plan for the future—both college and beyond. Here are some we think are pretty useful:

Our Recommendations

Here are a few things that North Park recommends for you to do while you’re in high school:

  • Explore the academic requirements for any college or university you’re interested in.
  • Start thinking early about you and your family’s plan to finance your college experience.
  • Participate in extracurricular activities, summer jobs, or volunteer service that you enjoy.
  • Keep a list of careers and subjects that interest you, and then talk to teachers and professionals who have followed similar paths to get their best advice. If you’re interested in a specific profession, you may be able to job shadow for a day to get a real-world experience.
  • Keep track of all the things you’re involved in so you can refer back to it for essays and applications; it will also help you write your first resume.
  • Visit friends and relatives who attend various colleges to see what campus life is like.
  • Participate in college visit opportunities designed for early high schoolers or special interests you have. North Park offers High School Visit Day that might fit the bill.
  • Have fun! If you enjoy what you’re doing, it will show when you share your stories on college or scholarship applications.

Request More Information

We want to know you’re interested! Make sure you are getting all the information you need from North Park University. You can ask specifically about majors or programs that interest you, or you can ask more general questions to get to know us. You’ll also be on the list for invitations to visit days and other special events on our campus or in your area.