Tracking is key

Create ONE file that includes:

Awards,

Projects,

Special classes,

Interests/hobbies,

Classes with teachers that will send you recommendation letters, their contact information,

Who you worked for, when, how many hours, how many days of the week,

Basically everything

You will never have to worry about forgetting something you accomplished, who helped you, or when it happened. If you don’t have a single place where all this is tracked, you will forget and you might kick yourself later for not having this information.

This is probably one of the most important pieces of information you need. Create a designated Word or Excel document, even a notebook if you have to, that has the dates and accomplishments, resources, and people. Nothing is too small. This master document will serve as a guide for you throughout all of your degrees.

Just like your parents may have kept a folder with all your childhood art work, or kept a star program for your week as you accomplished your tasks…. Remember those? This is like that, only it will have a four-year detailed history. This is one of the most important things you will do for yourself; and you will mostly likely thank me later.

This document is different than the document you will create for your college applications. That document will be just as detailed and just as important but do not merge or confuse the two. The same logic applies though, as you will need to keep track of all admissions offices, their contact data, addresses, application deadlines, user ID's, passwords, and more.