Transcript How To Plan for a GREAT Sophomore Year

How to Plan
for a GREAT
Junior Year
Hosted by Dr. James T. London and Genevieve Richards
May 24, 2012
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SOPHOMORE YEAR LOOKED
LIKE…

For most of you, your sophomore year
likely focused on:
◦ Getting acclimated to the demands of college life (academic, social,
personal)
◦ Deepening your niche in campus life, academics, and support networks
◦ Continuing your exploration of concepts and topics in academia, gearing
up for your major’s upper division coursework, and/or weighing your
choice of major
◦ Personal development (intellectually, socially and introspectively)
CONGRATS! YOU MADE IT
THROUGH YOUR SECOND YEAR!
BUT NOW….
Preparing for Junior Year

Now that you’re getting ready to finish your
sophomore year, it’s important that you begin planning
for next year, especially, in these areas.
◦ Major confirmation and transition to upper division course work
◦ Post-grad planning and career focus
◦ Developing your personal network
◦ Extracurricular activities
◦ Next summer opportunities
◦ Time management
Avoiding The Comfort Zone in
Junior Year

It might be harder to do than it seems. You’re not an underclassman anymore, so the
pressure somewhat off. You’re not scrambling to keep up with the pace of college life.
You know your way around your campus and its resources. You’ve got a better handle
on who you are and who your support system is.

You’re likely to be way more comfortable this year, and there’s still time ahead of you
before you graduate. You might feel like it’s all right to relax--but it’s not.

Junior is an incredibly important year. You are approximately halfway done with your
undergrad coursework. In some cases, this is the last full academic year you have before
applying for grad school or post grad opportunities. Then, it’s out the door and onto the
real world, with a GPA that reflects your efforts junior year as well as all your other
years of hard work.

Bottom line: Careful planning and follow-through in your junior year is critical to the
success of your post-graduation plans.
Avoiding the “Comfort Zone”

Junior year is not the time to get comfortable.

Competition for grad school programs and post-grad job opportunities is stiff.
Employers and admissions officers are looking for candidates that are fully
pushing themselves to take advantage of in-class and extracurricular opportunities
Consider the following:
 Professor research opportunities (field-specific)
 Summer coursework
 On/off- campus involvement and leadership
 Internships
 Study abroad
Focusing on Post-Grad Planning

Go to the Career Counseling Center
A visit to the Career Counseling Center might help clarify what post-grad
directions available. Make an appointment to talk to a career counselor, discuss
what types of careers are available and appealing to you. This might help you
decide on post-grad directions.

See your academic advisor
Having an appointment with your academic advisor may help you rekindle a
feeling of focus. The two of you can talk about your options for your major course
of study, and the rest of college as well. If you feel yourself slacking off, tell your
academic adviser you need help putting together a plan to get back on track.
Finding an Internship

Working as an intern is one of the smartest things you can do to improve your chances of
finding a job that makes you happy once you graduate. As an intern, you’ll discover:
◦ Whether you prefer working in a large organization or a small start-up
◦ What type of work you prefer—for instance, the solitary focus of programming versus coordinating the
efforts of many team members as a project manager
◦ How your classroom experiences, from team projects to specific technical skills, translate to a realworld work environment
◦ How people respond and react in real life contexts

It’s a good idea to start interning as early as the summer following your sophomore year.
Finding an internship is similar to searching for a full-time job—you’ll need to put together a
resume and interview with recruiters.
Building Your Network with Professors

Professors can provide a lot more than academic support. Beyond providing
assistance for coursework and advising you on choosing classes, they can open the
doors to internships and give you guidance in planning for your post-college career.
◦ Contact your professors early in the term: If you don’t communicate with them early, chances are
you won’t establish a connection.
◦ Start with email: Meeting with your professors right away can be daunting, so get in touch with
them initially via email. Send an email asking for advice about courses or for help with a topic that
came up in class.
◦ Go to office hours with a classmate: If facing your professor alone intimidates you, sign up for an
appointment with a friend from class. Visiting together will make you both feel more comfortable.
But, with or without a peer, it’s essential to meet with your professors.
◦
Keep in touch: Even after the semester is over, maintain the connections you’ve built. As you
approach graduation, professors may be able to assist you with job searching, writing letters of
recommendation, and introducing you to industry contacts. Behr recalls how one of her economics
professors introduced her to former students who majored in the same area she did, who could offer
her insight into her academic career choices and post-college options.
Time Management

Get the “big picture.” Don’t just plan out your semester. Plan out a road map of
checkpoints and goal for the next few years.
◦ Carefully manage coursework deadlines, assignments and exams. Junior year is a key year in your college
career. While you may get the benefit of the doubt for a not-so great performance in freshman and (maybe)
sophomore year, employers and admissions officers will be less forgiving about underperformance in
junior year.
◦ Schedule time commitments carefully. School comes first, but you’ve got to make time for other draws on
your time as well. Family, work, extra-curricular and social time commitments are realistic features of your
schedule. Don’t neglect to account for them when mapping out your personal schedule in the short and long
term.
◦ Get an idea of “crunch periods”. This will give you an idea of how far in advance you need to plan. Junior is
year is booby-trapped with potential for crunch periods.

Make a weekly and yearly schedule of deadlines based on your needs:
◦ Keep up with deadlines for class and post grad planning efforts. Taking test prep courses, applying for
scholarships, having a usable resume, getting letters of recommendation all have long range deadlines that
can quickly creep up on you. You don’t want to have to scramble for critical pieces of your plan. Plan early,
revisit often and regularly revise your schedule of deadlines so that you don’t lose track of your timeframe
or impending obligations.
Any Questions/Comments?
Thank you!
If you have any personal questions or concerns that you would
like to have addressed one-on-one, please do not hesitate to
reach out to Dr. London at [email protected] or
Genevieve at [email protected]. Remember
that we are here for you and will do our best to help you work
through any issue you need to talk about or help with.