How to prepare for college?

How do I prepare for College now?

• Hello, I'm currently a senior. I'm struggling to figure out what I'm going to do now that I'm graduating a month from today. I don't know what to do. I know I'm not going to start college right away (this fall) more so early next year (Winter/Feb. 2013) but I'm trying to figure out how am I going to go from a Academically unprepared Senior to a well-prepared College frosh. Also, I didn't do so well in my high school years. I have a 2.5 GPA. I also didn't get the correct or best education I could have gotten. I didn't get four years of the typical Math, History, English, and Science, instead I have gotten about two years of Math and I have never gotten to Physics or Calculus. I also haven't gotten further then Biology or Chemistry when it comes to Science. I have unfortunately taken remedial classes all through out high school. I've tried my best to avoid discussing about it openly until now. I have gone to a vocational school during the last two years of high school for Culinary. I have also been placed in this program called the I.E.P. program. Please, understand I am in a vulnerable state at this moment explaining this. My mathematical skills are so bad that I have trouble with multiplication, and I can't even remember division all too much. I realize how bad my situation is. I really do. I know I'm not going to be in a university right away but I want to GRADUATE at a university. I understand how you can go through school gliding and get to college and find out it's an completely different ball game. Even though my situation is bad, I'm not the only one out there. 75 percent of high school seniors are not prepared for College. The percentile for kids like me to succeed in college is lower than kids that DON'T have learning disabilities. I'm sure of that. However, I don't want to be discouraged for something as serious as this. Realizing and looking back on what my education was like makes me not only understand better but to also NOT take ANYTHING like education for granted. I appreciate it A LOT more. It's MORE valuable to me. I know that college is a serious ball game, more serious then ALL twelve years or even thirteen years (counting kindergarten) of school. I know that in college it's about the quality of your work not quantity. College is not about the memorization of your work but actually KNOWING the work, explaining it in detail. I now know that it's about being ambitious set your own goals and achieving them, NOT recognition (i.e. popularity) which is what we all see in our twelve school years. Not just college or education but of life. I'm passionate to learn new things. I have a desire to better myself, I am now determined, driven to do better.

• Answer:

  the first step would be to enroll at a community college and see how you do. if you do well enough from there, you can transfer to a university. at the community college you can meet with an academic counselor to discuss your goals and the classes you need to take. he or she will advise you on what classes to take for what you want to study. have you taken the SAT yet? if not, many universities will require you to take it. minimum score requirements will vary by university. i suggest getting an sat preparation book and working through it. but before doing all this, it's important to know what career you want. getting a college degree is no longer enough, it has to be in something that will land you a decent job. a vocational school where you learn a trade might be a good option.