Tips from Scholars  ►  For high school students	Yvonne Feng 1st year Queen's Commerce Student & 2016 Young Scholar Award Recipient
Tips for Prospective University Grade 12 Students
Winter 2017

Recently I have received a pool of requests to share my university application experience from high school students of all grades. After my firsthand encounter with admission processes to business schools and STEM programs, I have compiled some lessons learned based on my experiences. After joining Young Scholar as a writer, I would like to take the opportunity to share some advice I have been providing to my network with a greater network of prospective university students. It is my pleasure to be offering a university preparation set of blog posts through Young Scholar, with my first post for grade 12 students undergoing the university application process.

Before University Applications

1. Create a flow chart
   Lay out your top choice(s), followed by your first back-up(s), and your second back-up(s), etc. I found this useful for determining the programs to apply to and later on, for visualizing your options during the decision-making process.


2. Pursue minimal additional extra-curricular activities
   This is just a word of advice for students who want more time to bump up the grades for major admission awards/scholarships or to finalize your university decisions. In my case, I recognized that everything I included in my university applications were activities prior to grade 12, so I did not take on any new roles requiring a heavy commitment.


3. Avoid reading your peers' applications
   This is just a word of advice. I found that reading others' essays may influence how you approach an application question or how you deliver your writing style as well.


4. Research, research, research
   In my case, I eventually found a list of the characteristics Queen's Commerce was looking for in candidates on their website. Your research may help you greatly in generating key words or traits to mention when formulating your essay responses.

After University Applications

1. Interview upper-year students
   I found it extremely helpful to interview upper-year students about their time in my program, as it made me feel like I was reliving their experience. These interviews could either be through the phone or in person.


2. Look into the course outlines
   I found that learning about the specifics of your first-year courses, including your individual coursework, group work, midterms, and finals helps to visualize your day-to-day experience in the program.


3. Research some more! Tour the universities
   When deciding between offers, it may be helpful to investigate any statistics regarding internships, full-time employment, graduates' paths after graduation, etc. Touring the campuses, facilities, and residences may also help confirm or transform your decision.


4. Celebrate! - but remember to maintain the acceptance offer conditions
   For students looking into maintaining their offer and/or any scholarship/major admission award offers, determine if there is a specific final average to be maintained. Some universities declare your award(s) based on your final average - I highly recommend avoiding senioritis if that is the case.

Remember - it is not the end of the world if you are not attending your first-choice program. It is what you make out of the opportunity at university that matters.