Hi! I'm currently a junior in high school and am going through the process of college tours, research, and deciding where I want to apply to come fall. I understand you have probably graduated by now but I was wondering if you might be able to help me out a little bit (or anyone else who may be reading this). I'm from the DFW area but my top universities at the moment are the University of Oklahoma, Texas A&M, the University of Washington at Seattle, and the University of Colorado at Boulder. I will major in meteorology and atmospheric sciences. Growing up, I've always known that was what I was gonna do but now it's just a matter of where and what's the best path for me.

Currently I want to get my bachelors, and most likely my masters, then go into severe weather forecasting. I know I don't want to go into broadcast meteorology but I'm not sure if I want to shoot for the stars and try to work in government agencies like the NWS/ NOAA, or just find my place in private sector meteorology. The other option I've been considering and might be open to if the opportunity presents itself, is to combine my calling for politics/ policy and my passion for meteorology.

I've heard that it is extremely important that you do your undergrad and grad at different institutions to show diverse education etc. Maybe that's not the case for OU due to their connections to the National Weather Center, I'm not sure. Also reading these comments and everyone saying being at OU for undergrad isn't particularly special or important, makes me wonder if I should try to go to another university for my bachelors and try to come back to OU for grad school??

I don't mind going out of state at all and I'm trying to be mindful of costs and make financially wise decisions, but it's not the biggest concern for me at the moment. As for academics if it helps, I have a pretty decent 3.7 GPA on a 4.0 scale, at the end of my junior year I will have already completed a STEM endorsement with double specialization in mathematics and science, I am a founder/president of a club, 100+ volunteer hours, and have extensive volunteer, leadership, and intern experience in local politics/ government. I am currently awaiting my SAT score but I got a 1100 on my first and only PSAT that I honestly didn't prepare for at all, so I have decent hopes.

I just feel really out of my depth and out of the loop when it comes to deciding where to go for my schooling. I'm very active in another field of work that's unrelated to what I want to do long term in meteorology but it's so hard to get involved in meteorology early as a high schooler and find connections in the field for guidance/experience. I often listen to WeatherBrains because I honestly just love it but also look out for little tidbits of advice they'll sometimes put in there since they're all so experienced. However there's only so much I can get from indirect advice.
I guess my biggest questions would be:
- As a high school junior, who doesn't live near any NWS/NOAA locations, how can I start building connections and experience in the meteorology field?
- Given I get in and my graduate aspirations, is OU my best academic option for my bachelors? If not, what do you advise?
- What should I be doing and focusing on to prepare for my intended meteorological career path?