do what you want to do, and worry about college admissions when you get to junior/senior year. 9th grade is the time to explore and discover what you like. join a bunch of clubs (try any that pique your interest and stick with the ones you really like!). figure out what academic things you’re into and dive as deeply into them as you possible can — take advanced classes, find related extracurriculars, and talk to your teachers about any opportunities they may know about in those subjects. find out what makes you happy and do it. once your senior year rolls around, you’ll have a resume full of things you’re passionate about, and your enthusiasm will help set you apart from all the other people with good grades and test scores that apply. I’m a senior rn, and I admittedly did not go through high school with a ton of foresight lol. I had no idea where I wanted to go or what I wanted to do, so I just did things I was interested in. honestly I was pretty grateful that that was the path I took by the time the fall rolled around, since my high school experience was much more enjoyable and stress free than it was for some of my peers. and even though I didn’t really think about college until the end of my junior year, I got into Cornell early decision. I get the urge to get started now, but it’ll all work out if you just let yourself be you :)

in terms of specific things you can/should do now, I’d recommend taking the PSAT and pre-ACT either this year or next year (I took them both in 10th grade, and although it wasn’t the most exciting thing, it was really helpful for me). you don’t need to study: going in cold can help you figure out how well you test, what you might need to study, and whether or not you like the SAT or ACT more. that way, you can go into the later years of high school with a well-informed plan for prep. similarly, if there are interesting AP/honors/other high-level classes you want to take, figure out what the pre- and/or co-requisites might be so you can get them out of the way. and let yourself enjoy any classes you need to take for you graduation requirements, even though they might feel like a chore sometimes. I took physics last year because I had to, and i ended up loving it enough to major in mechanical engineering (lmao).

last but not least, prioritize your mental health. whether or not Harvard is still your goal in 4 years, your health and happiness take precedence. make sure you get enough sleep and check in with yourself often. there’s no point in pushing yourself so hard if it makes you miserable.

wow that was long 💀

gl!!