By Wendy Greenberg

As high school seniors look forward to graduation and juniors look forward to senior year, it’s not too soon for rising juniors — those who are about to end their sophomore year in high school — to think about college.

It may seem early, but it’s never too early to plan a timeline, according to Rona Aydin, founder of Oriel Admissions, a Princeton-based college counseling firm which advises families nationwide, especially if it’s built around a student’s genuine interests and the goal is a college that is a good fit for the student. Starting a timeline in the summer leading up to junior year can actually decrease stress, she said, adding that a gentle pace for rising juniors can make the college application journey easier for them.

“I think of junior year as being extremely critical,” said Aydin, noting that she works with many students the summer before their junior year, and earlier.

The college admission landscape has changed in recent years, and families should be engaging with the process earlier, she said.

More selective schools are returning to requiring standardized tests and the top ranked institutions are seeing increased competition. Princeton University, she pointed out, saw the largest applicant pool in its history for the Class of 2029, and admitted 4.4 percent of those applicants, according to The Daily Princetonian.

Test planning is important, Aydin said, referring to the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or American College Test (ACT), a test that has become more prevalent in certain areas of the country. “Most students are taking a test a few times during junior year,” she said. She recommends taking the tests before the end of junior year, if possible, to alleviate the level of stress. This upcoming summer can include taking practice tests or taking a class. “There are so many ways to prepare,” she said.

Following the COVID-19 pandemic, most selective colleges adopted test-optional policies. Aydin pointed out that there has been a shift back to requiring the tests. For the fall 2026 admissions cycle, six of the eight Ivy League schools require SAT or ACT scores, or a “test-flexible” option. Princeton will reinstate its testing requirement for students applying to enroll in fall 2028.

The increase in applications is significant, she said. But as demographic population trends mean fewer numbers of high school students, more students are applying to the same set of schools.

Consequently, families need to be conscious that the fit is right. A common mistake students and families make is focusing solely on “prestigious brand name schools” which can overshadow the more important factors like program fit and support of the student, said Aydin.

A junior year timeline might begin in the summer before junior year, when students need to be more attentive to what activities they are pursuing; freshman and sophomore years are more of an exploratory time. But typically, in junior year, classes become more demanding. Students, she said, should focus on activities that allow for personal development and align with potential career interests, rather than just considering college application impact. “I tell parents that students shouldn’t do something just because it looks good on an application,” said Aydin. “Ask what the student is gaining. If personal development can happen, that’s great.”

Colleges, she said, are looking at activities for which the student is passionate or will help in a career path. “They are looking for a person a little more focused, with some foresight. They are looking for hints and clues about what you are most interested in.” Eleventh grade is a good time to show more clarification of activities, she noted.

During junior year, she recommends getting the Common Application set up, and becoming familiar with the essays and writing required. “I encourage becoming familiar with what the applications looks like so it won’t hit you at once,” she said. A large part of the application process is having time to make revisions.

Winter of junior year is a good time to plan for the following summer. It seems early, but the most competitive summer programs such as research-based internships, with more responsibility, can have early deadlines, some in the late fall of junior year.

“By December, those applications are in full swing,” she said. “It’s important to be aware of deadlines. Some require essays or video submissions, which is becoming even more common.”

Going into the spring of junior year, course planning for senior year should be underway. “The first hurdle is, can you do well in the class, can I be successful?”

Her advice is to ask if the classes align with best representing your interests. “It’s best to stay on track,” she said. “Continue at your level, whether it is AP or honors, or an upward trajectory. See if you can show a little growth.”

One thing many people have not heard about is the term demonstrated interest, which has grown to mean different things, she said, but at its core, is the college’s measure of how genuinely a student is engaging with the school. This can include attending a virtual information session, signing up for an official campus visit, and opening emails from the admissions office.

During the fall and spring, colleges offer open houses. “Do these visits to make sure you are comfortable with the college list you have,” she said. “Colleges want applicants who are interested in attending their schools.”

Aydin, who grew up in Edison, was an undergraduate economics major at Brandeis University, and while pursuing a master’s degree at New York University became an editor at the nearby Scholastic offices. “That gave me a lot of confidence to edit someone’s writing,” she said. At Oxford, as an MBA student, she volunteered to help with prospective student events, which led to starting Oriel Admissions and eventually relocating to Princeton.

Anxiety, she said, can come from not understanding the process, so understanding the process can be helpful, she said. “I think starting early is the key. You don’t need to be doing everything at once. Starting early to educate yourself is important. You want to be comfortable with the process.”

Oriel Admissions (Orieladmissions.com) maintains an expansive blog with resources and admissions strategy guides for families nationwide navigating selective college admissions.