Aimed to ease students into the college admissions process, Building Your Future Day was held on February 11 for juniors who were pulled out of school for the day.

The day consisted of six different sessions, with juniors split into three separate groups of 77 students based on last name. “The day is a kickoff for the college app process. There will be five different people talking about the different aspects of the college app process during each session,” Amanda Anderson, college counselor, said.

Speakers included representatives from St. Cloud State University, the University of Wisconsin, Madison, the University of Minnesota, Morris, and Revolution Test Prep Company. These representatives spoke on everything varying from tips on how to succeed on the ACT and SAT tests, to how to “put your best foot forward” in the college admissions process.

The day was aimed to encourage students to start thinking of what college is right for them. “Students come out thinking about what they want and the best fit for them,” Ms. Anderson said.

Juniors were asked to make a portfolio during one of the sessions. “The portfolio consists of a resume that you can send with your college application, a college search, a job shadow or interview with someone in a career,” Ms. Anderson said.

Not only is the day beneficial to the juniors, but is also a required credit. Building Your Future Day is a both a half credit and a letter grade on students’ transcripts.

Building Your Future Day is not the only day juniors will have discussing the college process. “College counselors will meet with each student individually and go over their timelines and talk about what they need to do before the end of the year,” Ms. Anderson said.

The day lasted from 8:45- 2:40, with pizza, caesar salad, chips, cookies, and pop served for lunch.