Applying for college is an extremely stressful time for all high school students. Pressure builds as parents and friends weigh in on where they think you should go and the applications begin piling up—the essay, any supplemental essays, filling out all of the information. Getting everything done in addition to staying on top of your schoolwork can be difficult for many.

A few easy tips can go a long way in help you reduce stress and stay on top of everything while still meeting deadlines and getting everything done in time.

Make sure you have safety, target and reach schools in your list. Safety schools are those schools that accept students with credentials that are not as good as your own (gpa, SAT/ACT, extracurricular, etc.) are, for the most part, superior to the “average” accepted student and you can be almost positive you can get in. Your accomplishments should match the expectations of your target schools (ex.—if they expect students to have a 3.5gpa, the school is a target for you if you have maintained a 3.4-3.6), and reach schools are those whose expectations may be higher than what you’ve accomplished—but you still have a chance and there is no good reason not to take it. You need this variety so that you can shoot for schools that might be a little better than what you can expect to get into; if you get in, great , if not, no harm, no foul. Target schools should leave you feeling comfortable about your chances of getting in and are great schools for you, and you need safeties in the off chance that if all else fails, you’ll have somewhere to go in the fall at the very least.

In addition to having a wide array of colleges that you are applyinh to, you should be sure to narrow the list down to a select few that you really like. A good number may be two reach schools, three target schools and two safety schools. Any more applications than this may become overwhelming to get out in time, and any less and you are only hurting your own chances of going to a school you enjoy. You should also be sure to go to commonapp.org and see if any of your schools allow it. I was able to use the common application for seven of the eight schools I applied to, saving me a lot of time by requiring me only to have to fill out two applications instead of eight.

Start writing your essay early to allow ample time for revisions, re-writes and corrections. You can’t send in a first draft, it needs to be your best work. As such, you must provide yourself a lot of time to work on it. Remember, every college will require at least one essay, and you can usually use the same essay for each. However, some colleges require additional essays and you should be sure to make sure which schools of yours, if any, require this early so you don’t find yourself scrambling to put an essay together at the last minute—or not applying at all.

Good luck applying to schools, it is a stressful yet exciting process that you should put your best effort into.

guest written by John J. Walters

This is the second “announcement post” I’ve written for TestSoup in about a month.  If we don’t stop soon, our hubris will no doubt become our undoing.  But today we focus on happier things, because today I have the pleasure of announcing to you that TestSoup’s entire flashcard line is now available as apps on Apple’s mobile operating system.  So if you have an iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch, check us out!

The good news is that all these announcements havene’t gone to our heads.  Our apps are the same, low price as the online cards.  I mean, come on!  It’s not often that you can find a convenient way to study for an upcoming standardized test for less than the price of a fancy sandwich.

I won’t lie to you.  We actually have questioned our sanity on that issue.  But our loss is your gain, as they say.  Maybe we’ll wise up down the line, but for right now we’re simply kicking back and enjoying the increased cool factor that comes with being in some way associated with Apple’s lineup.

We’re also working on creating free trials with 10 sample flashcards of each set (for those who like to try before they buy) literally as I type this post, so I expect those to be finished and available quite soon.  Watch our Twitter feed for updates on that.

The goal, as it has always been, is to make test prep affordable, mobile, and intuitive.  We’re still keeping our “sign up and start studying in under 60 seconds” thing going.  We’re just trying to make it so you don’t have to be seated in front of a computer to use our system.  As a side note, if you’re a fan of carrying around 850 page tomes that prove beyond the shadow of a doubt that you are, indeed, studying for the GMAT, then our service might not be for you.

TestSoup means to change the way people study for tests.  We started our quest to end expensive, ineffective, and inconvenient test prep a little over one year ago with our online flashcards and similar apps for the Blackberry operating system.  Now we’re moving forward once again with our iOS apps.  And, before you send me any angry emails, let me be the first to state that our Android apps are already in development.  Patience.

We’re also looking to expand both our offerings and our reach.  Already, more than 25 schools endorse TestSoup as an official way to help improve your scores on standardized tests.  And we’ve started a similar partnership program with qualified tutors.   Finally, if all that isn’t enough for you, we have plans to begin working on eBooks and online quizzes in a continuing effort to make studying more interactive and more efficient.  So stay tuned.

I believe that everyone has their own personal way of preparing for tests, but I have found a very concise and orderly method of preparing well for any test, whether it is the SAT, ACT, or even a mid-term exam for a history class. I usually begin the process by ordering my notes and all of my study materials into different piles. The piles can divide the information by chapter, topic, or by how well I know the information. By visually organizing the information, it gives my brain a chance to understand the structure of the information, and becomes much easier to memorize everything. When I organize information into piles by how well I know the material, it also helps me understand which areas I should focus on more.

When there is a lot of information to cover, flashcards are the easiest way to memorize key words or dates. Not only are flashcards time-efficient, but they are also truly effective. I begin by creating any necessary flashcards that pertain to the subject or topic I am studying. Although it seems tedious, just writing down the facts on paper helps me study!  I take about an hour and a half studying the flashcards, and then I take a ten minute break to eat something and relax. I do not find it helpful to study for five or six consecutive hours without a break. It seems to be too much for me to handle sometimes and I get really exhausted very quickly. I have also found that studying right before a test is less helpful than studying the night before because during sleep the brain has the time to process everything that it studied and in the morning, it is much easier to recall than if it was reviewed ten minutes before the exam.

Highlighting information that I have difficulty recalling has also been a helpful technique for me. The brain remembers color better than it remembers black and white, so having key facts or easily forgettable information in a different color helps the information stick out in my memory.

Finally, before the SAT, I remember just completely taking the night before off to relax and give my brain a rest. I have found that tactic to be extremely helpful and it definitely can help anyone keep calm on a big test day!