<p>Is it possible? I know I’m not ready for college because I don’t have enough money, and I even want to run cross country and track in college, but I’m not fast. If I take a 5th year, I will likely be fast enough to get a scholarship, and then get money and therefore be safe for college. I just don’t feel comfortable going to college in the fall of 2012 at all. I’m scared about my future. Do you guys know anything about spending 5 years in high school?</p>
<p>A lot of fancy, expensive prep schools have a fancy, expensive experience they call a post-graduate year. It’s designed for students like you, who want an additional year to mature and to improve either their grades or their athletics before they apply to colleges. A PG year often costs as much as a year of college.</p>
<p>But I don’t know of low-cost options for an additional year of high school.</p>
<p>Do you feel as if you also need an additional year of academics, or would it perhaps be possible for you to take a gap year between high school and college to train for track and earn some money? (Not that I have any inkling how to go about training for college track if you’re not in school…)</p>
<p>It’s called Community College</p>
<p>The PG year option is a great option. Even if you have a low income, you can still receive financial aid to “bridge the gap.” I know that at Phillips Andover (which has a great XC and track program) they meet 100% of your demonstrated need, which for families who make under $75k a year is the entire cost of tuition including room and board, athletic fees, dining fees, textbooks, and expenses for trips.</p>
<p>Here’s the website:[Phillips</a> Academy - An Independent Boarding High School](<a href=“http://www.andover.edu/Pages/default.aspx]Phillips”>http://www.andover.edu/Pages/default.aspx)</p>
<p>I wouldn’t write off the idea of college just yet – why not submit a few applications, as well as an application to Andover for a PG year?</p>
<p>You could try applying to a few schools this year just to have the options and room to make decisions.</p>
<p>If your test scores and GPA are high, why not look into the Questbridge program?</p>
<p>Or you can calculate your EFC (poke around the Financial Aid forum for a calculator) which is the amount that you’re expected to contribute for college. From there, do research. Check out in state schools, local colleges, schools that give merit scholarships.</p>
<p>Also, don’t forget that there are colleges that offer a gap year after you’ve been accepted! You could apply this year for fall of 2012, and put off starting until fall of 2013.</p>
<p>Feeling scared is natural. You’re going to grow a lot between now and the time that you would start college – you will also grow a lot between now and the time that you need to confirm college decisions.</p>
<p>Best of luck!</p>
<p>***, no -___- your mind is going to change senior year. just get a job during senior year. you act like colleges give out nothing to students they want to be a part of their school, sure, you might not get a full ride, but at least there’s something.</p>
<p>a LOT of people feel scared/not ready/unprepared but they still go to college. you’re being jittery for no reason when you still have like, a year to get ready for college.</p>
<p>If you’re extremely concerned, talk it over with your parents, see if they’ll let you live at home while you go to college for the first year or two. Another year at HS dreaming about what you could be doing right now would be painful.</p>
<p>If there’s aid for PG years, as ifax108 says there is, then I think that’s exactly what you want.</p>