The Pre-Season Pass
A head start on the college process — built for sophomore year, so junior and senior year aren't a scramble.
- Several core milestones your student will revisit junior year — done early, with room to breathe and revise.
- An early exploratory college list your student can live with, question, and reshape over time.
- Course selection guidance that's especially made for 10th graders balancing rigor and well-being.
- Forward planning for Summer and beyond guided by passion and strategy.
Why start this in 10th grade?
Every meeting below happens again — in more depth — during junior year as part of the Season Pass. Doing an early pass in sophomore year isn't redundant; it's what makes junior year calmer.
More time, less stress
Spreading foundational work across two years means less crammed into the highest-pressure year of the process.
A real second pass
The same milestones return junior year — but your student walks in already warmed up, not starting cold.
Room to iterate
An early, exploratory list leaves time to visit, reconsider, and refine before anything is finalized.
A wiser choice
Students who've had time to reflect tend to land on schools that actually fit — not just ones that were available.
The Pre-Season Journey
Five meetings and an exploratory college list, spread across the year.
Scheduling & Planning Meeting
Getting the logistics locked down before the real work starts.
- Set a baseline schedule for the year
- Schedule upcoming meetings
- Get access to the client portal
Initial Family Meeting
Getting to know your coach — and getting your bearings.
- Review pre-meeting questionnaires for student and parent
- Discuss current course rigor and academic goals for next year and beyond
- Introduce how the year ahead will unfold
Initial Exploratory College List
A first draft, not a final answer.
- Head coach builds an early, exploratory list based on your student's interests and profile
- Deliberately broad — meant to spark conversation, not lock in a decision
Huddle Up: College List Review
Talking through the early list together.
- Walk through the exploratory list and the thinking behind it
- Start sorting early impressions of likely, target, and reach schools
- Talk about what to look for on visits over the next year
Academic Advising & Course Selection
Rigor and well-being, in balance.
- Sort out which classes and activities matter most for your student's goals
- Discuss study habits, note-taking, tutoring, and what's worked (or hasn't)
- Early, informal thoughts on test prep and assessment timing
Looking Ahead: Summer & Extracurricular Planning
What matters to you most? What should this summer feel like?
- Explore how interests translate into summer options: academic, work, research, volunteer
- Plan authentic, sustainable involvement in school activities, athletics, arts, or volunteering
Meet a Coach First
We'd be glad to offer a free introductory meeting before you commit to anything.
Pre-Season College Coaching
How to make the most of High School–while having fun too!
Selecting classes to support your application is often a balancing act between rigor and maintaining mental health.
Your coach will help you sort out what is most important and focus your efforts on the classes and activities that matter most to your student. Our team has presented to high school parent associations to help find your student’s passions for class, activities, and part-time jobs. Students typically enroll in their second semester before summer. The overview of the meetings is below:
Meeting 1: Kick-off and Course Selection (60 mins)
Planning out academic goals with actionable steps
- Review responses to The College Coaches’ pre-meeting questionnaires for the student and parent.
- Discuss current classes and academic rigor for next year and beyond while using our brainstorming worksheet as a guide.
- Coaches: Head Coach
- Players: Parent(s) and Student
Meeting 2: Summer and Extracurricular Activities (60 mins)
What matters to you most? What do you want the cadence of your summer to feel like?
- Discussion of how interests can be fueled through different experiences: academic, work, research, volunteer.
- A discussion on how to become involved in high school in an authentic and productive way. This includes school activities, athletic options, volunteer opportunities, artistic endeavors.
Meeting 3: Academic Planning and Wrap Up (60 mins)
You’ve got this!
- Look back on the academic year–how did it go? What should/could you do differently next year? Discussion about study habits, note-taking, extra help, tutoring. Favorite classes? Why?
- Initial suggestions for test prep recommendations and assessment tests
- Follow-up to summer plans
- Tips to prepare for the college process and time to answer any lingering questions
- Suggestion of next steps
- Coaches: Head Coach
- Players: Parent(s) and Student
Check-In Meetings (2)
Something’s Come Up?
- Two 30 minute check-ins as topics or concerns arise
- Players: Parent(s) and/or Student
Email support to answer related questions from the student and parents is also included.
