The jump from freshman to sophomore year is often underestimated. However, the shift between the two is drastic. From the ability to take more classes of choice and become leaders in clubs and societies, many tenth graders feel unprepared for the pressures and newfound responsibilities that come with being a sophomore.
Responsibility:
Starting sophomore year, students start to take on more leadership roles within various clubs and organizations inside and outside of school. This is because they may have found interest in certain clubs and hope to take on a bigger role. Having the responsibility of running clubs and planning meetings is necessary for a successful club, and requires time outside of school. Students may also increase their participation in each club as it is common during sophomore year to narrow down what clubs students focus on.
Nico Kim has been the leader of the Lake Keepers Club since freshman year, which cleans up the lakes surrounding Hackley. He acknowledges that it was a unique experience having a leadership role as a freshman, but by being in a leadership position early on he learned how to manage his time with having the role as well as the flaws it posed regarding time management.
“Last year a big issue we faced was finding time on the weekends when everyone is going to attend our clean-ups and finding time to work on preparing for our club meetings and projects,” Nico said.
Because of this, the club appointed two more leaders this year, junior Obi Nnamdi and sophomore Nora Husseini. Nico said that having even more people to help out has allowed him to increase his focus in the Debate Club. This fall, he has already gone to three tournaments, including the Yale Invitational. Many of the debates he attends often fill up most of his weekend, which he said has taken him time to adjust to as he did not have the time to participate in all of these debates last year.
Ability to Take More Accelerated Courses:
More classes are open to sophomores, from different minors and electives to Advanced Placement classes (APs). The freedom that comes from being able to take various minors and electives allows sophomores to dig deeper into topics they are especially interested in.
Sophomores also have the ability to take accelerated and AP courses as well. AP classes can allow sophomores to obtain college credit depending on their score on the final exam administered by the College Board, and can open up even more opportunities to take other advanced classes in their junior and senior years. However, these classes can cause even more stress as they have a heavier workload and require preparation for the end-of-the-year exam.
Sophomore Nora Husseini is taking two AP classes this year, AP Computer Science and AP Spanish. As a member of the Junior Varsity tennis team, Varsity Basketball team, and being a co-leader of Lake Keepers, she has to make sure she is balancing her time well. In addition, she needs to stay on top of the course load from her AP classes to anticipate what will be on the exam this coming May.
Emphasis on College:
Sophomore year is a year closer to graduation, and therefore a year closer to applying to colleges. Thus, there is an increase in awareness of college and what one wants to pursue a career in. Starting sophomore year, students may take on internships and electives to explore their interests. Students also may start studying for the SAT and take the PSAT, two standardized tests that help in the college process, with the PSAT being a precursor to the SAT and can get students merit scholarships based on their score, and the SAT being used for college applications. Sophomore Isabella Zeltser is currently studying for the SAT and is planning to take it this fall. She’s taking the SAT this year because she took Algebra 2 and Trigonometry last year, which is the math that the test is based on.
“Studying for the SAT is really time-consuming and I have to now balance both schoolwork and dance in addition to studying for the test,” Isabella said. As a competitive dancer, she has multiple practices a week that span for two to three hours, so on top of schoolwork and studying for the SAT, she has to be very decisive with her free time to balance all three. However, one benefit that Isabella has from taking the SAT this year is that she has more time to get her score up and will not be burdened with having to take the test in junior year when she will have even more responsibilities and work to manage especially because the SAT is not usually taken in sophomore year, but rather junior year.
Advice for Freshman:
Many sophomores came from freshman year thinking that sophomore year would be a step up in difficulty, but they did not anticipate just how much of a step up it was. Many students wish they received advice from upperclassmen during their freshman year regarding this change. Some current sophomores have advice for freshmen on how to prepare for sophomore year.
Sophomore Ella Ferrari said, “Don’t pressure yourself too much, you’ll burn out.”
Sophomore Olivia Lyu said, “I wish that I took more risks in English last year and utilized the resources in the class more too.”
They both acknowledge that if they had done these two things differently, they believe that they would’ve been better prepared for sophomore year. While the shift from freshman to sophomore year is large, knowing how to manage time and staying positive is crucial. Using study methods or creating a schedule for your day can help keep you organized and on track. Knowing that it is also normal to feel more stressed out than in freshman year is also important, as you are in the same boat as everyone else in your grade. However, sophomore year also presents new opportunities and adventures for students to take advantage of.
