The beginning of a new high school year can be exciting, but that sense of anticipation is often dimmed by the mechanics of the enrollment process. Here are three reasons to get a jumpstart on fall semester at Sterling Academy, to establish a stronger foundation for the coming year.

1. Avoid the semester start-up backlog.

Students waiting until fall to enroll often face delays in starting classes due to the fall enrollment rush. For example, to transfer to a new school, transcripts are needed from the old school.  At the beginning of the school year, schools are busy with all kinds of activities that occur at the start of the school year – sorting out issues for new students, changing students’ schedules, and the requests for transcripts for all students who have left.  During this busy season, we generally have to wait longer to get the transcript from your old school.  By enrolling now, you can get the ball rolling on all the steps necessary to complete the enrollment process, particularly the one that generally takes the longest time – getting your former school to send the transcript.

At Sterling Academy, you can enroll at any time.  Also, if you want to get the enrollment process started now but your student does not want to start studying until fall, you can pay the enrollment fee now so that we can begin all the steps necessary for enrollment, and then pay your first tuition payment in the fall when you’re ready to begin.

By having all enrollment processing completed early, you can relax the rest of the summer, knowing that everything is set to begin studying in the fall.  Another advantage is that your student can get the catalog early and have time to consider the courses to take for the upcoming school year, so that will be one more step completed before fall arrives.

Then, about a week before the date your student wants to begin studying, your tuition payment will be processed, the student will go through orientation and be ready to start!

2. Get a jump on academics.

As noted above, you can enroll now and wait until fall to start studying.  However, you might also consider beginning studying now.  Taking a class (or more than one) over the summer is a productive use of the break. It can help avoid “learning loss” suffered by all students over the long vacation – a deficit that studies have shown equates to a one-month drop in achievement scores, especially in math.

You can maintain skills learned during the previous year to keep up momentum in series courses, or squeeze in another advanced class in that subject you wouldn’t otherwise have time to take. You can boost your GPA or round out the “resume” aspect of your high school transcript with greater course diversity.

If you’ll be a foreign exchange student this-coming year, it’s a great chance to practice your language in a school-type setting. And if you are getting a trip to Europe or some other foreign country as a graduation present (lucky you!), you can improve your language abilities, so you’ll have more fun and learn more from your experience. 

3. Finish early (or catch up).

Taking summer classes allows students who need more time to complete requirements and graduate on time with the rest of their class. You can catch up if you have fallen behind or failed a class or if you missed a substantial amount of school for some reason, and you can avoid falling behind again in the future. That builds confidence in your ability to succeed academically – and therefore succeed as a future college student and/or employee. 

Summer courses allow students who work fast to get ahead by “checking off” requirements sooner. That means you can graduate early, if that is your goal, or add greater diversity to your transcript to improve your overall college application. Summer classes can offer specialized opportunities for talented or gifted students to capitalize on their strengths.

Taking classes online makes getting a jumpstart even easier.

At an online high school like Sterling Academy, you never have to worry about missing out on “full” classes. Enrollment is quick and easy and you can get started at any time. It’s a personalized learning experience that enables you to study on your computer or device whenever and wherever you want, as long as you have an internet connection. This offers significant advantages.

You can retake a failed or incomplete class through our accelerated credit recovery program, or take advanced level classes or electives your school doesn’t offer. Many students have part-time or full-time summer jobs, to help out at home or save money for college. Families have vacation travel plans. With online flexibility, you can enjoy an active summer and still get a jump-start on fall semester.

If one of these options appeals to you, Sterling Academy is here to help. Contact us today to get your jump-start on the upcoming fall semester.