Dual enrollment happens when a student is enrolled at two academic institutions simultaneously, typically a high school and a college. There are some high schools like the one I attended (Brooklyn College Academy) that are affiliated with a college where a program has already been established for students to take college classes as part of their high school requirement.

Don’t be alarmed because you can prepare to combat junior year in no time! Here are some of the ways sophomores in high school can be ready for next year.

While, inevitably, there will be nerves and challenges involved as you get accustomed to your high school and find your people and routine, there are certain ways to make getting involved in your high school easier. Here are seven of those ways: 

Summer is the perfect time for this! During this time you can explore your interests outside the classroom and attain valuable experiences as a student. Rest assured that doing so does not have to take away too much time from having fun in the sun during your summer vacation.

To some degree, high school–and all years of school and stages of life–will always be difficult. But, there are certainly some lessons–five, to be exact–that I learned the hard way in my first few months of freshman year.

Early college programs were designed to provide high school students who are traditionally underrepresented in higher education to earn an associate degree or up to two years of college credit to help them pursue their future endeavors. 

While everybody’s experience is different when approaching their first AP class and test, there are six tips and lessons in particular that I would have benefited from knowing before I stepped foot into my first AP classroom.

Do you like talking to people about current issues around the world? Do you see yourself working as a broadcast reporter for CNN, NPR, or MSNBC? Or maybe as a writer for a newspaper like The New York Times or The Wall Street Journal?

The one common denominator, though, is the need to tackle the problem head-on and not rely on any one “magic bullet” to get rid of your fear.