As we head into the second marking period of this school year, I have one piece of advice for every single junior: start your college search this year. I started working towards college at the beginning of the third marking period of my junior year and it made the whole process much less stressful.

One of the most demanding parts of applying to college is taking your big tests. Your ACT and SAT scores are very important for getting into schools, especially if you need scholarship money. Many schools have gone “test optional”, however, don’t let that fool you: many require test scores to be eligible for scholarships. These are very important, as some schools even offer full ride scholarships if you are able to get your test scores high enough.

I took my first ACT in April of my junior year and this allowed me to have a baseline to study in order to get a higher grade on my next one. Taking your standardized tests your senior year is incredibly stressful especially if you want to apply to high awarding scholarships whose deadlines tend to be in early November. Taking your first test in your junior year leaves you almost half a year to prepare yourself and take a second or even third test in that time.

All of this will make your college applications down the line much easier. While others are scrambling to take more tests and hope their scores come back in time for encroaching deadlines, you’ll already be done.