For Students: Does School Prepare You For the Real World?

High school is one of the most formative periods in a young person’s journey to adulthood. The time from 9th to 12th grade presents students with countless opportunities to develop socially, intellectually, and spiritually.

You will want to ensure that this window of time is well-spent at St. Agnes Academy so that you are prepared for future success. This includes finding the answer to a common question, “How does school prepare you for the real world?”

Let’s dive into how the curriculum and culture at St. Agnes Academy help prime young women for future academic, professional, and personal success.

Success is not easily defined, and each person’s idea of success is unique to their specific goals. However, a high-quality secondary education can help lay the firm foundation young people need to achieve their visions of success in the years following high school graduation. 

Your parents may have chosen to enroll you in a Catholic school such as St. Agnes because they believe the Church’s principles of Catholic social teaching can help equip students for personal and professional achievement.

At St. Agnes, we seek to empower young women to achieve their future personal and professional goals. But how exactly does this work translating educational experiences into real-life skills?

Here’s how we prepare students for success by helping you attain higher levels of achievement in academic, professional, and personal ventures.

Research indicates that Catholic high school students tend to demonstrate higher academic achievement than their public school peers:

Not only do Catholic school students perform better academically during high school, but they are prepared to achieve high levels of academic success in their post-secondary educational endeavors.

The rigorous academic curriculum offered at Catholic private schools like St. Agnes Academy is designed to help students gain the academic foundation, study habits, and other important skills to help them perform well on standardized tests and other assessments required by colleges and universities.

Students who perform well on these tests may even be able to convert their test scores into college credits so they can more effectively tailor their future college course load to their specific interests and career path. 

St. Agnes Academy has an entire student support team dedicated to preparing students for college. Each St. Agnes student is assigned a designated college counselor in her sophomore year who will advise her on her class schedule and offer individualized support throughout the entire college admissions process.

For example, you may require specific guidance on time management to juggle the needs of academics, athletics, friends, and family. We help students learn how to balance the collective whole and the individual parts that make up a high school schedule.

Our college counseling team has a collective 80 years in higher education academic advising, college admissions and college admissions counseling. We pride ourselves on providing Academy graduates with the tools, resources, and confidence they need to excel in their future academic exploits.

After building firm academic foundations, many Catholic graduates achieve high levels of professional success in their chosen industries and often enjoy higher earning potential than their peers. This may be attributable to the fact that many Catholic school graduates pursue one or more post-secondary degrees at reputable higher education institutions.

St. Agnes Academy is uniquely invested in helping our students develop the real-world skills they need to achieve their professional goals. In addition to our unparalleled academic curriculum, we offer students the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of clubs, extracurriculars, and honor societies where they can dive more deeply into their specific interests and areas of strength.

Participating in activities can teach students valuable lessons about cooperation, help develop soft skills around communication, and foster an appreciation for community-building. Teaching life skills is part of our mission to help students enter the real world as strong professionals in their chosen industry.

St. Agnes Academy also seeks to help students prepare for the real world by teaching them the value of engaging with diverse perspectives. In their future professional endeavors, St. Agnes graduates will be asked to work closely with people of backgrounds, abilities, and belief systems that may differ from their own.

During their time at St. Agnes, students are asked to develop effective problem-solving skills and a high tolerance for alternative ideas to collaborate more effectively with diverse communities in the future.

In addition to equipping students with the tools they need to achieve academic and professional success, Catholic school education can help students become more well-rounded, engaged members of their communities.

Catholic schools like St. Agnes also prioritize the spiritual development of their pupils. As a result, Catholic school students are more likely to retain their Catholic identity into adulthood and tend to pray, attend church, and donate to the church more frequently than public school attendees.

At St. Agnes, our Catholic, Dominican faith is at the center of everything we do, and we seek to provide our students with the strong spiritual foundation they need to become active members of their faith communities in the future.

Not only do we incorporate theology courses into our core curriculum offerings, but we provide students with an array of faith-based extracurricular opportunities throughout the school year.  Mass is held on campus every Thursday morning, and students may choose to attend confession with the priest immediately following each service.

We also hold school-wide celebrations for all Holy Days of Obligation and Feasts that celebrate our Dominican heritage. Students may also choose to attend mission trips and retreats throughout their time at St. Agnes Academy or participate in other Campus Ministry offerings to serve and minister to their peers.

You are part of an exciting community that is focused on helping you prepare for life after high school. We believe an individualized education approach can help young women achieve their highest potential to live fulfilling, exemplary, faith-centered lives.

Reach out to our Student Support team today to learn more about how you can take steps to grow in key areas. We have resources and opportunities available for each student at St. Agnes.