When I was in high school, parents would never think of helping their student with college prep. The high school counselors handled any questions and most my classmates attended the local four-year university. But parenting has changed and so has college prep. With record numbers of students applying to college and the soaring costs of college, parents can help students relieve some of the stress of college prep by offering some help when needed.
Just remember that “help” is the operative word. Your student should always be in charge of the process. Here are just a few ways you can help your student with college prep:
Scholarship searches
Parents can assist students with scholarship searches. With all the opportunities online of scholarship postings and search engines, it’s easy to spend some time on your smartphone looking for scholarships that fit your student. You can do a Google search with scholarship parameters, use apps like MyScholly, or even search on Twitter by following users like @AidScholarship or @Scholarships360. Once you find a scholarship that matches your student’s interests and/or qualifications, pass the information along to your student.
Interview tips and information
Parents can certainly provide useful interview tips for their students. They can advise them on appropriate dress and give interview tips and encouragement. You might even go as far as passing along useful articles about college interview questions and answers like this one: College Interview Questions to Ask and Answer.
Essay proofing and editing
While it’s not advisable for parents to contribute content to the student’s college essay (admissions officers can spot this instantly), it’s perfectly acceptable to help your student with proofing and editing. Your student may need to bounce off some ideas before starting as well. If you find it necessary, you can even provide further help by paying for an essay writing coach like The College Essay Guy to help.
College visits
Accompanying your student on college visits can be another way you can participate in the process. While on the visit, let your student take the lead. You should listen, take pictures, and even notes if necessary to help with the information gathering process. Scheduling multiple visits over a few days can also be helpful for both you and your student.
Test prep
Your student should set aside some time to prepare for standardized tests. You can help by scheduling study time during the week, monitoring practice tests, or even paying for a professional test prep tutor. Affordable and even free test prep is available for every student if you find this will help them better prepare
College choice
Even though the final choice of college should always be left to your student, you can certainly offer input and advice along the way. You can help your student stay within the financial guidelines you should set before applying and also help with the final decision.

Most parents feel their student’s smartphone is an extra appendage. Your student’s entire life is on their phone. They use it to stay in touch with friends (and you if you’re lucky), they use it for homework, for research, for gaming and just about every other task in their lives.
While many students are busy packing their bags and getting ready to leave for their first year at college, still others are working on their applications for the next round of admissions. Of course, if your child fits the latter category, it’s likely that they already have a college in mind that they wish to attend. Happily, by reading the post below you can find out about the tactics that will help them get into their first choice. Keep reading to discover more.
When it comes parenting for college, this may be something that you start to think about as parents when your kids start high school. Now, for some people, this will be way too soon – because you have all of four years before they are due to go. But, when you are looking to

From the time your child enters preschool, all you ever want is to provide them with the best educational experience. The more your children are able to learn in their formative years, the better equipped they are for the real world. As your child grows up in a world that is ever-changing, it is vital that you’re able to provide them with a competitive foundation to succeed. A solid education is an essential part of that foundation, which is why many parents send their children to private schools.
Join a group of parents whose students are getting college admissions letters and you’re going to hear the same conversations. Some are elated, others are confused, and many are disappointed.
There are thousands of potential choices for rising seniors, hundreds of influences on the paths they take in choosing colleges for consideration. How can they best sift through it all to find the right fit for them? And perhaps even more importantly – what SHOULDN’T they do? Bob Allen, President,
Before your student hits submit on his college application, he has work to do. Summer is a good time for juniors and seniors to start prepping and looking towards the future.