Category Archives: college prep

college prep, Wednesdays parent

Wednesday’s Parent: New Year’s Resolutions and College Prep

1 Comment

 

new year's resolutionsI’ve never been one for New Year’s resolutions. It’s rare that we keep them. I do, however, love to review goals, examine past mistakes, and make corrections along the way. College bound students should be using this tactic all throughout high school. As each semester passes, students should evaluate these four areas of concern on a college application:

Academics

Evaluate your student’s grades every semester. Look at his test scores, his essays, his research papers and daily class work. Where can he improve? Where has he excelled? If you determine that he needs a tutor, don’t be afraid get him help.

Extracurriculars

Is your student maximizing his free time by participating in extracurriculars? Is he showing consistency? Should he be spending more time in one particular area and less time spreading himself thin? Is there a balance between school activities and community service? Where should he focus his time to show a consistent participation?

Faculty/Mentor relationships

This might be the most important area to evaluate each year. These relationships will provide your student with recommendation letters needed for the college applications. Build those relationships throughout high school, starting with your student’s high school counselor and key teachers. If your student is participating in a community service project, encourage him to find a mentor within the organization he’s working with.

Social media

Monitoring social media throughout high school is a critical task because your student’s social media presence reflects on his character. He should also establish social media relationships with the colleges he is interested in attending. Those relationships will be valuable when he submits his applications. Colleges are looking for students who express an interest in attending. These social media relationships express that interest.

As with any project, the key to its success is to evaluate your progress. Evaluation enables your student to move toward the eventual goal of applying to and being accepted at his first choice college.

Read Wendy’s post: College Prep New Year Spoiler Alert

_____________________

Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Wendy and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

The bonus is on the fourth Wednesday of each month when Wendy and I will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will feature an expert on a topic of interest for parents of the college-bound.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from parentingforcollege to pocsmom.com and vice versa.

admissions, college guidance, college planning, college prep, college visits, mom approved tips, parenting, Top 10

T is for Tuesday, Top 10 and Tips

1 Comment

 

top 10 tipsIt’s Tuesday. It’s not hump day. It’s the day before New Years Eve and time to reflect on 2014. And nothing says Tuesday more than Tips. Put it all together and you have Tuesday’s Top 10 Tips from 2014.

Tip #1: Insist your student graduate in 4 years or less

Did you know that at most public universities, only 19 percent of full-time students earn a bachelor’s degree in four years? Even at state flagship universities — selective, research-intensive institutions — only 36 percent of full-time students complete their bachelor’s degree on time.

Nationwide, only 50 of more than 580 public four-year institutions graduate a majority of their full-time students on time. Some of the causes of slow student progress are inability to register for required courses, credits lost in transfer and remediation sequences that do not work. Studying abroad can also contribute to added time and credits lost when abroad. According to a recent report from CompleteCollege.org some students take too few credits per semester to finish on time. The problem is even worse at community colleges, where 5 percent of full-time students earned an associate degree within two years, and 15.9 percent earned a one- to two-year certificate on time.

Read more . . .

Tip #2: Be wise—apply to backup schools (but make sure those schools are ones you want to attend)

Being admitted into your first choice school is a challenge and not a guarantee. No matter how positive you are about your application, no matter how hard you’ve worked to be an ideal applicant, it is important not to assume that gaining admission to your top choice for college is a sure thing. But don’t get dejected or cynical! Here are three ways to increase your chances of being accepted by applying to backup schools.

Read more . . .

Tip #3: It’s never too early to prepare for college

How early is too early to prepare for college? We’ve all seen those movie clips where the parents are agonizing over the right preschool to prepare their kids for the right kindergarten, the right grade school, and the right college preparatory school. These overachieving parents are convinced that college prep begins at birth. They take it to a whole other level elevating college jerseys into full blown college prep. But just how early is too early and how far should parents go when preparing their children for college?

Read more . . .

Tip #4: It matters very little where your student goes to college

Much is debated about college names and prestige, especially among parents. It’s logical that parents want their kids to have the best opportunities available. It’s illogical that they place more value in the name than in the education itself. But so many parents encourage their kids to make illogical college choices. Where you go to college is not as important as you might think.

Read more . . .

Tip #5: Don’t neglect the college visit

A few years ago, I wrote an article for Smart College Visit about the importance of the college visit: Don’t Pick a College Sight Unseen:

As a parent of two kids who attended college, I learned a very valuable lesson: never pick a college sight unseen. The rules that apply to any major purchase are even more important when making the decision to invest thousands of dollars on a college education. You would never buy a car without test-driving it, or move into a home without taking a walk through and getting a home inspection. Based on my experience with both my kids, I can tell you that your teen should never accept admission to a college without getting a feel for the campus and campus life.

 Read more . . .

Tip #6: Know when to hold ‘em; know when to fold ‘em

In just a few short months, your student will be making college decisions by the May 1st deadline. For some families, it’s easy. For others, it’s emotional and gut wrenching. If your student got into their dream college and the money is there, congratulations. If your student was waitlisted, or there’s a financial issue, or they didn’t get an offer of admission to their first choice college it’s time to examine the deck. By doing this, you can help your teen make the best decision.

Read more . . . 

Tip #7: Practice tough love

Parenting is easy if you give into your child’s every whim, never be consistent with discipline, or simply don’t pay attention. Parenting children who strive for excellence in everything requires some tough love. And tough love is not easy; especially when it comes to the raising a motivated, educated, and successful student.

How do you, as a parent, raise a child that’s motivated to strive for excellence where their education is concerned?

Read more . . .

Tip #8: Listen to college podcasts

Every day I grab my trusty iPod and head to the mall to do my 2.5 miles of walking. I hate walking. To me, it’s boring and a waste of my time. However, it’s critical to my health and every day I tell myself it’s just something I have to grin and bear.

But then I discovered podcasts. Not only are they great when exercising, you can listen when you’re cooking dinner, commuting to work on public transportation, eating your lunch, or any other time that you are performing daily tasks and want to make them more productive.

Read more . . .

Tip #9: Don’t ignore the FAFSA

The most important advice I can give parents is: don’t ignore the FAFSA! Many parents are misinformed when it comes to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). They believe that they make too much money to qualify for any kind of financial aid—and they decide not to file. That is the worst mistake you can make. I encourage every family of a college-bound senior complete the FAFSA (and complete it before February 1).

Read more . . .

Tip #10: Teach your teens the value of money

Before you send your teens off to college, they need to learn about the value of money. Ideally, it starts at an early age; but if you haven’t started, there’s no time like the present!

When your children are away at college they are going to be responsible for their own spending (and saving). There will be offers galore from credit card companies because college students are their biggest target market. If they hook them while in college it usually means they have them for the rest of their lives.

Read more . . .

admissions, college guidance, college planning, college prep, parenting

Are You Thinking About College During the Holidays?

 

holidaysGo ahead. You know you are. You try and shove it to the back of your mind but it’s there–lurking in the distance. Even if your son or daughter has completed their apps and received early acceptance, there is so much more to do. But don’t let the to-do lists and the looming deadlines spoil your holidays.

Before you start your holiday baking, finish wrapping your presents, and gather around the tree with your family, here are just a few tips to help you deal with the college prep stress:

In the Charlie Brown Christmas, a song rings out, “Christmas is time is here; happiness and cheer”. If only. Unfortunately, the holidays for most are anything but cheerful. We have replaced holiday cheer and happiness with stress. And if you’re a parent of a college-bound teen, add all the tasks involved during school breaks and your holiday stress goes through the roof.

Add to the stress of the holidays and the entire family could combust. Never fear…help is here! Here are 3 tips about stress and how to deal with it.

Mom-Approved Tips: Stop stressing about college rejections

It’s that time of year. As the New Year approaches and regular admission dates loom in the very close future, parents begin stressing about college rejection. Although not as much as their kids do. Probably the most stressful time of senior year is waiting to hear from the colleges and dreading the wrong response. Why does this happen and what has caused everyone to be so stressed?

Mom-Approved Tips: 6 Stressful college tasks (and how to keep from freaking out)

It’s no surprise the middle name of college-bound teens is “stress”. According to a recent survey, 76 percent of college-bound students say they are stressed. If you live with one, you’re stressed too; and not just you, but your family as well. Granted, there are plenty of reasons to be stressed. And plenty of reasons why it’s impossible to avoid feeling stress (try as you might).

Wednesday’s Parent: 5 Tips to help with application stress

There is no greater stress than application stress. Every component breeds stress: standardized tests, GPAs, the essay, and even the recommendation letters. It’s no wonder students are feeling the stress when they start the application process. As a parent, it’s difficult for you to watch the stress levels increase as it gets closer to application time. And when stress levels increase with your student, the family stress goes up as well.

Need more tips? Head over to Wendy’s blog and read: 7 Holiday Stressbusters

 

App Tuesday, college prep

iPad Apps for College Prep

1 Comment

 

iPad apps for college prepCollege prep has certainly changed over the years. Twenty years ago you trudged to the library spending hours foraging through books looking for college facts, test prep, and scholarships. Ten years ago, with the internet explosion, you could do most of your research online and even apply to some colleges. Today, you can do almost everything online: search for scholarships, apply to colleges, study for standardized tests, and get essay help and organization. It certainly is a high-tech world.

The Changing Face of College Prep

I can’t even imagine what it will be like when my grandsons apply to college. If you don’t keep up with the times, you’re going to be left in the dust. With the explosion of apps on portable devices, the face of college prep has changed yet again. Companies are using apps to help students organize, write essays, study for standardized tests, understand financial aid, plan college visits and more.

BestCollegesOnline.com has compiled a list of iPad apps for college prep. I felt it was a good list and want to share it with you.

25 iPad Apps Changing College Prep

You might also like my College Prep App Recap post

 

college prep, parenting, Wednesdays parent

Wednesday’s Parent: Enjoying a Break When There is No Break

 

college prepFor parents of the college bound, there’s no such thing as a break. Even when you take a break from all the college prep, your mind never shuts off. During the four years of high school, every class, every activity, every amount of free time is cultivated to present a stellar application at the beginning of the senior year. It’s the nature of the beast—all hands on deck for the college prep and then when it’s all done, you can relax. At least that’s what we tell ourselves.

But after the applications are submitted, we worry about the outcome and agonize over the decisions that will need to be made. It’s a never-ending drama that engulfs our lives if we have a student aspiring to college.

But how do you enjoy a break when there is no break?

Enjoy the ride. You have to grab snippets of time throughout the whole process. Whether it’s the car ride to visit colleges, or a 30 minute conversation in their room while they are getting dressed for a date, you have to steal those moments.

Make it a point to not allocate every waking moment to college prep. It should be an exciting time. Don’t ruin it for you and for your student by becoming a nag or a dictator. This only adds to the pressure they feel and escalates your level of frustration and stress.

Let the holidays be the holidays

If you have a senior, the holidays bring increased college prep activity—with college applications either looming or decisions waiting to be received. Set aside some time for fun when neither you nor your student discusses college prep. Even if you go to a movie or a hockey game, it takes your mind off the elephant in the room and helps you relax, even if for a short time.

The good news—this too shall pass. There will come a day when you move from college prep to college drama. If you don’t believe it, just ask any parent of a college student. College prep activities are replaced with roommate issues, annoying professors, and homesickness. Enjoy the four years while you can—they pass so quickly.

Read Wendy’s Post: 6 Ways to Prevent College Bound Burnout

_______________________________________

Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Wendy and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

The bonus is on the fourth Wednesday of each month when Wendy and I will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will feature an expert on a topic of interest for parents of the college-bound.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from parentingforcollege to pocsmom.com and vice versa.

college guidance, college planning, college prep, websites

Campus Steps: A Free Resource for Students and Parents

 

campus stepsCampus Steps, the first free platform for students, parents and counselors to connect, communicate and navigate the road to higher education, launched recently. The company is being incubated by Campus Explorer, a leader in college recruitment technology in partnership with developers from Learning Core, which provides integrated school communication and content delivery systems.

Campus Steps addresses the nation’s broken college preparedness system. Nearly 75 percent of high schools lack online counseling technology solutions that can fundamentally improve the success of college and vocational school-bound students. For every 477 students, there is just one counselor and the average student receives less than 30 minutes of college counseling over their entire high school career. According to the American Psychological Association, high school students are now considered the most stressed-out age group with 80 percent of their stress related to workload.

“Students lack the critical support they need to find the right college or vocational school,” said Mark Eastwood, general manager, Campus Steps. “Campus Steps brings transparency and empowerment to the college admissions process. Just as adults use Linkedin to manage their professional profiles, our goal is for students to use Campus Steps to manage and track their academic profiles.”

Campus Steps hosts multiple online and mobile ready apps to easily allow a student to keep tabs of their academics, search colleges, apply for colleges and communicate with their counselor via text or email. The platform matches students to colleges based on a database of more than 8,500 public and private four-year universities, community colleges and trade/vocational schools, regardless of their academic level, socioeconomic background or location.

Key apps for students include:

  • High School Resume – Students track academic info and accomplishments with a mobile friendly, easy to use tool. The Resume Score shows where a student stands compared to the national average.
  • College Matching – Discover new colleges with the personalized matching technology.
  • My College Goals Manager – Students create a college goal list and manage their application process all in one place.
  • Student Resources – Articles, resources and guides answer all college related questions.

Campus Steps also helps counselors better manage their workflow through setting appointments, automated messages and tracking their students’ college search and application plans.

About Campus Steps

Campus Steps is the first free platform with powerful apps for students, parents, and counselors to connect, communicate and navigate the road to higher education. The platform currently has 150,000 users and democratizes access to higher education, regardless of a student’s academic level, socioeconomic background or location. Based in Santa Monica, Calif., the company is being incubated by Campus Explorer, a leader in college recruitment technology in partnership with developers from Learning Core, which provides integrated school communication and content delivery systems. For more information, visit www.CampusSteps.com. Follow us on Facebook @CampusSteps and Twitter @CampusSteps.

college planning, college prep, Wednesdays parent

Wednesday’s Parent: College Prep in Middle School

 

college prep in middle schoolMost parents don’t begin to think about college prep until junior or senior year of high school. But the problem with that strategy is that by that time you will be at the end of the line. While I’m certainly not a proponent of ramming the thought of college down your middle schooler’s throat, I do believe there are some tasks you should do for college prep in middle school.

I recently wrote an article for TeenLife on “How to Prepare for College Before High School”. Here’s an excerpt from the aticle:

In a Forbes article about preparing for college, Director of Admissions MaeBrown said, “Start preparing for college at grade six. ”That’s when parents and students should increase the focus on the final goal after high school graduation: college.

Start planning academics

Middle school students should begin planning their academic path that will carry into high school. Meet with the school counselor and discuss the courses that can be taken in middle school to prepare for high school, especially in the math and science categories. Many middle schools offer classes that were traditionally reserved for high school students. These math classes are required to take more advanced math classes in high school and to take science classes like chemistry and physics. In addition to taking math every year in middle school, your child should take:

  • English: Every year.
  • History (including geography) and science: As many classes as possible.
  • Foreign language: Many colleges require at least two years of a language, which your child can begin in middle school.

Because college work and many jobs now require computer skills, your child should also try to take advantage of any computer science classes offered in middle and high school. He’ll gain new skills and may discover a career path.

Read, read, read

Establish an environment at home that encourages reading. Students can start adding to their vocabulary by reading diversely. Tweens should be reading all types of books, articles, blogs and news articles. This increases their vocabulary, which is a strong component in essay writing and standardized tests. While you’re at it, why not make vocabulary building a family game by learning a word a day? There are lots of free subscription services that will email a word of the day.

Partner with your child’s educators

Middle school is the time parents tend to be less involved, but it’s the very time your child needs encouragement and guidance. Meet your child’s teachers, if you haven’t already done so, and make it clear that you want to be kept up to date about any changes in your child’s work or behavior.

Go over your child’s standardized test results with the counselor to identify strengths and weaknesses. Talk to the counselor about your child’s interests to see if there are electives and extracurricular activities that will help him develop his talents. If your child needs extra help or more challenging assignments in a subject, talk to the counselor about how to arrange it.

Start working on extracurriculars

A key ingredient in the college application is extracurriculars. Begin looking at areas that interest your child in middle school. Try out some volunteering, connect with a mentor for an internship, and explore hobbies and interests. If your child enters high school committed to one activity, it will be much easier to carry that through the next four years.

Read Wendy’s post: 3 Ways to Prep Middleschoolers for College Prep

_________________________________________

Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Wendy and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

The bonus is on the fourth Wednesday of each month when Wendy and I will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will feature an expert on a topic of interest for parents of the college-bound.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from parentingforcollege to pocsmom.com and vice versa.

college guidance, college planning, college prep, Uncategorized, Wednesdays parent

Wednesday’s Parent: Are You Afraid of College Prep?

1 Comment

 

afraid of college prepAre you afraid of college prep? If you’re not, you’re one of the few. Parents, while excited about the prospects of college, are frightened by the actual process. What frightens them most? Any number of tasks: the overwhelming mounds of forms and paperwork, how to pay for the high cost of the education, being out of control and not knowing how colleges will receive their student, and the biggie—will your student be rejected.

In order to avoid giving in to the fear, you need to change your thinking. While colleges might give you the impression they have the power, they do not. It’s ultimately your teen’s choice for which college to apply to and which college to attend. It’s ultimately your choice which financial aid award you accept. You are the consumer. The key is in how your student markets himself to the college and how he takes control of the process.

Here are 3 tips to help calm you fears:

This is just another phase in the life your child.

In the midst of it all, it seems like an insurmountable task. It is all consuming and appears to be a “life changing” decision. Yes. College is important. But it is just the beginning of the choices your child will have to make in this life. And nothing, I mean nothing, is carved in stone. Wrong college choice? In the grand scheme of life, it’s not the critical. It’s the education that matters and how your child embraces the learning.

There will be a good fit college for your child—a college that values their contribution.

It’s not about the name, but about the fit. With a little research, a little coaching, and some digging, there is a college that fits your child like a glove. It may not be an Ivy (and probably won’t), but it will be the place they feel welcome and at home. Find that and you’ve hit the jackpot.

While there may be rejections along the way, there will also be many opportunities to learn life lessons.

No parent likes to see their child rejected. But it’s a reality of life. Everyone is going to be rejected at some point and the college process is no different. It’s how you handle the rejections that matter. It’s the life lessons you can teach them that will stay with them after they go away to college. And I say this with all certainty—everything happens for a reason. Sometimes College B or College C is a much better fit, and will make your child happier in the long run.

Once you’re done, you’ll be an expert and can help other set aside their fears. What is it Roosevelt said? The only thing we have to fear is fear itself (and of course college prep).

Read Wendy’s Post: 4 College Prep Nightmare Scenarios

______________________

Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Wendy and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

Join @pocsmom and I tonight with a #WednesdaysParent version of #CampusChat at 9PM ET with guest Paul Hemphill (@vcollegeadvisor) of Planning for College, discussing the scary side of college prep.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from parentingforcollege to pocsmom.com and vice versa.

App Tuesday, college prep

A College Prep App Recap

 

college prep appHow would you like to find every app your student will need for college prep all in one location? Well, you’re in luck. On today’s App Tuesday I’m listing all my previous app posts with links to send you directly to the post. Whether you’re looking for essay apps, test prep apps, study apps or apps for organization, you’ve come to the right place–a college prep app recap!

Apps to Help Students Act During Critical Situations

Here are some apps to help students act during critical situations to go along with the conversations you should have with your soon-to-be college students. These apps won’t solve the problem, but they can help save a life.

8 Writing and Research Apps

What high school student doesn’t need to know how to properly annotate a reference source, find a synonym for simple words to spice up their essays, or do some research for term papers? These 8 Writing and Research Apps, should help with these tasks.

Apps for Learning Disabled Students

When you have a learning disabled student there is a whole other level of study, learning and social education. These apps provide parents of the learning disabled some tools to make their job easier and help keep their student on the path toward higher education.

8 History Apps for College-Bound Teens

Whether you need to reference an article of the Constitution, find out what happened today 100 years ago, or look up some famous speeches, here are some apps that have got you covered.

10 Math Apps for Students

Does math homework make you quake in your shoes? It did me. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the widespread availability of apps that today’s high school students have. Here are 10 math apps you can download to help with those ever-present math questions.

10 Budgeting Apps for College-Bound Teens

A good budgeting app can help college students keep track of their finances and help them find areas where they can cut back. Most budgeting apps can cover the basics—this article will provide you with five budgeting apps that stand out from the crowd and explain how they can help keep a college student’s budget in order. Here are 10 budgeting apps for your college-bound teens.

10 Study Apps for Students

Instead of study apps, let’s call these “10 apps to help you get merit-aid scholarships”. Improving your GPA is the best way to qualify for merit aid, and the best way to improve your GPA is to study. Here are 10 study apps that should help your student win merit-aid scholarships:

6 Safety Apps for Students

A pay phone or flagging down a police officer used to be our only defense against dangerous criminals and psychotic shooters like the gunman on the University of Texas campus years ago. But today, students are armed with a valuable weapon: their smartphone with safety apps—giving them instant access to authorities, parents and other students. Here are six safety apps you should arm your students with during high school and college.

8 Vocabulary Apps

Test time is upon us and it’s the perfect time to bone up on vocabulary for the standardized tests. And since your teens are never without their smartphones, here are seven vocabulary apps they will always have available to work on their vocabulary.

7 Essay Apps for College Prep

One of the most dreaded tasks of the college prep process is writing the essay. Students have problems with essay prompts, being creative, and using proper grammar. As luck would have it, however, there are even essay apps to help with this task.

7 College Savings Apps

aving for college is difficult, especially in today’s world. Add the rising college costs to the mix and your family finds it hard to save enough money to pay for college. It can be done, but it requires a commitment and the tools to make it happen. First, there’s the question of “How much do you need to save for college?” It might be shocking for some parents, but knowing what you need can help you plan. These 7 college savings apps that can help you plan for the future.

10 Textbook Apps

Any college kid or soon-to-be college kid needs an arsenal of textbook apps to help them shop for the best bargains, find the free ebooks and textbooks, and sell and trade when the semester ends. These apps should fit the ticket. But don’t wait until the fall of freshman year to download them. There’s no time like the present to create a folder and start adding these 10 textbook apps to your mobile devices.

6 Test Prep Apps

Some of these test prep apps are free, others are free to test, and some are paid apps. Knowing how important test prep is, use them to help prep for standardized tests.

Apps for College Visits

Imagine being able to be guided on a tour with your smartphone. Or being able to plan college visits before you go on them. Or being able to organize all your visits to search and find the schools by uploading photos to serve as a reminder of your visit. These apps for college visits can enhance your campus visits.

5 Free Apps for College-Prep Organization

College-bound students have so many tasks to complete and remember during the college-prep process. Luckily, there are apps for college-prep organization. This is great news because teens live and die with their smartphones. Having these tools at their disposal should help.

7 College Search Apps for Parents and Students

While this certainly isn’t an exhaustive list, these college search apps should help you and your student start and organize their college search.

college prep, Wednesdays parent

Wednesday’s Parent: 6 Emotional College Prep Tasks

 

college prepIt’s no surprise the middle name of college-bound teens is “stress”. According to a recent survey, 76 percent of college-bound students say they are stressed. If you live with one, you’re stressed too; and not just you, but your family as well. Granted, there are plenty of reasons to be stressed. And plenty of reasons why it’s impossible to avoid feeling stress (try as you might). Add to the stress emotional teenagers and parents and you have volatile home environment.

Following are 6 emotional college prep tasks and how to keep from freaking out. Yes, freaking out.

The Grades

Grades mean everything. Your student’s GPA is one of the most important components of the college application (if not THE most important). It’s understandable that your kid will stress over receiving B’s instead of A’s on their papers. They know that the college they want to attend looks at grades, classes, and GPA’s carefully before making an offer of admission.

What can you do? Create a positive study environment and don’t add to the pressure. If you see them struggling, get help. Let them know that all you expect from them is they do their best, nothing more.

The College Visits

Any parent who has been on a college visit with their teen will attest to the emotional roller coaster that often ensues. Your kid may balk at the thought of getting out of the car, cringe at the fact that his/her parents are there along with them, and freak knowing they have an interview scheduled.

What can you do? Take a chill pill before you head out and remember your kid is most likely terrified. This is a huge step for them and emotions are going to play a big part in the visits, even though you might see it as a critical step in the plan. Give them the freedom to express those emotions.

The Standardized Tests

Testing in itself is stressful. But standardized tests are incredibly stressful. It’s a timed test that affects the outcome of offers of admission. Scores are compared with other students and some consider them to be bragging material. A low score means less options for college; a high score opens more doors.

What can you do? Under no circumstances should you nag your student about studying. Help them study. Encourage them to study. Provide tutoring. If the pressure is off, they will do better on the tests. Too much pressure (especially from parents) with students who are stressed already, will affect their ability to focus and relax on test day.

The College Choices

Making decisions is stressful without the added pressure of the impact of this one decision on your kid’s future. They may act calm, cool and collected, but they feel the pressure to make the right college choices. The schools they choose will be evaluating them on their merit and overall success academically.

What can you do? Let them make their own choices. Guide but do not put your foot down and tell them they can only attend your alma mater or a college close to home. They need to make the choice themselves because they will be attending the college for the next four years. If they don’t like it, they won’t be happy and stay when struggles come.

The Money

Money concerns always produce mounds of stress. With the economy in disarray, that stress is compounded when families are trying to pay for college. When deciding on college choices, money should always be a factor. If your student knows what you can afford to contribute and what is expected of them, the stress will be minimal. Keep them in the dark and there could be added stress and disappointment when they apply to a school that is not financially doable.

According to The Princeton Review’s 2013 “College Hopes & Worries Survey”—an annual poll of college applicants and parents of applicants—stress levels are up while cost remains a driving factor in college selection. In fact, 79 percent said the state of the economy has affected their decisions about college—up 4 percent from 2012.

What can you do? Make time to talk about money with your kid. Hoping your student will get a full ride scholarship is not realistic. You need to plan for the worst (little or no aid) and hope for the best (multiple scholarships and merit aid). If the college choices fall into your family’s ability to pay, when the financial aid award arrives it will be a much more pleasant experience. Especially if lack of money to pay does not affect the final decision.

The Waiting

This is probably the most stressful time in your kid’s life, which means it is stressful for the parents as well. One student puts it simply:

Because as decision day draws closer, and the (rather strong) possibility of rejection becomes more and more pronounced, I can’t help but think that my process, that my life, is entirely out of my hands. I know it’s irrational — I know that I’m still the one who will make the ultimate decision, that I’m the one who will decide what my future holds. But that’s my point — I’m not rational anymore. I’m just afraid.

What can you do? Celebrate the accomplishment of applying and provide distractions during the months of waiting. Reiterate that you will be proud of them and no matter what the outcome it’s not the end of the world. Rejection is tough on these teens, but strong parent support can help them see that there are always options available and sometimes disappointments turn into blessings.

The ultimate goal is to have a stress free household and to avoid freaking out. This is probably impossible but keeping the “freaking” to a minimum will help your student reduce their stress. Stay calm and breathe. It will all be over soon.

Read Wendy’s Post: Emotion Management 101

____________________________

Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Wendy and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

The bonus is on the fourth Wednesday of each month when Wendy and I will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will feature an expert on a topic of interest for parents of the college-bound.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from parentingforcollege to pocsmom.com and vice versa.