Preparing for College

Preparing for College

This is a brief overview of what high school students can do to prepare for

college and ways that parents can help with that process.

Freshman Year:

• Discuss the value of a college education.
• Create a space and time for your child to establish good study habits
• Promote extended, well-paced study rather than short-term cramming.
• Encourage your student to take an appropriately demanding academic curriculum.
• Discuss the impact of grades and course selection on college admission.
• Check curriculum requirements for college entrance.
• Encourage involvement in extracurricular activities, volunteering, and internships or other work experiences.
• Plan for college expenses…explore your savings options.

Sophomore Year:

• Start to network with your son or daughter’s teachers and counselors.
• Talk about his or her interests and career possibilities.
• Begin exploring appropriate college options with your student.
• Continue your support of extracurricular involvement and encourage participation in leadership roles.
• Keep college correspondence in a well-organized file.

Junior Year:

• Attend information sessions and financial aid nights sponsored by the school.
• Assist your student in creating a list of personal interests, goals and activities which can then be used to narrow the college search.
• Attend college fairs held at local colleges.
• Register for and take the PSAT/NMSQT, then link scores to Khan Academy to established individualized study plans for the SAT.
• Consult with your son or daughter’s counselor for college search ideas and advice.
• Review all options: if a school seems too costly, find out what scholarships and other financial assistance may be available to you.
• Your student should prepare for the ACT/SAT exams. The SAT is given to all juniors in April as part of the mandatory state testing program.
• Find out if your student should take the Advanced Placement for SAT subject tests.
• Network with other parents.

Summer before Senior Year:

• Help your son or daughter sort through college mail as it arrives.
• Review ACT/SAT results and discuss whether your student should retest.
• Visit different types of schools: small and large, vocational and liberal arts, private and public.
• Develop a list of questions for colleges and take them with you on your visits.

Senior Year:

• Students should ask teachers, coaches, community leaders, counselors, etc. to write letters of recommendation well in advance of application deadlines.
• Submit requests for transcripts in the guidance office at least two weeks before deadlines.
• Send in applications and be aware of deadlines.
• Follow-up to make sure that materials arrive at colleges.
• Make additional visits and encourage your student to spend the night and attend classes at the schools that spark his or her interest.
• Remain open-minded as the short list develops.
• Stay positive – the search for the right school can be exhausting and stressful at times.
• Meet deadlines when applying for merit-based scholarships and need-based assistance (for example, FAFSA).
• Collect all of your tax information and file for financial assistance in a timely fashion (and keep copies).
• Notify the chosen school of the final decision and send in the tuition deposit. It is also common courtesy to notify all other schools that granted acceptance.