The emotional roller coaster that has been known in our house as the “Big College Decision” has been going on for quite some time. I’ve tried to keep things under wraps as much as possible since this is really my daughter’s story to tell. But, since she isn’t online much and doesn’t have a blog or Facebook account, she’s graciously allowed me to share some tidbits of what we’ve all been going through the past 6 months.
Temera was one of the lucky ones – she’s known what she wanted to major in for a long time. For teens who really don’t have any idea of what type of career they want, I can image this is an incredibly difficult decision. Having a direction has made things a bit easier, for sure.
The Process
Knowing what you want to study and looking around at different school options early was the key for her. I think she started researching schools when she was a sophomore. Why so early? For one very specific reason: she needed to know what the high school requirements were for getting into each school. I honestly think this is a step that a lot of kids (and parents) miss. For instance, some colleges she applied to required 2 years of a language. Other schools required 3 years. Some schools required 2 years of science, others required 3. When it comes to creating your high school schedule, you don’t want to be caught off-guard not having taken the required courses to even be able to apply to a college.
Applications
Temera started a spreadsheet for all the schools she was interested in (okay, maybe I helped a little with that). She entered information like application deadline, required high school courses, tuition and total fees including room & board, acceptance rate, etc. Being able to compare everything at once was invaluable. We all looked at it often.
The other thing that helped her was applying early. As soon as the applications were released, she applied. This gave her a huge jump on not having to stress over filling out applications during her senior year. She applied for most of them before she even started school, and maybe a few in early September. By that time, all she had to do was wait and she wasn’t stressing out over having to do applications in December like so many of her friends.
The College Tour
It’s kind of a right of passage, but I know there are a lot of families who just can’t afford traveling all over the country to check out colleges. If you can swing it, it is really important. For us, we started early (junior year) and made a plan for when we would go to each school. For Amanda (a sophomore this year) we are already taking her to one of her college choices this year because we’ll be nearby and it makes sense not to have to spend the money for another trip there next year. If you are near a school that your student might be interested in… go visit. Doesn’t matter if they are only a freshman.
Sign up for an official tour through the college. That way, they will have your name on record. I am convinced that the only way I got into my first choice school back when I was applying was because I visited the school, met with an advisor, and took a tour. If it comes down to you and another student who didn’t visit the school… you want to have that advantage.
The Big Decision
This was NOT an easy decision for Temera. She genuinely liked all the schools she applied to. I tried to help her go through her list of pros and cons but I also suggested she just close her eyes and picture herself living on each campus. I gave her some suggestions on what to consider when making her selection.
- Location – would she be happy with the distance from home, weather, big city vs. small city
- Coursework – take a look at the actual class schedule for all 4 years and make sure the classes align with your desired career field
- Transportation – might not be a deciding factor, but know if you’ll be able to have a car on campus, where the airport and train stations are, is there a bus system, how far is the walk to classes from the dorms
- What will you do when you have free time – is there a shopping center, mall, movie theater, local restaurants nearby
- What does the job placement center look like – do they actually help place graduates in your specific major with good jobs
- Does the school have features you want – study abroad opportunities, on-campus jobs, ability to take some “fun” classes
- Cost! – will this be an affordable choice and were you offered scholarships, grants, student loans
She ended up narrowing her choices down a little bit and FINALLY made her decision. I know it wasn’t easy for her but she is excited… we are excited… her sisters are excited. I know she made the right choice for HER.
TIPS:
- Don’t leave it up to your school counselor to send your transcripts. Check with them on a regular basis to make sure they do it! And check with the college to make sure they received it. I’ve seen too many kids whose first choice of college never got the transcript. It is your child’s responsibility to check.
- When it comes to recommendation letters… ask early! You want to get a jump on that before every kid in the class asks.
- Apply early – get the applications out of the way so you don’t have to stress during your senior year.
- Visit the schools if at all possible.
- Weight your pros and cons and take your time.
- After you make your decision, sit with it over a weekend and if you still think you made the right choice, go and shout it from the rooftops.