Planning for College Requires Parental Guidance

Have you ever asked a sophomore or junior in high school what they want to study at the university level or where they would like to go to college?  You can tell the which youngsters have started planning for college at an early age and those who haven’t got a clue.

Now, there is some truth to the fact that even those students who spend lots of time contemplating what they want to do with their lives still have no idea, and that’s ok.  At least they are engaging their brain on trying to figure out their likes and dislikes and which skill sets seem more of a fit with their personality and interests.

Start College Planning in Middle School

“Now wait just one minute!”  Are you saying that we should start researching colleges in middle school?  No, OlyLife is, however, encouraging you to begin talking about how important it is to begin to build excellent study habits and to do very well in school so that your child can get into the more challenging courses in high school which will open doors to better university opportunities.

Yes, Tracking Still Exists

The reality is that children are often placed in tracks during the middle school years and those that get onto the more rigorous math, science and English courses go on to the higher level tracks in high school.  Many parents don’t realize the importance of challenging their kids to do their best work when younger and think that their son or daughter will just make up for it in high school.

Get Your Kids Invested in the Idea of Education

If you teach kids from a very early age that how they do each year impacts the next year.  Their work has implications toward opening opportunities to go to great schools to prepare for terrific professions.  Get them into a college-bound mindset.  As well known college planning and admissions consultant Michele Hernandez says, “Make use of your college counseling office early on in your high school years.”  So, when you teach your kids to say “No to Drugs” also teach them to say “Yes to college.”

Check out these resources to help you begin to prepare your kids for college and help them make the best of their one and OlyLife!

A Is for Admission: The Insider’s Guide to Getting into the Ivy League and Other Top Colleges

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Tags: college admission, college planning, education, how to get your kids interested in education, learning about college, planning for college, prepare your child for college, school

This entry was posted on December 11, 2010 at 9:59 am and is filed under Education, Family. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.