Lesson 2: Selecting a College

The Bottom Line

There are some crucial decisions to be made. They are not easy. Now is the time to really talk honestly with your teen.

What is the most important selection factor to you, the parent? What is the most important factor to the potential student?

Are both sides willing to compromise?

Without substantial financial aid, will a 4 year on-campus college be a huge burden or unattainable?

How does your child really stack up academically?

Is s/he gifted in athletics, theatre arts or music and/or art?

Does your child need a lot of parental support academically or socially?

Will your child enjoy his/her freedom too much and neglect academics?

If off campus housing becomes necessary, is the area safe?

Are there part-time jobs available if desired?

Put the selection factors in order of importance. Do this separately from your child. Have him/her do the same. Then compare and discuss why each of you feels the way you do. Input from both parents, if possible, is important. If an older sibling is attending or has attended college, they can offer valuable insights also.

Remember: Your family doesn’t have to select a college on the first day. You have several years, or perhaps only a few months, to research, talk and make a decision you can all be comfortable with.

Time to dig out the resource books, again! Glance through the Free $ for College reference and read through the government sources of funding, beginning on page 47. This will give you a jump off point for your financial calculations.

The suggested activities are twofold: open up the lines of communication with your teen, whether she is a freshman or senior. If you can just discuss ONE of the items above, you will be on the road to success. The second goal is to check out at least TWO of the websites below, all of which offer different types of information about colleges and college life. What was one new thing you learned about selecting a college? Is there anything you think that is important in the college selection that is not mentioned? Share! Share! Share, please! Family discussions are invaluable. http://www.bigchalk.com/cgi-bin/WebObjec... http://feteens.com http://www.gocollege.com http://collegeprep.okstate.edu