Lesson 3: Selecting a College - Part II
All Work And No Play...
Activities
All work and no play doesn’t make for a happy student. Most colleges offer a wide variety of activities for the students – from intramural sports, to religious clubs, to computers, chess, political and social awareness groups. If your son MUST snowboard, make sure the school is located close to the ski areas. While this is not a major area of consideration, it can help your child decide when it gets down to the final choice of which schools to apply to.
Jobs - Earning Some College Cash & Financial Independence
While most schools suggest that freshmen don’t work if at all possible the first semester, your finances might dictate otherwise. Assuming your child has gotten through the first semester without too much trauma, s/he might be looking for a job. Whether it is necessary to pay for part of the cost of his/her college education, or so that s/he can have some spending money, it is something worth looking into. Most colleges have a work-study program, which offers students an opportunity to work on campus in a variety of jobs. Most schools have requirements about how many hours a student can work and they generally have to maintain a C or above average. Some work-study programs are based on financial need.
Depending on the campus location, there may be several jobs available in the community: fast food, the mall, retailers, car washes, parking attendants, and so on. Weigh the amount of money earned from the job with the amount of time required, the transportation costs (if any) and the impact on schoolwork. Most college students prefer to have some type of part-time job while they are in college. It breaks up the school activities and gives them some spending cash as well as a sense of further independence.
Most young adults have no idea about the ramifications of claiming dependents on the state and federal W4 form. Instruct your child to claim ZERO for any federal, state or local forms. Since the child is still your dependent, claiming more than zero may force your child to owe taxes at the end of the fiscal year.
Family & Friends
Everyone has a college story. Your family, friends, co-workers, neighbors. Listen to everyone and then sort through the information (well-meaning, but not always accurate) and decide as a family. The high school guidance counselor will offer suggestions. Please note that high school guidance counselors can be terrific resources or not. Some are merely doing a job and others take pride in their profession. Just as in life, you will meet a few winners and a few not so stellar characters. Take their advice as another piece of the puzzle. College alumni make recruiting visits and phone calls. Please remember that the alumni have a special spot in their hearts for their school. They tend to over-inflate the benefits of attendance at their school.
There are websites, guide books and library books about college selection. Check them all out. Send for additional information from the schools that seem to be a good fit for your child. (Have him/her do this.) Just remember that websites, guidebooks et al are written by individuals. Human error can always play a factor as well as personal preference.
In the end, knowing your child and how he/she fared and behaved in high school is a better guide than all of the above to his/her potential for success in college, be it academic, social, athletic, emotional or hopefully, a combination of all of the above.
