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    High School Parent Resources

    Preparing for College: The Parent Path 
    During your son's or daughter's high school years, he or she will begin to think about long-term interests and career goals and make many important decisions. This checklist will help you help your student during a major decision-making process—the search for the right college.

    • Freshman Year
      • Discuss the importance of lifelong learning and the value of a college education.
      • Create a space and time for your student to establish good study habits.
      • Promote extended, well-paced study rather than short-term cramming.
      • 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.
      • Engage your student in decision making so that he or she learns to look at options carefully, to act decisively, and to take responsibility for final decisions.
      • Plan for college expenses—explore your savings options.
    • Sophomore Year
      • Start to network with your son's 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.
      • Inquire as to whether your student should take the PSAT exam.
      • Keep college correspondence in a well-organized file.
    • Junior Year
      • Your student should develop and follow a plan for a college search.
      • Attend information sessions and college nights sponsored by the high school.
      • Consult with your son's or daughter's high school 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 and take the ACT/SAT exams.
      • Find out if your student should take the advanced placement or SAT II exams.
      • Network (check progress and commiserate) with other parents.
    • Summer Before Senior Year
      • Help your son or daughter to 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
      • Send in applications and be aware of deadlines.
      • 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 files for financial assistance in a timely fashion (and keep copies).
      • Remain helpful and supportive while the final college choice is made.
      • Notify the chosen school of the final decision and send in the tuition deposit. It also is common courtesy to notify all other schools that granted acceptance.
      • Take a deep breath and relax. You and your college-bound student will encounter new decisions that require you to create new checklists during the summer ahead.