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Supporting Student Growth

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.