Preparing for College:The Parent Path
During your student's high school years, he or she will start making some important decisions about long-term interests and career goals. This checklist can help you to help your student throughout the process of a very important decision: choosing the right college.
Freshman Year
Sophomore Year
Junior Year
Summer Before Senior Year
Senior Year
During your student's high school years, he or she will start making some important decisions about long-term interests and career goals. This checklist can help you to help your student throughout the process of a very important decision: choosing the right college.
Freshman Year
- Get to know and network with your student's teachers and counselor.
- Discuss the importance of lifelong learning and the value of a good college education.
- Create time and space 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 graduation and college entrance.
- Encourage involvement in extracurricular activities, volunteering, internships and work experience.
- Involve your student in decision-making so that he or she learns to look at options carefully.
- Plan for college expenses and explore your savings options.
Sophomore Year
- Get to know and network with your student's teachers and counselor.
- Talk about his or her interests and career possibilities.
- Begin exploring appropriate college/career training options with your student.
- Search the web to find examples of your student's ideal college, and check www.whatsnextillinois.org and college websites for more information.
- Continue your support of extracurricular involvement and encourage participation in leadership roles.
- Inquire about how to study for the PLAN test and test dates for the PSAT
- Keep your college correspondence in a well-organized file
- Encourage your son or daughter to reflect on what he or she hopes to achieve through the college experience.
- Have your student write out his or her career and personal goals
Junior Year
- Get to know and network with your student's teachers and counselors
- Schedule special time with your student to develop and follow a plan for the college search process
- Attend information sessions and the ICE FAIR at QU or JWCC in October
- Encourage your student to consult with his or her high school counselor for college search ideas and advice
- Encourage your student to meet with their ISACorps member
- Review al options...if a scholl 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
- Find out if your student should take the Advanced Placement tests
- Find out what classes are offered as dual credit classes or offer college credit
- Network with other parents for information and support.
- Become familiar with resources such as college rankings and guidebooks
- Begin preliminary visits to a variety of schools
Summer Before Senior Year
- Help your student sort through college mail as it arrives.
- Review ACT results and discuss whether they should retake it.
- Visit a wide variety of schools, from large public universities to private, liberal arts colleges, community colleges and workforce development programs.
- Develop a list of questions for colleges and take it with you on your visits.
Senior Year
- Get to know and network with your student's teachers and counselors.
- Encourage student to send in applications before NOVEMBER 1st.
- Keep visiting colleges, and encourage your student to spend the night and attend classes at the schools that spark interest.
- Schedule interviews
- Remain open-minded as the short list develops.
- Stay positive- the search for the right school can be stressful at times.
- Attend a financial aid presentation at your high school or JWCC
- Meet deadlines when applying for merit-based scholarships and need-based assistance.
- FILE YOUR FAFSA as soon as possible after JANUARY 1st.
- Collect all of your tax information in order to correct your FAFSA.
- Keep all of your FAFSA information together in a folder.
- Remain helpful and supportive while college choice is made.
- Notify the chosen school of the final decision and send in the tuition deposit by May 1. Also, it's common courtesy to notify all other schools that granted acceptance of your final decision.
- Take a deep breath and relax! You and your college-bound student will encounter new decisions and create new checklists during the summer ahead.