Back to School More Than School Supplies

As the close of summer approaches, it's the time of year most parents start thinking about back to school shopping, class schedules, and fall sports.  But it is also time to start planning for your child's college and career.  Whether they are entering 7th grade or their senior year of high school, here are some tips to start the year right.

1. Have your child create or update their resume to keep track of work or volunteer hours from the summer.  Community service is an important factor in the college admissions process and the sooner your child starts giving back, the better it looks on their application.
2. Be sure your children finish up the last of their summer reading/projects.  Students will want to start the year right--especially important for incoming freshmen.  While most 9th graders are just happy to be in high school, they need to hit the books hard as freshmen.  Grades from this year factor greatly into their overall GPA.
3. Investigate options for clubs/extracurricular activities.  If possible, seek out leadership positions in clubs and organizations.  If your child has a unique interest or hobby, look to see if it is possible to start a club.  Colleges will look favorably upon students who take the initiative to start a club. 
4. Post a calendar for the upcoming school year.  Keep track of dates for athletics, testing (PSAT, PLAN, SAT, ACT, TAKS),  meetings, college fairs, etc.  For seniors, list the dates that scholarships and applications are due (and bump them up by a week or two).  You don't want to meet the deadlines, you want to beat the deadlines!
5. Have your child establish a separate "professional" email address for college applications/admissions and scholarships.  Have them sign up to receive scholarship and college information at sites like fastweb.com or zinch.com, etc.
6. Visit several college web sites.  Compare and contrast the admissions criteria, if listed.  Investigate different majors and the careers they lead to.  Research salaries and the job outlook for those professions. 
   

   

   You're never too young to be thinking about college!

7. Consider adding a college t-shirt from your favorite school to your list of school supplies.  It's never too early to start building a desire and expectation within your child that college is part of their future.
8. Meet with your counselor to discuss plans for college and career.  If necessary, revise your schedule to accommodate the classes you will need.  For high school students, request a copy of your updated rank/GPA.  You will want to know where you stand after the prior academic year.

While this might not be a complete list of things to think about for your future college student, it's a few things that will help get their planning off to the right start.

Paul Harris is the founder of Polaris College Prep and an Associate Member of Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA).  For more information, please visit www.polariscollegeprep.com.