From Our Clients:
- Aaaaccck! How do we pay for college? Parents often tell themselves, “First things first. Applications, THEN we’ll think about how to pay for college.” Totally an expected reaction, when considering the six figure totals for a college education these days. However, the planning to pay for college can take place long before applying (and may help prevent sleepless nights later). Teaching kids the value and purpose of money can be a starting point from the time they’re young to prepare for the expense of college. Then, trying to convince teenagers to apply for thousands of dollars in scholarships in the spring of their senior years may be a less difficult discussion.
- FAFSA, EFC, COA: the alphabet soup of financial aid can be a learning curve in itself, before even considering how to pay for college. FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, and generally required to apply for financial aid at any college across the country. EFC is the Expected Family Contribution and the dollar amount calculated after a family completes the FAFSA, which colleges use to determine any need-based financial aid. And, COA stands for Cost of Attendance, which is the estimated average cost for the school year at a particular college campus, including tuition, housing, books, transportation and average personal expenses.
- Got Tutoring?: The second semester can be a chance for students to adjust their studying efforts, in order to earn grades that reflect their intellectual abilities and knowledge. When there’s a lack of academic progress, naturally parents want to help their kids, and start suggesting tutoring as a solution. Not so fast. First, find out if the problem is a lack of conceptual knowledge. Subject matter tutoring may not address the learning issue, which instead may be a miscommunication between teacher and student or a lack of understanding by the student of how to demonstrate her/his knowledge on a test. Ask kids more questions about what’s going on with the class, to apply the most appropriate solution.
From the News:
- This 4-Year Old Makes Paper Dresses With Her Mom – And They Keep Getting More Amazing, Huffington Post February 26, 2014 (Sometimes, our lives are shaped not by what our parents do for us, but do to not interfere with our emerging selves.)
- What if Google Ran the College Application Process? Washington Post February 20, 2014 (Thoughts on the lack of transparency in the college admissions decision making process)
- How to Get a Job at Google, The New York Times February 22, 2014 (What skills matter to employers?)
