In preparing for college applications, families often skip discussions about how they’ll work together to manage the process. Yet, without such frank discussions, families may add stress in an already complicated process thus risk strategic missteps and even malinvestment.
Several suggestions for discussion points, an agenda for family discussions about college:
Regarding the college essay editorial process:
- Do parents (both, just mom, or just dad) want to read a student’s college essays? If yes, for what purpose?
- Do students want their parents to read their college essays? If yes, will the student seek their parents’ critique or just want their parents to read their life’s story? Why?
General Questions about Working Together
- Do parents and students share a similar work style? If yes, where do similarities create conflict or not? If no, where do the differences create tensions? How will families navigate the conflicts?
While students will attend college and therefore will be the ones filling out college applications, they should and often do collaborate when completing applications. Given, most parents want their children to practice the responsibilities of adulting, while not unduly influencing their children’s choices will often seek to be less involved.
Therefore, given that teenagers need to collaborate, while both parents and children need to be heard and everyone involved seeks credible information and timely advice to make strategic decisions, objective and experienced guidance will likely be necessary, to decrease the risk of a strategic misstep amidst the complicated and important college admissions process.
Creative Marbles’ experts advise students and parents around the US from Honolulu to Seattle to Kansas City to Austin to Atlanta. Contact us for more details about how we can assist your family while making the complex investment in modern higher education.
