The first time (or maybe first extended time) home for college freshmen during the Thanksgiving break can be simultaneously exciting, and frustrating for both parents and kids. College students may be looking forward to hot, home-cooked meals–not served on a tray–sleeping in their own (quiet) bedrooms and a private bathroom with a door that…
Tag: Future
Financial Aid Reality Check (That Won’t Cost Your Checkbook)
We’re hearing from parents of seniors, who’re looking through their check registers and not seeing $30,000 to $60,000 available for next year’s college expenses, nor in their savings or investments. Actually, we’re hearing from parents of juniors, parents of sophomores, parents of freshmen and parents of pre-schoolers about the continued rise in costs and…
Potential Can Be Nurtured with Effort: More about College Selection
“Doing your homework” when it comes to choosing colleges is essential. A former client and current college freshman’s mom, recently shared her experience how to do that “homework” and how pleased she is with the family’s final choice for her son–UC Santa Cruz. Her son is growing, even in an unexpected triple roommate situation, and…
Online Grading Systems: Friend or Frenemy?
The typical public high school teacher is responsible for 160 students and teaches at least two different classes–e.g. AP English 11 and Honors English 9–with multiple sections of each course, for example: 3 periods of AP English 11. So, what does this have to do with an online grading system? If one assignment…
College Selection: It’s an Imperative
College selection. College selection. Let me say it one more time…College Selection. College selection is the foundation of the college application process. It sounds so basic and simple, that families may not invest as much effort into this step–relying on a few campus visits and a short browse through a website. Yet, taking the time…
What?!? Colleges Possibly Going Bankrupt?
The changes to higher education and its price in California are partially in response to the recent state funding cuts. Students (and their families) are being asked to shoulder more of the costs of their education–in the form of increased tuition and fees, parking costs, per campus student activity fees etc. At the same time,…
College: Path to Adulthood?
“We treat our kids like adults when they’re children, and we infantilize them when they’re 18 years old.” –Jean Twenge (The Atlantic, July/August 2011) We routinely hear parents share concerns as their grown children are preparing to leave for college that laundry and food and budgeting–basics of managing life–won’t be done, nor learned. (Rarely, do…
Student Debt = Future Income Spent Today
Know the terms (i.e. repayment, interest rates) and possible consequences of taking student loans for college–essentially bringing future income into the present. (FYI: colleges are not obligated to disclose the terms of the loan BEFORE accepting them as part of a student aid package. Students MUST ASK. Also, students are not forced to accept student…
“Why Do You Want to Go To College?” Has New Meaning
“How do employers look at college names?” is a typical question parents ask us, when trying to narrow their senior’s choices for application. Two meanings emerge from this question: What’s the value of a college degree? How, if at all, is value different for different colleges? The value in college question will be answered differently…
Guilt? I Didn’t See that On My College Bill
Without understanding the value of a college degree, students can sense, what they often term, “guilt.” They may not confidently understand why their families, and increasingly themselves (in the form of student loans), are paying the thousands of dollars (and rising each year) that a college degree costs. Listen to the following podcast, featuring Julie…
IMAGINE and Then RE-IMAGINE
Everything can be re-imagined. Our creativity is limitless in its natural state. We only limit ourselves. Education gives us tools and helps expose us to options. After that, its our responsibility to build on those experiences to produce (or re-produce) something new. Here’s another “re-imagining” of a classic icon, Julia Child, who wrote that through…
Advice for Parents: Thinking about Alternatives to College
The expectation of college, as the next step after high school, is a lifetime of effort. To stop and consider an alternative is complicated. Julie Nguyen, CMC’s CFO & Managing Partner, knows the complexities of choosing options other than college. She offers the following podcast of advice for parents:
Plagiarizing Doesn’t Happen Only in School
Original thought that contributes to common knowledge and greater understanding is demanded of students across the country. New software that scans students’ work and rates the percentage of the document that is potentially plagiarized are being used in high school and college classrooms. One high school junior told us that her teacher returned her history…
College Rankings: What Are They Worth?
College rankings and lists are not lacking–Forbes, US News & World Report, Washington Monthly, Newsweek–just to name a few. And, for families already wondering about a kid’s chances of college acceptance, after 12 years of thinking and re-thinking every class, homework assignment and academic opportunity, not to mention the hours spent at sports practices, dance…
The Cross Between Science & the Creative Arts
What says that science and creative arts are opposing intellectual pursuits? Watch the following for new ideas: From Harvard Medical School