<ol>
<li>Only apply to a school that you could see yourself going to. I applied to 21 schools and ended up regretting applying to 12 of them</li>
<li>Start studying SATs as early as you can. Don’t wait until the summer of your senior year expecting a miracle on them. </li>
<li>Research the area that you want to study. While you do not have to have a major decided, apply to colleges that may have more that one major you are interested in.</li>
<li>Try to have multiple people edit your essays. A great essay can impact decisions if your SATs scores are low.</li>
<li>Try to read as much advice on here as you can but take everything with a grain of salt. Some help on here that I followed was not the best choice.</li>
</ol>
<p>Agreeing with IntParent above - I think there’s the temptation to apply RD because the stats appear to be more favorable but if you have financial need, as others have said, it’s not a great idea because you don’t have other offers to compare. My older son was very psyched about school A - it was his first choice all through the process - but when he attended accepted student days, it went off his list. Had he not attended that open house, he might never have known that school was not a good match for him and I’m pretty sure he’d have transferred by now. If there’s an opportunity to do an overnight, take advantage of it. Both our boys found that extremely helpful.</p>
<p>Visit colleges and find some way to talk to students, outside of the “info session plus tour” routine which is boring and repetitive.
IF YOU CAN, HAVE YOUR CHILD DO AN OVERNIGHT VISIT. My son did an overnight at a small rural college that he loved and wanted to attend, and realized afterwards that going there would have been the biggest mistake he had ever made. He’s now going to attend a large school right outside a medium-sized city, and he is VERY glad he did that overnight visit.</p>
<p>Understand the financial aid process early and use that knowledge (including what’s learned from NPC) to help your child set a list and strategy.</p>
<p>Full need schools are super for some, but not if the typical EFC is higher than your family wants to spend or reasonably can spend.</p>
<p>Of course there may be some schools that would be affordable with good merit aid, but don’t assume your child will get that aid.</p>
<p>There is simply no point to put the energy into college visits and applications for schools that are not affordable.</p>
<p>I’m a college freshman now so I did this only a few months ago.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Apply to some schools Early Action. This gave me some early options and allowed me to have more time to do research which helped a lot in my final decision making. Most of all, it helped a lot because some of the acceptance day events for my schools would have conflicted with the acceptance day events in the spring, but since I had gotten in during the winter I was able to go to the earlier acceptance day event which allowed me to spread out my visits to each school.</p></li>
<li><p>Try to do as many visit/acceptance programs as you can even if you have to miss a school day. One of my acceptance day tour events was on a school day and I was originally debating whether or not to miss school to go. I ended up going and not only was it absolutely worth it but it helped me make my final decision.</p></li>
<li><p>Apply to safety schools during Regular Decision even if you get into your match schools during Early Action. I ended up visiting both and liked my safety more than my match and most of all, my safety school gave me significantly more financial aid than my match.</p></li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li><p>STRESS to your kid that for most this is a FAMILY decision. Just because classmates are getting into ABC school does not mean it is the correct school for your FAMILY. This isn’t the same arena parents and teachers played in - few students can pay their own way in today’s world. For most students, it is ALL about the Parent finances. Student cannot be “independent” of parents anymore. Parents can’t take out huge loans for child 1 and expect to have a good enough credit score to then get loans for kid 2,3 and 4. </p></li>
<li><p>Don’t believe your classmate got a “full ride” and you can too. Likely, the family is maxing out loans and that package includes loans. DS had classmates with lower scores and GPA go to higher ranked schools then he did because of the “full ride.” Now he learns many are on work study and FA.</p></li>
<li><p>He with the highest ranked college names does not “win” in the end. If your kid doesn’t like to study 24/7, he won’t change in college. Encourage schools that balance academics and social activities.</p></li>
<li><p>Definitely agree with others – get that standardized testing done early. Too many other things going on senior year.</p></li>
<li><p>Rolling Admission and Early Action schools can talk much of the pressure off. Find at least one or two.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I agree with longhaul and want to add to #3. Our son applied to his reach (academically) with our blessing even though he was not a motivated high school student. Being in a challenging environment (that was his choice) has encouraged him to be more mature and responsible.</p>
<p>His top school choices all had marching bands. He wanted to be involved and he has been for the past 3 1/2 years!</p>
<p>Such great advice from great people!</p>
<p>My D is a junior and we did many college visits this year…very helpful. As a teacher of seniors for 20+ years, I would add that oversharing of where a student is applying can backfire. Some students hear of a school from a peer, and even though they had no interest, the application is free so why not? I’ve seen students mention they are VERY interested in _____ (a reputable school that many have not heard of) and then been critiqued for their choice. I tell my D to just say, “Not sure yet…a lot to consider.” even though she has her top 4 in mind.</p>
<p>Consider transportation costs and time in your decision. Going to a college far away can mean extremely high air fare during holidays, or lots of wear and tear on a car. Check out the typical air fare on a Thanksgiving week. The travel also can consume an enormous amount of time. </p>
<p>If a student will need a car to get to and from school, consider all of the costs - maintenance, repair, parking, tolls, etc. My insurance company told me that if I added a third car to my policy, the costs would go up dramatically. All of these costs can quickly add up.</p>
<p>Fortunately, my son is along an Amtrak line, which allows him to relax on his way to and from school, and which saves me a great deal of driving time.</p>
<p>^^^ I would temper that by saying parents shouldn’t use that rationale just to get their child to attend a college that is nearby. You can buy a used car and have reliable/inexpensive transportation while in college. It seems some parents don’t want to let their child too far out of their site and by the time they reach college age, it is time for them to make some of their own decisions. For many of them, going away to college in another state would probably good for the student as well as the parents.</p>
<p>Yes, costs to travel back and forth to college pay a small role in the decision process, but to me is far less of a concern then the other factors being mentioned in the various posts on this topic.</p>
<p>Being independent is actually a good thing for most college students, since you learn how to manage on your own, set priorities, make new friends, speak up for yourself…etc. There is another thread going about how some students are shy/introverted and perhaps part of the reason for that is the parents have always made all of their decisions for them, spoken for them…etc. which doesn’t really give the student any independence to become their own person.</p>
<p>So many good suggestions here! D is a freshman now and since we’re a middle class family, we had the financial situation talk in junior year.</p>
<p>1) Mapped out when she would take SAT subject tests, PSATs (twice), SAT (twice in Junior year), and AP exams.</p>
<p>2) Visited various colleges starting in 10th grade.</p>
<p>3) Asked her teachers for college recommendations end of junior year so they could write them over the summer. She provided a list of activities, awards, etc. to prompt their memories. Some teachers have a limit as to how many letters they’ll agree to write. </p>
<p>4) Like earlier posts, D selected 8 colleges to apply to (a combo of reaches, matches, safeties) and she decided not to have a favorite. All the colleges she applied to had strong depts. in 3 areas of interest (she recognized she might change her major), 6 offered merit aid. </p>
<p>4) One college was rolling, 3 EA, and 4 RD so it spread out the application process. D started essays in the summer; the English faculty gave college essay workshops to seniors in early fall. Having a few acceptances by December helps the confidence factor for RD applications.</p>
<p>5) Accepted school visits: 4 of her 6 acceptances (waitlisted at 2) offered enough financial aid. We decided not to visit any schools involving flights until she saw their financial aid packages. She did not see Emory until April 29.</p>
<p>6) If your child really likes a school that only offers need-based aid, go ahead and apply. You’d be surprised at the range of aid offered: two colleges everyone crows about for merit on CC were not affordable, and 3 we never imagined (including 2 need-based only) came though with reasonable offers. It all depends on how badly a college wants YOUR child.</p>
<p>Love the idea of identifying 3 areas of interest for each college/university. This seems like an excellent, non-threatening approach to get a high school student to think about possible majors as well as how schools’ academic programs differ from each other. Thanks, PiccoloMom1995!</p>
<p>If you have a talented athlete student, make sure he would attend the schools he applies to even if he could no longer play his sport there. If he hurts his knee in the first game and can’t play again, will he still be happy at the school? It’s very heady stuff to be recruited for your sport. Be sure he understands that there is more to life than lacrosse, baseball, whatever. (I speak from double experience in this area.)</p>
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<p>Good idea, but make sure you have identified and evaluated all the possible modes of transportation.</p>
<p>More often than you might realize, there are charter buses that run directly from college campuses to major metropolitan areas during the scheduled breaks in the academic year. This can be a cheap, safe, convenient way to travel. Sometimes, these buses are not affiliated with the universities and therefore are not mentioned on the university’s Web site. But current students from your area would know about them.</p>
<p>Thanks earlyreader! Looking for at least 3 strong areas of interest in each college made it easier to narrow down the college list.</p>
<p>Marion, good point about charter buses. One college D considered (U. South Carolina Honors) has a regular shuttle service to Charlotte. Flights from Charlotte are cheaper than Columbia to the NE. That being said, a factor in my D’s college decision was the abundance of nonstop flights home and finding the Atlanta airport easy to navigate.</p>
<p>1) Use each colleges Net Price Calculator. The more information that a NPC requires, the closer you get to its accurateness.</p>
<p>2) Safety - Strong academics and safe financially (learn about automatic tuition and take ACT/SAT accordingly)
Match - Strong academics, good financial aid package
Reach - Up to you. For me, I applied to 1. </p>
<p>Use Early Actions wisely. It is a great feeling knowing that you have an acceptance (or denial, knock on wood) right before the new year. I used it for my safety and matches. </p>
<p>3) Essays - Personality: They are asking for things that they do not know about you. Do NOT repeat what has already been said on the essay. If you want to elaborate on a certain EC then do so! Not everyone “finds their passion”. I’m sure I didn’t. I wrote with some gut feeling that helped me write. </p>
<p>4) If you’re going for engineering: ABET Accreditation and minimizing loans. If your NPC says 40000/year and your EFC is 0 do not hope for “miracles”. If the school’s common data set suggest that they do not offer much need-based aid, then they do not offer much need-based aid. </p>
<p>5) Do not make a decision until you complete a FAFSA and receive an award letter (for applicants who depend on need-based aid). </p>
<p>6) College brochures are sent by robots. Lol.</p>
<p>The sports comments are very valid since even if someone plays varsity sports in h.s. & college, they most likely will NOT make a living as a pro athlete (that is reality). You need to attend college with the primary focus being to get your degree. Don’t push your son/daughter into varsity sports just because you think you will save money on college tuition.</p>
<p>Make sure they actually get an education at the college they attend even if they are a recruited athlete. Some colleges are much better at insuring they are student/athletes and not just someone how excels at a sport (which is often a money-making venture for the college) for 4 yrs and then gets pushed out the door into the real world with little or nothing to fall back on.</p>
<p>Make sure that your kid starts the essays EARLY!</p>
<p>To build upon the athletic discussion, keep in mind the vast majority of colleges are NCAA Div III colleges that are forbidden from giving out any athletic scholarships. The NCAA has even been spot-checking colleges to make sure that athletes do not receive more merit or need based aid than other students. </p>
<p>Div II colleges also have significant limits on the amount and number of scholarships they are allowed to offer for each sport. Many of these scholarships are only for a few thousand a year.</p>
<p>Some Div I universities have been cutting back on the number of sports they offer, for economic reasons.</p>
<p>In other words, unless your child is really a star athlete, from a college cost point of view, they might be better spending their time on SAT prep to earn merit aid, instead of spending the time on an expensive summer traveling team.</p>
<p>Top athletes may gain some preference in admission, but most colleges are not very competitive in admissions. Some colleges offer the preference in registering for classes, which is a nice side-benefit. However, that benefit is mainly offered because they have so many time commitments for practices and traveling to games.</p>
<p>I have to disagree with Charlieschm. My daughter is not a superstar in her sport, but I was shocked at how many schools asked her to look at them, to visit. Some were Div I, although not at the top of the rankings. We looked all summer, she played in several ‘showcase’ events (tournaments without winners), and the more she played the more contacts we had. We lucked into a perfect situation for her at a D-2 school with a new program. Because it’s new, she’ll get a lot of playing time, she got a very decent scholarship,and she found a perfect school for academics (small engineering school). I don’t think we could have afforded the school without the ‘few thousand’ in athletic aid, because it is more than a few.</p>
<p>I do agree that she won’t be a professional lacrosse player, so she needs an education and I think she’s found a school to give her that. However, I’m also thankful that she was invited to apply ED to Smith to play there but she decided against it. Nice school, just not for her. She never would have had that opportunity to even consider it without sports. She was admitted to the school she picked without needing athletic department help, but it was there if she needed it.</p>
<p>What I would have done differently is had her play MORE tournaments and showcases, camps, and other exposures. She didn’t have a lot of confidence after her sophomore year and said she didn’t want to play in college, so we wasted that summer doing nothing. Last summer was a madhouse of searching for schools, visiting, talking to coaches, figuring out if the school was right for us. I had no idea what I was doing, didn’t know how to ask for benefits including but not limited to money, didn’t know the dates and deadlines and NCAA rules. It couldn’t have worked out better than the school she picked, but it was a long, hot summer. And we were lucky.</p>
<p>Playing lacrosse is her ‘job’ while at school as she’ll have no time to work. What’s better than doing a job you love, and she sure loves lacrosse.</p>