<p>Information. Not just to receive, but also to give. The music forum seems to be primarily parents. There is a lot to taking the kids around the country to audition for schools. Most kids don’t have to audition: submit the application, and your are done. Maybe visit the college.</p>
<p>Since I have been through it before directly, and indirectly with older children, I can more easily assimilate the available information into a conclusion. That seems to be helpful to some of the kids.</p>
<p>I like the parents being on here.</p>
<p>They give good advice, and offer more perspective about the world than the small views of us naive high schoolers/college students.</p>
<p>When parents love their children they want the best for their children. That includes sending their children to the best colleges possible. College is a major life choice for a child and it also represents having a child leave the home for the first time. When a child leaves the parents’ home it can be traumatic for the parents and can create much uncertainty.</p>
<p>The good parents are the ones who want to be involved in college decision making. The bad ones are those who have no interest in their child college decision choice.</p>
<p>Many parents try to live their lives through their child. Often, if the parent wasn’t able to accomplish a goal or aspiration during their earlier years in life, they attempt to make their children accomplish those aspirations. You see it in all the time in sports and academics. Even those parents who did complete their goals still want their child to accomplish just as much, if not more.</p>
<p>razorsharp, while I agree with the sentiment of your first paragraph, I have to say your second paragraph is a little harsh in its generalization. </p>
<p>College decision making is hardly a litmus test for sorting the good parents from the bad parents.</p>
<p>I think that while some of the parents on CC are the overprotective sort who need to facilitate everything their children are doing, others seem to simply want the advice from other parents who have already gone through the process, or to simply get involved at some low level with their child’s search process. </p>
<p>I do, however, think that the student should be the primary one doing the research. If they aren’t willing to do any of the work, their parents shouldn’t be willing to spend thousands of dollars on their college education.</p>
<p>I’m mainly on the other side, here to answer questions about the schools our daughters attend(ed), and to try to guide HS students to appropriate schools. I also like interesting discussions. I’m always amused when HS students offer to chance other HS students; there are people here with a bit more experience. ;)</p>
<p>Although I’m not a parent, I would think that CC is amusing for students AND parents.</p>
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<p>I wasn’t suggesting parental involvement in the college process was the only test. It is one example, however. And as others have pointed out, too much parental involvement may prohibit the child from becoming an independent decisionmaker.</p>
<p>i will chime in again here. where i live, most kids choose state school 1 or state school 2 - even the super top kids! 300 out of 900 kids in this years graduating class are going to state school 2! to me that is kind of dumb. the schools are good, but there are over 3000 other schools that nobody ever considers. when my DD decided she wasn’t sure she wanted to go to state school 2, i came here to find out info about other schools. you get different info here than you get just going to look at college websites. and you get to talk to people with real experience and views on many different schools.</p>
<p>I do all the work.</p>
<p>My parents do none of the schoolwork. My schooling is completely left up to me.</p>
<p>The first step to independence is the will to be independent. If your child isn’t going to try to find a college on their own, how will they live on their own in college?</p>
<p>Besides… basically any university or college that your child decides to attend is credited and will give your child a solid education. It isn’t like public high school where they take anyone.</p>