<p>I believe with all my heart that the OP’s son will figure this out on his own.</p>
<p>Which is the exact reason I will let DD register for herself! I could log on early and try and do it but I think it is important for DD to learn how to do this for herself. She will probably hit a snafu along the way (as I am sure I would also) but I think figuring that all out for herself is a first step to a great college experience.</p>
<p>Thanks, ahpimommy. I’m really not trying to challenge the orthodoxy of this board. But there are too many parents on here who either refuse or don’t know how to “let go” (your words). This is not life or death stuff we’re talking about here. I have three kids, and I intend to turn them all loose on society, for better or worse. For some reason, I think they’ll all be okay.</p>
<p>Well, whether you are a hands on or hands off parent is really irrelevant to the original post. The original post was about the student being prepared for Bama Bound. Try as hard as you like to reason this out, if the student is not prepared, be prepared for a frustrated student upon their return. It is not always the easiest thing to get up for an 8am class on three or four days a week, or to have classes till 5pm on Friday. This will and does happen if you don’t preplan your classes. Even with planning, will your schedule be perfect? No. But will it be a better schedule? I certainly think so. You don’t have to organize your student"s schedule, but in my opinion, you should have a frank discussion about their major/minor/class options and expectations. It never hurts to look down the road so they can see how to complete their degree in a timely manner. </p>
<p>Taking some time off between HS and college to rest is fine but if your student has a very busy schedule and works, or volunteers, or takes classes, or all of the above, the summer will fly right on by.</p>
<p>*Well, whether you are a hands on or hands off parent is really irrelevant to the original post. The original post was about the student being prepared for Bama Bound. Try as hard as you like to reason this out, if the student is not prepared, be prepared for a frustrated student upon their return. It is not always the easiest thing to get up for an 8am class on three or four days a week, or to have classes till 5pm on Friday. This will and does happen if you don’t preplan your classes. *</p>
<p>Exactly.</p>
<p>And a student with lots of APs, no choice of major, does need some help. </p>
<p>There is a HUGE difference between the parents who try to micro-manage so much of their kids’ lives that they never learn how to do things themselves, and the parents who recognize the issues that Robotbldmom describes and provides appropriate and limited guidance and advice.</p>
<p>Also, when dealing with a child who tends to procrastinate or maybe a little intimidated by the whole “going to college” process, a little help can make the difference between sinking or swimming. </p>
<p>Kids who have selected majors can pretty much follow the suggested sequences or course recommendations in the catalog. Students who are undeclared that don’t have a ton of APs can start with the basics. </p>
<p>Students with a bunch of APs who don’t have a major, and who seem intimidated by the process can certainly benefit from having a parent sit down with him, have him cross out the Cores that he has, note the Cores that he still needs, and start from there. No one’s talking about taking over the schedule or managing his entire college career. Hesitant students can need a gentle push in the right direction.</p>
<p>As for getting stuck with a bunch of 8 am classes…that can be disasterous for the child who isn’t an early riser. yes, there are some parents that would be totally fine if their child flunks out their first semester and then has to come home. For some of us, if that’s something that can be avoided with a little parental advice, we’re “going there.”.</p>
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<p>Source: [Checklist</a> - Bama Bound Orientation - The University of Alabama](<a href=“http://orientation.ua.edu/checklist/]Checklist”>Checklist – Orientation)</p>
<p>Finish in Four Guide: [url=<a href=“http://finishinfour.ua.edu/]finishfour.ua.edu[/url”>http://finishinfour.ua.edu/]finishfour.ua.edu[/url</a>]</p>
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<p>Looks to me like the answer is, "No.</p>
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<p>I’m really sorry I ever started this thread. Somebody delete it.</p>
<p>M.Y., I am lmao. I will be down there tommorrow. I will get back to you. Some type A’s around here, ha!</p>
<p>slippy, I appreciate you having started this thread and being so open about your situation. It stimulated a useful dialog. I’m betting your son is resourceful enough to sort things out before he heads off to BB, necessity being the mother of invention.</p>
<p>I doubt it’s going to be deleted, nor should it.</p>
<p>The thread can enlighten some who may not understand what goes on at Bama, such as assuming that there will be an advisor sitting with a child figuring out whether he should take 10am or 1pm Psychology class or take Astronomy at 9am, or Geography at 2pm, while simultaneously figuring out if the science lab interferes with with any other classes. </p>
<p>It can also help distinguish between “doing too much” and “doing too little,” and making that decision based on the type of child you’re dealing with…one that takes the bull by the horns and will get it all figured out, or one who’s overwhelmed by the whole move from a small high school with limited college-prep choices to a large flagship with a gazillion choices. </p>
<p>This thread reminds me of my H’s sister, and how there are times when people need to speak up. A few years ago, she and her H were talking about buying a liquor store. They had found 4 such stores for sale. All were in a similar price range, but the cheapest was in a very bad neighborhood. </p>
<p>When the topic was discussed at a family get-together (H and I weren’t there), NO ONE spoke up and warned them against buying the store in the bad area for safety and business profit concerns. </p>
<p>I’m sure that my H’s parents and other siblings probably all thought, “this is their business, let them sink or swim on their own decision,” because that’s how they always operate…no one ever speaks up when someone is about to make a stupid, dangerous, and/or costly wrong decision. Believe me when I say that this family wouldn’t speak up if you were about to walk off a cliff. </p>
<p>Well, SIL and her H bought the store in the bad area. After several robberies (at gun point!), poor sales, and massive shop-lifting, the business failed. SIL and her H divorced over financial failure, bankruptcy, and “pointing fingers”, etc. Three young children now have two bitter parents and a broken home with severe financial issues.</p>
<p>What a difference might have been made if some of the siblings/parents had spoken up. Now maybe SIL and H would have been headstrong and would have gone ahead and bought that store anyway, but if they had, at least (in my mind) everyone would have had a clear conscience. SIL and H aren’t that headstrong, and I think if they had heard from family members (2 are attorneys and 2 are business owners), about the serious concerns that they had and how buying the cheaper business would cost them more in the long run, SIL and H would have listened. A simple clear listing of pros and cons would likely have done the job. </p>
<p>The point is, in the long run, things don’t always turn out ok. </p>
<p>There are times to speak up.</p>
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<p>Who, me? :)</p>
<p>I just jumped online and took a Type A Personality Test to cover myself (Type A behavior in and of itself?).</p>
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<p>Here’s my Snapshot Report:</p>
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<p>Whew! I think I’m going to make it. OCD? Probably. Type A? Not so much. :)</p>
<p>As with all info that you find on CC, some is helpful and relevant, some is not. There are so many different personality and parenting types in the world, much less on CC. </p>
<p>Also, some describe themselves the way they WANT to be, not necessarily how they actually are. Just like all the “my kid has a 6.0 GPA and has gotten 2400 SAT and 36 ACT all 10 times they have taken the tests. He is president and CEO of a fortune 500 company, and highly recruited athlete for professional sports. Do you think that he is competitive for Ivey?”</p>
<p>Ok, so not so many of those parents on the Bama forum, but venture outta here, and there are so many of those, that you wonder why the kids are even going to college. </p>
<p>My point is that you have to be able to ferret out the information that is useful to you on any anon boards like this, and develop skill for scrolling past the posts that are not helpful to you. It also helps to realize that it is OK that not everyone has the same parent style because not every kid needs the same parenting style. If they did, it would be much easier!!</p>
<p>Besides, debate can be fun and informational, as long as you don’t take it too personally you may get some useful info from it! Just remember that opinions are like a$$holes…
everybody has one.</p>
<p>Didn’t mean to offend anyone and wasn’t intended for anyone in particular. I have received invaluable information and that information has been a major factor my kid enrolling so far away. Alabama wasn’t even on his radar screen a year ago. The information provided here has been great and a terrific help.</p>
<p>I was just laughing at my friend Slippy2000’s response and I sympathized with him. For some reason it was humorous to me. Sometimes it’s better to find the humor in some of the posts.</p>
<p>^^^Absolutely. And I knew you weren’t referring to anyone in particular. I just couldn’t resist the temptation to respond and have a little fun with it. :)</p>
<p>And slippy, if you’re still reading this thread, check your mailbox. I sent you a pm.</p>
<p>Thanks, Terry.</p>
<p>LIGHTEN UP, YOU PEOPLE!!</p>
<p>i really appreciate this post. my daughter is at bama bound now and without the knowledgeable folks in this forum i would have sent her unprepared. i couldn’t afford to attend the parent orientation due to the high cost of hotel rooms in tuscaloosa so she went on her own - with absolutely know knowledge of how to build a schedule and/or apply courses to her choice of major, etc… i know that after fall semester she probably won’t require my help but i honestly cannot imagine how frustrated and upset she would be right now had i not helped to prepare her prior to bama bound. but that’s just my daughter - all kids are different and should be treated as such.</p>
<p>i just received something in the mail from the honors college that strongly suggests that incoming freshman take 15-16 hrs initially. i had suggested that my daughter start with 12 hrs the first semester because of the additional stressors of organization, etc… any suggestion on number of hrs for an average honors college student - not the “above average” student - i know the majority of the parents on here have super smart kids, but mine is in the “high average” range…lol</p>
<p>15 credits should be reasonable and doable as long as the classes are a mix of hard and easier classes. For instance: I wouldn’t recommend all STEM classes. Have her pick something she is interested in that will lighten the load, perhaps a music, art, or Freshman Seminar Class. I hope that she is enjoying herself.</p>
<p>Got the same mailer. It recommends 15-16 credits, in case you can drop a class you can still maintain full time status.</p>
<p>Slippy: No need to shout, we get that you don’t agree with some of the opinions here, but we try to encourage discourse and the exchange of information on this forum. Perhaps the “winging it” idea appeals to some but some of us believe in the alternative. Let’s just say we agree to disagree…</p>