The College Search and Family Tension

A Quantum Leap Tutoring offers tutoring at all levels - pre-kindergarten, K-12, college level, and adult education. What that means is that plenty of the students we work with here in Florida are thinking about college... or will be eventually.

When it comes to choosing a college, there can be a lot of different confusing aspects. If Mom or Dad went to college, there may be a lot of pressure to pick (and get into!) their alma mater. If Mom or Dad didn't go to college, it can be really difficult to know what solid advice to give.

Even parents who applied to and went to college themselves a couple of decades ago aren't necessarily up-to-date on what the process looks like right now. For instance, even though my parents went to a public university near where I grew up - one I applied to, and one most of my high school friends ultimately attended - when they applied, the process was as simple as signing up on a list as long as your GPA was over a 2.0. By the time I applied, admission was competitive and quite involved, requiring multiple multi-page essays and a 7-page application to be completing partially online, partially via the mail. And it's even different now!

The simple fact is, applying to and attending college continues to get more and more complicated and competitive, not to mention more expensive and more necessary to compete in the job market. It can feel like an overwhelming losing game, whether you're an applicant or the parent of one. The high cost and high stakes can make this process fraught with potential conflict fodder.

With that in mind, I have a link from AlphaMom on how to keep a happy household during your teen's college search. It has a few simple tips that can be hard to keep in mind during such a stressful time. It's a good, quick read and great if you're feeling the tension rise every time you even contemplate bringing up the search and application process.

Next week, we'll bring you a quick economic activity for teens and tweens on calculating the real cost of college - a useful exercise in and of itself, with the added bonus of reinforcing math skills. Until then, have a great weekend, and enjoy the extra hour of sleep when you "fall back" this weekend to go back to Standard Time!