Tag Archives: college planning

admissions, college guidance, college planning, college prep, parenting

Should Your Student Apply to 40 Colleges?

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colleges

I read a post from a parent on one of the Facebook groups I follow. Her son was applying to 40 colleges and she asked how he was going to do it using the Common App since there is a maximum of 20 allowed in the application.

Parents chimed in with suggestions on how to supplement the Common App by applying via college websites and choosing alternate college applications. I read all the suggestions, which were logical and helpful. I kept wondering if anyone would respond by encouraging her to help her son narrow down his list.

Finally, someone spoke up with that suggestion. I’m hoping the mother took their advice because it was the most logical of all.

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college guidance, college planning, college safety, life lessons, parenting

5 Things to Make Time for Before College in the Fall

college

The days and weeks before your child heads off to college can be manic. You have so many things to arrange to ensure that they are prepared for flying the nest and starting classes that you rarely get a moment to sit down and think. 

However, there are a few things you should absolutely make time for before they head off to college and out of your home, including the following:

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college costs, college guidance, college majors, college planning

How to Find the Best College Bargains

college bargains

In today’s world, we are all looking for bargains. How much can I save on this purchase? Is there a coupon for that item? The college decision process should be no different. You never want to pay full sticker price on a car, and you shouldn’t pay full sticker price for the college education. Here are just a few money saving tips on how to find the best college bargains.

Use online information to find the most generous colleges.

You can start your search by looking at the colleges who are generous with their financial aid by meeting the highest percentage of financial need. How do you find those colleges? It’s simpler than you might think. You can research them at the College Board’s site: Big Future. You need to follow the box at the bottom of the page that says “Find Colleges” and click the search button.

For a step-by-step guide, you can read The College Solutions Blog with photos of each step and how to use the tool.

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college planning, gap year, parenting

What Parents Need to Know About a Gap Year

gap year

I want to take a gap year before I go to college” are some of the most feared words by parents. What do we fear? We fear they won’t want to go back to school after being off for a year. We fear they will lie around the house, watch TV and play video games. We fear they aren’t thinking clearly and have no idea what they are saying. And for those competitive parents, it’s not what they planned.

Don’t fear the gap year. Not every student is ready for college after high school. Some simply aren’t mature enough, and others simply don’t know where they want to go or what they want to study. And if this is the case, would you want to spend thousands of dollars on college if it meant they dropped out their first semester? Of course you wouldn’t want to do that.

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college costs, college planning, Guest Posts

5 Changes Parents Should Make When Paying for College

paying for college

Your children are going to college. You may think it will be easy because you’ve been saving for it. But seeing the college fee structure, you’ll know it will not be easy. Coming out of the stress-induced fog might help you manage the costs. 

Here are five things you can do to help you on this journey of paying for college:

Understand your financial situation

Now that your child is off to college, as parents, you’re now left with taking care of the expenses like tuition, housing, and school supplies. Sitting down and looking into your finances is step one for parents. The next step is to make a budget, reevaluate your finances, and look into every savings account because the college costs are now added to your other expenses. 

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college costs, college planning, financial aid, financial planning

10 Ways to Pay for College Without Incurring Debt

pay for college

Debt from college tuition has skyrocketed over the last several years. Parents and students are weighing their ROI (return on investment) before making their college choices. As college costs have shot up, so has student debt. How can you pay for college without incurring debt?

According to the latest Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit, outstanding student loan debt stood at $1.58 trillion in the fourth quarter of 2021, an $8 billion decline from the third quarter. About 5 percent of aggregate student debt was 90+ days delinquent or in default in the fourth quarter; the lower level of student debt delinquency reflects a Department of Education decision to report current status on loans eligible for CARES Act forbearances. 

That’s the bad news. But if you’re a savvy consumer and research the costs before signing on the dotted line, you should be able to go to college without incurring debt. Zac Bissonnette, author of DebtFree U, is proof that it can be done. He graduated from college with zero debt.

Believe it or not, you may be able to graduate without debt if you use these 10 ways to pay for college:

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college planning, college prep, organization

Organization During College Prep

ORGANIZATION

Believe it or not, research reveals that Americans spend an average total of 2.5 days a year looking for misplaced stuff. That’s nearly half a workweek we lose just searching for things. But time lost isn’t the only costly consequence of being forgetful. The study also shows that 60% of people have either been late to work or school because of lost items, followed by 49% who have missed appointments or meetings, and even 22% who’ve missed flights, trains, or bus rides. Turns out misplacing things can be more than just expensive; it’s a major time drain too. Don’t let disorganization cost you and your student. Make organization a priority.

Organization is half the battle when it comes to helping your teen prepare for college. If you stay organized, you won’t be fumbling around senior year in a panic. And as with any organizational system, it’s important to have the right tools. These tools will make the organization simple because you will have a place for everything, and everything should stay in its place. You’ll not only save time, but you won’t miss deadlines and be stressing to find that all-important application information.

Take the following steps to help you and your teen stay organized during the college prep process:

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college planning, college prep, Guest Posts

How to Get the Most Out of College

Today’s guest post is from Elliot Felix, author of “How to Get the Most Out of College”.

College can really feel like a maze. It’s complicated, expensive, and the future is at stake. It’s also a different maze than what we went through a generation ago, and so are today’s students. They are more diverse in terms of age, race, income, and experience. More transfer between colleges. More work during college, live off campus, and study part-time. Even before the pandemic, about one in six studied fully-online and about one in three took at least one online class. Compared to 30 years ago and adjusted for inflation, private colleges are twice as expensive and public colleges are three times as expensive. Students today have only a 50% chance of making a better living than their parents compared to an 80% chance 30 years ago. Is it any wonder why today’s students and families are more career-focused, more value-conscious, and need more support?

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admissions, college guidance, college planning, social networks

Connecting With Colleges on Social Media

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social media

Data from the National Association for College Admission Counseling show there is a powerful tool students can use to improve their admission chances: demonstrated interest. How can social media play a part?

Social media makes it easier than ever to connect with colleges and their representatives. You can follow them on Twitter, friend them on Facebook, connect with them on LinkedIn, and follow their Pinterest and Instagram accounts. Demonstrate genuine interest and contribute to the conversations; but don’t flood their accounts with replies and questions. In this case, less is more.

When application decision time rolls around you should have established yourself as an interested candidate. College admissions officers should be able to look at their records and see that you demonstrated interest. Some will remember your face, look back on your interview and be able to recall any conversations they had with you during the admissions process. You will trump anyone who hasn’t expressed interest and was simply a casual shopper.

Here’s how you can leverage specific social media accounts and use them to communicate with colleges:

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admissions, college guidance, college planning

Evaluating Admission Decisions

admission decisions

It’s that time of year. Students who applied ED and EA have already heard from the colleges regarding their admission decisions. Students who are applying regular decision will be sending off those applications this month and hearing early in the spring. What happens next?

Colleges will provide your student with one of four responses: offered admission, wait-listed, deferred, or not offered admission. Today, students hear as the notices are posted online. The days of waiting for the letter are over. We live in an instant gratification world. You can expect, however, for your student to be hitting that computer refresh button on the day notices are posted!

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