Tag Archives: university parent

admissions, parenting

Live Admissions Chat Sponsored by University Parent

 

live admissions chat

Wednesday, Oct. 28 at 7 p.m. Eastern Time

Join University Parent as they ask the experts at Admissionado your parent questions during a live admissions chat. They will cover topics for parents of current seniors, as well as those earlier in the college preparation process.

The chat will take place on Google Hangouts on Air. The livestream will be embedded on this page, or you may access it here. They will also post the conversation here after the event. Ask a question, meet the contributors, or watch the livestream.

Don’t miss this informative conversation with admissions experts and don’t forget to add your question for them to answer during the chat.

college planning, college prep

Crafting the Ultimate College List

 

This article was written by Robin Noble and previously published on University Parent.

college list
–photo courtesy of University Parent–

My high school junior’s college search is going in a maze of directions as she works to create a list of schools for serious consideration. The list is important and timely. She will use it to decide which schools to visit this spring with limited time and travel dollars.

Lately I sense she is a touch overwhelmed. I wonder: how can I help my daughter figure out which schools will be a good fit for her?

Like you, I’m up on the feel-good wisdom here: be positive, let your student be her own guide, encourage her to let the process flow from within. All good thoughts, but parents certainly have some important roles to play.

You are the voice of financial reality.

Before your student gets her heart set, get clear on what your family can afford. Take half an hour to work through the “net price calculator” available on most school websites, or use theFAFSA4caster to estimate federal student aid. These tools calculate your family’s financial need — essentially the difference between the college sticker price and what the formula says you are able to contribute.

Net price calculators don’t assess potential merit aid — institutional money set aside for students based on varying factors like GPA, standardized test scores, advanced courses, etc. Some institutions include merit calculators on their websites; many do not. To learn how specific schools determine merit aid, don’t hesitate to call the admissions office and ask.

With net price and merit aid estimates in hand, your student’s list can be more economically viable. If you and she have assumed that private scholarships and loans will fill gaps, the amounts you are supposing are now clearer, and that’s a good thing.

Read the entire article:  Reality, fit and substance–the ultimate college list

And don’t forget to sign up for the high school parents newsletter while you are there!

 

admissions, college guidance, college planning, mom approved tips

Mom-Approved Tips: Six Steps to a Great College Search

 

This article was originally published on University Parent.

college search strategy
–photo courtesy of University Parent–

As my children entered high school and began on the college path, I knew I was going to be handicapped. I had not attended college myself and my husband attended a local school with a 100 percent acceptance rate. Neither of us had any idea how to approach the college search process!

But I love to think of myself as a “do-it-yourselfer” and I delved into college prep as a novice, starting with the searches. After my daughter was accepted to every school she applied to, family and friends began asking me for advice, and later encouraged me to broaden the circle and share what I learned on what became my Parents Countdown to College Coach blog and website.

When my daughter began her college search, she had one objective: to attend school in Boston. (Sound familiar??) In many cases, focusing on a particular city narrows the search drastically, but there are over 100 schools in the Boston area! Thankfully, not all are four-year colleges — some are technical or art schools. That helped a bit, but there were still too many to choose from. To find the best-fit college for my daughter, we needed a search strategy.

When creating a college search strategy, I recommend students and parents start with basic information and build on it. If you do this, when your student is ready to finalize his college list and submit his applications, you will be confident that you did your research, weighed all the options, and made informed choices.

Read more for six steps to a great college search strategy.

college planning

Packing for College

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Here’s a great help for parents from Sarah Schupp of University Parent–print these lists and keep them handy for that day that your college-bound teen heads off to college.

As students prepare to begin or return to college, making sure they have everything they need to be successful can be challenging.

But now as you wipe the sweat from your brow and pat yourself on the back — your child is going to college! Then it dawns on you. What should they bring with them? Where should you shop? What do they need? What don’t they need?

Relax. While packing your student for college may feel like an overwhelming task, it doesn’t have to be. In fact, you might even have some fun with it.

We’ve compiled the ultimate packing lists for residence hall life, classroom and studying needs and personal items they should bring along  — so that you can get your student off to school and ready to learn! Each list offers tips and tricks to ease the headache of the big move.

Plan and prepare
before you run out to your local stores and buy everything they’ll need, first wait for more information from their college — or visit the college’s web site for further information about what they’ll need for school.

Common sense tells you to begin by making a list of everything they will need. Combine your own list with that of the college, as well as the list of things others may have advised you that they’ll need.

Then, survey your house for these items. Save money by making sure you don’t already own something similar.

Lastly, if they’ve gotten their roommate information, they should discuss what each has to bring –- no need for multiple mini-fridges or TVs when space is already limited.

If they’ve lucked out with a huge dorm room, you both have much more liberty in deciding what goes with them. One piece of advice: Don’t overpack! They’ll end up being stuck with stuff they won’t use, and it will take up precious space that can help keep them organized.

Ready…Start….Pack!

Regardless of their room size, here are some must-haves, in no particular order:

  • Computer/Laptop. If it’s at all possible to buy one or borrow one, do it. Most colleges have pretty good computer facilities that students can use for free, but they’re often crowded and noisy, and not in their own room. If you have a choice, opt for a laptop. They can bring it to class, the library or outside, and can have more options of where to work.
  • Extra socks and underwear. Doing laundry is expensive and a pain. Students can always rewear jeans and sweaters more than once, but clean underwear and socks are a must!
  • Flip-flops. Using communal showers equals foot fungus, an unattractive yet common problem in dorms.
  • Climate-appropriate clothes. If possible, try to pack only what they’ll need for the season and climate they’ll be living in. There is usually not a lot of room for extra clothes, especially bulky sweaters or excessive shoes. They can always trade clothes at home during winter or spring break.
  • Storage bins. Stacking things is the way to go in their dorm room. A variety of storage bins are available at most stores.
  • Group games. Board games, cards and video games are a great way to make new friends and are perfect for breaks and downtime at school.
  • Home reminders. Bring things that remind them of home, such as a few pictures or posters. These things will make homesickness –during those first few days or weeks — that much easier to bear. With photos and personal touches, their dorm room will feel more like a home and less like just a dorm room.
  • Dictionary and thesaurus. Although most computer programs have a thesaurus built in, the paper versions still have many more options.
  • Lamps. Get a cheap halogen or desk lamp — most grads still can’t part with theirs. But before you go out and buy one, make sure their college doesn’t consider certain types a fire hazard.
  • Clothes hamper. They will need something roomy and something they can easily carry when it is time to do laundry.
  • First-aid kit. Just in case.

*****

Sarah Schupp is the founder and CEO of University Parent Media in Boulder, Colo. UPM publishes print and online guides for parents of students at universities and colleges in 38 states. Online at www.universityparent.com

college guidance, college planning, parenting

Top 5 College Visit Sites

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With the widespread use of online videos, previewing college campuses has become a “must do” for parents and their college-bound teens. I like to call it “test driving” before you actually set foot on your narrowed down choices.

Here are my TOP 5 picks for those “test driving” sites.

smartcollegevisit

1. Smart College Visit-The educated way to visit a college campus and your one-stop site to find everything you need to know before the visit. With parent-to-parent stories, Smart-See-Smart-Do campus evaluations, travel tips and a place to search for the perfect hotel accommodations, Smart College Visit is committed to providing you with all the information you need to prepare for that all-important college visit.

youniversity

2. YoUniversityTV–Make a stop here to preview campuses, get a campus map, and view user submitted videos of campus life. The videos are more than campus tours; giving you a picture of life in and around the college.

universityparentnew
3. University Parent–Connect with the college campuses and download a college specific brochure with information about the surrounding area: hotels, off-campus housing, and storage facilities. Read what Sarah Schupp, the founder, said about her site:

University Parent-Your Parent Resource

collegeweeklive

4. College Week Live–This site is actually a “virtual” college fair site which is great for chatting with students, admissions officers and faculty. You can also direct-link to college websites through the college fair hall. Their spring college fair is coming up on March 24-25 and campus reps will be in attendance to answer your questions.

collegiate-choice-dvd-240w

5. Collegiate Choice–These DVD tours are videotaped college tours. Each tour is over an hour long and gives you an excellent idea of what a campus tour is like. Use this resource to narrow down your college tour choices. They are especially helpful when you are looking at campuses that require travel and enable you to see all types of campuses throughout the country. This is what Cliff Kamron had to say in a recent guest blog post:

10 Things we learned from videotaping 1200 college tours

college planning, parenting

University Parent-Your Parent Resource

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I asked Sarah Schupp (founder of University Parent) to be a guest blogger and fill us in on the benefits of her Parent Guides from various colleges that you can view online and download. Her site is jam-packed with useful information for parents.

university-parent-logo

UniversityParent.com partners with colleges and universities across the U.S. Our mission is to help parents easily find university and visitor information.

To this end, we have developed print and online guides for over 100 schools that provide detailed information on everything from where to stay when visiting your student, to a helpful list of frequently requested phone numbers. The university provides us with school specific information, such as: academic calendar, campus maps, articles about campus resources, managing finances, student life and tips for parents. To find this information, please visit, http://www.universityparent.com/online-guides and select your student’s school. You’ll find links on the left sidebar to the topics mentioned above. If you don’t see your student’s school listed, please email me at sarah@universityparent.com, and I’ll work on signing them up! If you’d like to download a PDF of the print guide, please visit: http://www.universityparent.com/downloads.

We also build a visitor guide with the help of the local convention and visitors bureau and the chamber of commerce. Our intent is to help parents easily navigate their student’s new community. If you’re planning a trip to your student’s campus, or want to send a birthday gift, check out the guide on the right sidebar. You can even book hotels right through our site!

We are working on building a community of college parents through our Facebook Fan Page, http://www.facebook.com/collegeparents and through our Twitter account, http://www.twitter.com/4collegeparents. Parent participation in the community helps us determine the types of issues parents are concerned about – and we try to address these on UniversityParent.com.

We hope these resources help nurture your connection and involvement in your student’s college experience!

About UniversityParent.com:

When the time came for my parents to visit me as a student at the University of Colorado, their anxieties heightened. They wanted to know where to stay, dine, and shop for last minute items they felt I couldn’t live without. They also wanted to know what activities they could do, or places they could visit while my orientation schedule kept me busy.

Although my campus offered a wide variety of useful information for visiting parents, we quickly learned that it was not compiled into one all-inclusive resource for easy and convenient use. My parents’ personal experience of a void of comprehensive information is what sparked this venture. The idea of producing a University Parent Guide began as my senior project through the Leeds School of Business Entrepreneurship Program at the University of Colorado, Boulder. After graduating in 2004, I pursued University Parent Media full-time. The University Parent Guide is now available at over 100 campuses nation-wide. This guide may not have been available when my parents needed it, but it is now! We hope you find it useful.