How to Prepare Your Teen for College Effectively?

Parents always want what’s best for their kids, so when their teens are faced with such an important life moment like starting college, things can get intense. For parents who’ve been through this and know what moving away and starting a brand-new life feels like, this moment is even more powerful. Since we want what is best for our children, we also worry – we worry they might not fit in, we worry that they might get anxious, and ultimately, we worry about their safety. However, there are ways in which we can prevent all of these wrongs from happening. We could effectively prepare our teens for college and therefore, for life. If we do so, our worries will lessen, and our kids will feel free to be themselves in a new environment. Check out this list of quick tips on how to prepare your kid for such a big change.

Start talking about college early on

The more we talk about something, the more real it becomes. Thus, starting an early conversation about college can be exactly what your teen needs. You should probably start bringing this topic up sometime in their junior year of high-school and build up from there. This is when you could also start getting the necessary material to help them prepare for the SAT and ACT exams. You can find some examples of SAT essays at https://eduzaurus.com/free-essay-samples/crime/. The materials that you are purchasing for self-study don’t have to be super expensive, but they must be of good quality – and be aware that most of them are quite expensive. Instead of freaking out last minute to buy the best books for your teen, starting junior year could give you time to find used copies or get appropriate online help. It could also help them realize that college is slowly approaching.

Help them with their research and offer the support they need

Most high schoolers won’t know where to begin their college search, so providing the necessary help becomes a must. This doesn’t mean that you should choose colleges for them – not at all. All you must do is provide the right tools to assist them in making their own decisions. But before you rush into giving them pieces of advice, ask them about what they need. What are they passionate about? What do they want to gain in life? What areas would they like to move in? What state attracts them the most? What clubs are they interested in joining? These are all questions that you two should ponder upon; and you should support them in any decision that they make.

College doesn’t have to be mysterious

A common mistake is that parents don’t talk about college enough, leaving this new world undiscovered for their children. Mystery can be constructive, but it can also be scary, so expanding on this topic will be useful for your teen. Instead of becoming overwhelmed by new information on the spot (when they start college), you could prepare them for it. Start discussing general things about it, such as moving into a new dorm, having to submit assignments on time, or doing their own laundry. Sooner or later they will start asking questions, so you’ll see their interest growing and anxiety diminishing.

Your college experience might not resemble theirs

Many parents want to impose their own college experiences on their teens, making the latter ones more vulnerable to disappointment. No matter how much your kid and you are alike, all paths and experiences are different – thus, you cannot tell your children how his or her experiences might be. They must figure that out for themselves. Your college experience might have gotten you where you are right now, but that doesn’t mean that this is the exact same place that your teen will end up in. Open their horizons to explore!

Don’t make choices for them

This ties in well with my latter point – making college choices for them can be very overwhelming in the long-run. Your child must be able to decide for him or herself, so do provide advice, but never tell them what to choose. College is their own choice – in the end, they will end up happy or disappointed, but they will know that this was their own decision; nobody made them do anything. They had a saying in their own life. 

Help them build themselves up

You cannot keep your kid in a box during high-school and then expect them to excel in college. For them to be prepared for a new life, they must experience various things. For starters, make sure that you guys travel together as much as you can. Take them everywhere you can afford it and teach them how to handle life! Also, help them get some cool summer internships and jobs to get them accustomed to socializing – this is an important part of college life.

Keep communication open

Last but not least, help your teen communicate with you. This is the only way in which you will be able to understand their needs. If you are stricter than you should, they won’t trust you enough with their problems and experiences, so they’ll do things behind your back. Keeping communication open means not judging them for their actions but rather discussing their behavior. You cannot change them by denying their thought-pattern, but you can help them change by understanding their needs.

Conclusion

The above tips might be helpful for you as a parent – I am sure that your kid will thank you for being open and communicative. Try the above tips and let us know what the end result is!

<Author Bio>

Elizabeth Skinner is a child psychologist and blogger. Her interests include child development, abnormal psychology, and educational therapy. In her free time, Elizabeth volunteers for a non-profit, helping students reach success.