Category: Starting College

Phoning Home: Reflections on Sunday Night Calls from College

When our boys are away at school we are practitioners of the Sunday night phone call ritual. In the age of cell phones, I’m not entirely sure how or why this age-old tradition has taken hold for us, but it has.

Most weeks John, our college senior, calls somewhere between 7 and 9 p.m. He updates us on the week that was. His mother passes along the news from extended family, fishes for random bits of information about his social life, and covers the transactional business (e.g. banking, online shopping, doctors’ appointments that need scheduling, etc.). I ask about the weekend, we talk sports (usually the Red Sox as well as some other seasonal happening – how his fantasy football team fared, March Madness, etc.), and make travel arrangements for when he comes home on breaks. Continue reading “Phoning Home: Reflections on Sunday Night Calls from College”

The Early Decision Decision

With autumn rapidly spinning by, the college application process is ramping up for high school seniors. Most of you are finalizing your college lists, completing application forms, and fine tuning essays. And, with November fast approaching many of you are trying to decide whether or not to apply early decision to your top choice school.

There is a lot of information out in the ether about early decision that can be both confusing and anxiety producing. So let me offer a few thoughts that may help to illuminate the salient issues regarding early decision for you. Continue reading “The Early Decision Decision”

The College Parent Trap – Rantings and Advice About Parenting College Students

Okay this is for my fellow parents of college students. Can we talk about mixed messages for a minute? From the moment our children sprang forth into the world we have been told in every way imaginable to be attentive to and engaged in their education and development.

Read to them. Get the right mobile to hang over the crib. Read to them. Get toys and games that help them to learn. Read to them. Get to know their teachers. Be a classroom volunteer (read to them and other people’s kids). Coach youth sports. Chaperone field trips. Follow what they are learning and partner with their teachers. Encourage them to read. Be involved with their school community. Continue reading “The College Parent Trap – Rantings and Advice About Parenting College Students”

More of This and That: A Few Tips for First Year of College Success

We are right smack in the middle of college opening season and I know that most of you are incredibly busy with all that entails so I’ll be brief. Here are a few thoughts to consider as you (or your child) starts college.

  • There was an interesting piece by Lisa Heffernan and Jennifer Breheney Wallace in the New York Times last week about risks that new college students face. No doubt, personal health and safety is a fertile topic for discussion. While the tone of the piece is a bit foreboding and heavy-handed for my taste, every one of the subjects highlighted in the article is important. And, I enthusiastically second Heffernan and Wallace’s recommendation that students and families discuss these issues both now and throughout their college experience.

Continue reading “More of This and That: A Few Tips for First Year of College Success”

On Starting College: The First Day Parts I & II

Prologue

With the first day of college fast approaching for members of the Class of 2020 I wanted to share a few thoughts that I hope will prove helpful to both students and parents.

To begin, I would encourage you to go into that day understanding that it is going to be hectic and emotionally charged. Students are excited and nervous. Parents and families are excited and nervous. You’re navigating a new place in an overcrowded car that you’ve been wedged into for too long. Someone is yelling that you missed the entrance to the parking lot. Someone else is looking at his watch and sighing audibly because he knew you should have left a half hour earlier. Another someone almost certainly has to go to the bathroom – again. And the guest of honor is rolling his/her eyes because you people are SO embarrassing. Continue reading “On Starting College: The First Day Parts I & II”

On Starting College: You’re Supposed to Make Mistakes

You’re about to start college and you’re excited.

There is a whole new and exciting world that is about to open up for you. You’ll be living in a new place and taking fascinating classes and making new friends. It’s going to be awesome and you’re going crush it.

Really.

But here’s the thing…

You’re also going to make mistakes.

You’re going to do stupid things.

You’re going to do poorly on a homework assignment or a paper or an exam. Continue reading “On Starting College: You’re Supposed to Make Mistakes”

On College Drinking: Be Smart. Be Safe. Be Respectful.

Let’s talk about alcohol.

Benjamin Franklin said, “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” He might have been right. Or he might have been full of… well, let’s just say it.

You will hear a lot about alcohol and alcohol policy at your college and some of it will be true and some of it will be full of it. As with most things, more often than not important points get lost in the translation when things get paraphrased and repeated casually. Continue reading “On College Drinking: Be Smart. Be Safe. Be Respectful.”

August “To Do” List: 5 Steps to a Successful College Transition

Okay it’s August and it’s getting real for all you students about to start college. The post-graduation buzz has subsided. Your summer job has moved past “so-so” and is rapidly closing in on “please-make-it-be-over.” You’re done filling out housing forms and medical history forms and course registration forms and every other freaking form they sent you during June and July. And while you are definitely getting excited and anxious for college to please just start already, it’s still too early to begin packing. So at this point all that’s left is to hang out with your friends and wait, right?

Well, sure, you could do that. Or not. Continue reading “August “To Do” List: 5 Steps to a Successful College Transition”

This and That: Some Things to Consider as You Prepare to Start College

Hey, I get it. It’s late on Friday afternoon in July. You’re thinking about beating the traffic and maybe getting an early start on your weekend. Fair enough.

But I know too that for the students (and parents/families of students) who will be starting college this fall, the day you have circled in red on your calendar is fast approaching and there is still a lot to do to get ready. And that nagging voice in the back of your head keeps reminding you that you are probably forgetting to do something that you didn’t even know you needed to do.

So, I thought I’d share some thoughts on a few random items that often fly under the getting-ready-to-go-to-college radar. I’ve even conveniently put them in a bulleted format so that you can print them out and have a tidy little list to stick under a magnet on the fridge. Here goes: Continue reading “This and That: Some Things to Consider as You Prepare to Start College”

Getting a Little Testy: A Few Thoughts about Standardized Tests

Have you seen the blog post circulating on Facebook (FB) with the headline: Our son got accepted at Stanford? It’s written by a tech blogger whose son got into Stanford after increasing his SAT scores 720 points using an online SAT prep course. It seems to appear in my FB news feed three times a day so I’m guessing many of you have seen it somewhere along the way as well. Continue reading “Getting a Little Testy: A Few Thoughts about Standardized Tests”