As summer quickly approaches, college application season is right around the corner. If you are the parent of a junior, your child may benefit from using the summer months to get a head start with college planning!
Students and parents are so caught up in SAT or ACT test prep, college visits, and summer programs, they often miss out on two essential summer college planning points – finalizing their college list and writing college essays. Have you engaged the right support to help your child in these two key areas?
Finalize College List – There are so many great schools to choose from, finding the “best fit” colleges can sometimes feel overwhelming for parents and students. When narrowing down their options, your child should consider some of the following — an intended major and/or minor, the location of the school, the size of the student population, the type of school (arts, engineering, liberal arts, etc.), athletics and clubs, and the cost of college.
Amy, a brilliant visual artist, started working with us in the summer before senior year. She needed help narrowing down her college options. Choosing art schools and university art programs to apply to was overwhelming for Amy. Our guidance was tailored to her interest in ceramics, and she had her final college list early in the summer.
Alex wasn’t quite sure where to begin either. He had a very serious plan for summer work, raising money for an app start-up business idea, and wasn’t thinking much about college. Alex’s mom was concerned, especially about his college list. So the first thing we did was help identify “best fit” colleges that would feed his entrepreneurial interests. Then, we structured his summer calendar to make room for deeper research, filling out college applications and writing essays, with some flexibility around his work schedule. Alex started to get excited about his options and had a newfound energy for his future. We are pleased to share that Alex was accepted to 6 out of 8 schools in early action and he couldn’t be happier about going to college!
Writing College Essays – When you calculate the time your child needs to spend on their essays, you may be surprised. You know your child’s unique qualities and you want them to present their best selves to colleges through the essays. Is your child reflecting the “best” parts of who they are? At Colledge, we create individualized calendars with deadlines for each student essay, which includes time for brainstorming, rough drafts, rewriting, editing and polishing essays. Having an expert carefully look over your child’s writing and offer feedback could make all the difference.
When we started working with Josh early in the summer, we dug into his college essays right away. We helped Josh with an early decision admission strategy while he took full advantage of our summer essay coaching services. He also attended every Essay Bootcamp, the 3-hour events we provide for clients on 3 Saturdays during the summer. Josh wrote his heart out about his passion for biological sciences and his role as editor of his school newspaper. Josh finished all 18 (yes 18!) college essays in August before school started in the fall. He was accepted to Emory University’s class of 2021. We are so proud of him!
When students start working with us in the summer, we have time to discover the qualities that makes them unique, like we did with Josh, Alex and Amy. Whether your child has a busy summer or has lots of free time, we’ll help them stay on track.
If you would like to learn more about summer college planning, click HERE to schedule a free consultation today!
