Remember when you were in high school (at least try

Are You and Your Kids Ready for College?

Remember when you were in high school (at least try!) = and sometime during your junior year, you received your first college recruiting pamphlet. If you were like me= , you probably reacted in the following manner: “Wow! A college wants me?”, then “Is this a scholarship or something?” and fina= lly, “Why would I want to go to Tulsa University?”<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> No offense to those of you who att= ended that fine institution, but until I received that pamphlet, I can honestly s= ay I was more concerned with competing in sports or getting my driver’s license than attending college.

Perhaps like me, a pamphlet similar to that one initia= ted a process that involved your college selection, choice of a major, scholarship applications, financial aid, tuition, fraternities and sororities, all-nighters, cram parties, pizza for breakfast, pizza for lunch, pizza for dinner, summer internships, boyfriends, girlfriends, graduation, grad schoo= l, medical school, more all-nighters, another graduation, and eventually gainf= ul employment. Looking back, you probably wonder how you survived!

You want real survival? Fast forward thirty years and you realize that your child is a junio= r in high school. Now it’s y= our turn to help guide that young lad or lass of yours onto that final stairway= to adulthood. Somehow, in betwee= n the homework, the trips to the mall, and the burgeoning interest in dating, you’ll have to convince this oh-so-cooperative youth to start planning for their future and a college education!&= nbsp; No problem!

Future? Future? To a 16 year o= ld, planning for the future is using the car just enough to force a parent into filling up the gas tank. Futu= re is the weekend, perhaps the prom, but college, there’s always time to pl= an for college. Wake up! The future is now!

Talking to a teenager about picking a college, applyin= g for scholarships, and selecting a major takes persistence, rational (and irrational) reasoning, and loads of patience.

Initially, parents must assess their savings and the a= mount of tuition that they can afford (see accompanying article on 529 Education Plans). The amount of savings= will help determine whether your progeny can attend a private school, an out-of-state public school, an in-state public school, or a junior college.= For college careers beginning in 2003, average costs for each type of instituti= on are shown below:

	Annual Tuition ̵= 6;03[1]	Living Expenses R= 16;03[2]	Svgs need for 4 yrs[3]
Private	$18,150	$6,842	$108,023<= /p>
Out-of-State Public	$10,089	$5,254	$ 66,114
In-State Public	$ 3,979	$5,254	$ 39,385
Junior College	$ 1,842	$5,254	$ 30,037

Assuming that your child understands the importance of college, the next step in the college planning process begins before their = high school junior year. If they don’t understand the importance of college, action must be swift and decisive. Start by parading a= ll the statistics about earnings potential in front of them, continue with peer pressure and mention the fact that their friends Jimmy or Susie are going to college, and end with the ultimatum that, if they don’t leave, they w= ill have to share their room with their Grandmother, whose health is failing because her primary source of nutrition is refried beans.

The next step in this college planning process is allo= cating funds for college. If youR= 17;re fortunate, your son or daughter was a child movie star and their earnings c= an more than cover the cost of a four year education. However, being that the odds for t= hat are equivalent to striking oil with a pickaxe, the need to save for college= is now more important than ever.

While you may have started saving for college through a trust like an Uniform Gift to Minors Act Trust, these traditional college savings plans have been replaced by simpler savings vehicles like Roth IRA’s or 529 Plans. You= can read the accompanying article on 529 Plans for a description of that type of savings plan but assuming that you have some sort of savings program set up, let’s talk about school selection.

Parents and teens approach this process differently. While parents are primarily intere= sted in academics, school location, and the cost of tuition, students are attrac= ted by the freedom with which college brings.&= nbsp; Sure, academics are important, but location is determined by tanning potential, and a student’s concept of money can best be summed up by = the student sign at the sporting event that says “Hi Dad – Send Money!” Remember, teenagers are just learning their way in this world and they don’t al= ways carry the rational behavior book in their backpack! It is your duty as a parent to int= erject some ground rules into the discussion, while still fostering their interest= in the process.

So how do you start?&= nbsp; Once you’ve determined your affordability factor, sit down with your child and prioritize the following factors:

Next, establish a schedule with your child, perhaps 90 minutes a week, where you and he / she actively work toward admittance to college. Be disciplined about= this hour. Don’t waiver. If you want to make it fun, invite= an ambitious friend or friends over to ease the process. Starting as a junior, a weekly 90 = minute schedule will result in nearly 100 hours devoted to college selection, scholarship and college applications, and counseling. The ultimate goal is to have enrol= lment applications completed and sent to at least 5 choice institutions.

There are several resources that you can reference on scholarships, colleges, and other requirements:

The College Board, www.collegeboard.com - Sign up for SAT’s. Pr= ovides links to college and university websites, Sign up for a college organizer (free!)

Fastweb, www.fastw= eb.com - Well designed website for those seeking scholarships. Registration process matching cand= idates to scholarships required.

Students Review, www.studentsreview.com - College Campuses are reviewed by existing students and graduates – = not too many negative comments, but insightful.

“Acing the College Application” by Michelle Hernandez ($14) – How to ace the enrollment process with a great essay and application, even if you don’t have the grades or SAT scores.

“On Writing the College Application Essay”= by Harry Bauld – Helpful hints in writing the admissions essay. Very insightful look at what colle= ges look for.

“America’s Best Colleges 2003: U.S. News and World Reports Annual College Guide” ($8) (also www.usnews.com) – An overview of all colleges and universities throughout the U.S., g= reat for comparison.

“The Unofficial, Unbiased, Insider’s Guide= to the 320 Most Interesting Colleges” by Anderson & Basili, $20. = 211; Written with a student in mind, it talks too much about parties.

“The Best 331 Colleges” by Franek & Me= tzger – Provides in depth information on academics, admission, student life, financial aid, and the inside word. Lesser known institutions not included.

These guides provide some insight into selecting colle= ges, applying for scholarships and admission, and perfecting the essay. However, high school counselors, teachers, and college fairs are all outstanding resources and should be utilized extensively. Of cour= se, if your child has good grades and participates in extracurricular activities, = that increases their chances of gaining admission.

Selecting a college by reading books, conversing with counselors, and searching on the internet can get tedious. To spice up the process, consider t= he following activities:
- Have each stude= nt bring pamphlets from 2 or 3 different schools and exchange the best and worst from each. Repeat = this process (preferably with another host) periodically to include other elements (scholarship applications) of the process. The exchange of information b= etween both parents and teens is invaluable, food is always a plus, and the k= ids get to look at other schools through their friends eyes.
- Hopefully the loca= tions of each campus allow for driving, but if not, break the trips into sma= ller segments. Some parents c= hoose to integrate the visits within a larger family vacation but I’ve heard others swear by the single parent trip. One parent visits with the st= udent and travels the countryside in a “pre-college bonding trip”. The student isn’t overwhelmed by the opinions of both parents and has a chan= ce to better express their preferences while the parent “sees that their son or daughter has become responsible (or not).”
Planning for college is an ordeal that can be frustrat= ing if you’re a parent, tedious if you’re a student. But that’s no reason