Tag Archives: parent advice

PARENTS: After Your Child Has Submitted Their Last College Application

A friend of mine told me about a website and Facebook page called Grown and Flown.

One of the first Grown and Flown posts I read is about what to say to your child after they have finished their last College application. After they hit send on their last College application, my kids (and to be honest, my) overwhelming emotion was relief. A lot of work and stress has taken place to get to this point, it’s nice to check this activity off the list. I’m not sure what my kids felt next, but I definitely felt frustration. After all that work leading to this moment that we couldn’t wait to arrive, we now have to wait, wonder and ponder. Wait to hear back, wonder whether they will be accepted and ponder where they will attend College.

Pixabay UndecidedIf your child applies Early Decision and gets accepted or applies Early Action and/or Rolling Admission and gets accepted and chooses to not wait to hear back from other Colleges, that wait could be as little as a month, Otherwise, that wait is likely a minimum of 3 months, but sometimes as long as 5 months, or even longer if they applied long before the application deadline. During those months, you may be wondering if they will be attending the nearby State College or that small liberal arts College is Northern Maine. Will they need sunblock and swimsuits or a warm parka? Is this going to cost $7,000 or $70,000 a year?

As the writer in the post above notes, it seems like things should be said at that point, but I had no idea what to say, other than “Good job”. The writer provides some great advice.

On a related note, for those of you who feel too busy to read parenting books now your child is no longer a toddler, the internet is a great resource for advice. Being a thoughtful parent is work, so if you feel too overwhelmed to be thoughtful, do an internet search on an issue and let others who have been thoughtful offer you some advice. Being a thoughtful parent of a teenager is one of the best ways to spend your time. Teenage years are really tough years, especially these days. Don’t think your parenting should be limited to setting curfews and asking if they did their homework. Another reason for being a thoughtful parent? Your teenager will soon be leaving the nest. You want them to think of that nest as a warm, comfortable, loving place, so they want to come back on occasion.

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