Collegeteens

This week is considered a pretty high-profile week in the world of college counseling, since all of the Ivy League colleges release their admissions decisions, along with many other colleges where the number of applicants exceeds the number of students that can be admitted by the thousands—and sometimes, by the tens of thousands.  Since this leads to admission rates in the single digits (like 3 percent), the odds of being admitted somehow fascinate the public.  Unfortunately, these same numbers can hypnotize the high school seniors who applied to college—any college– this year. 

Since you may have some of these seniors as friends, neighbors, babysitters, or customers, I’m hoping I can recruit you into serving as supportive, listening ears.  Students who are the first in their family to apply to college need all the listening ears they can get.  Students whose parents went to college likely need all the help they can get, too.  So let’s see what we can do.

Most students don’t go to a popular college.  America may be mesmerized by colleges with three percent admit rates, but don’t confuse popular colleges with colleges that are good for everyone.  The University of Michigan had over 100,000 applicants for about 10,000 slots—but if you want a degree in Criminal Justice, U-M is not the place for you.  Neither does Harvard.  Want a degree in studio art?  Princeton is out.

99 percent of America’s college students go somewhere other than an Ivy League school, but the headlines that pop up this time of year would lead us to suggest otherwise.  If you know a college-bound senior, ask them about their college choice, and congratulate them.

This doesn’t mean most students don’t go to a “good” college.  One of the premier jazz study programs in the United States is in a public college in Texas.  An unknown college in upstate New York developed the heat shield tiles that allowed spaceships to leave the Earth’s gravitational pull.  88% of Fortune 500 CEOs went somewhere other than an Ivy League college.

Most students have at least a few conversations with college advisers on finding a place that makes sense for them, based on future plans, talents, interests, where they’d like to live, and more.  The fact that their college isn’t covered by The New York Times means absolutely nothing.  Remind them of that.

There are likely many colleges right for any given student.  This is also the time of year when students are told how much financial support they can receive to pay for college—and, for too many students, the news is not encouraging.  This can lead some students to believe they have to settle for second best.

Making it through college is hard enough without a start that suggests they’re in the wrong place.  For every student who decides to go to a more affordable college, there’s one who decides to take on incredible debt who doesn’t enjoy college because they’re worried about how they’re going to pay off the experience once they graduate.  Praising students for their sound financial wisdom, and talking with them about what they like in their college choice, will go a long way to building a strong foundation for college success.

If they need more help, encourage them to ask.  Some students get to this time of the year with their college plans still up in the air.  Ask them what they need to know, and who can help them answer their questions.  That’s the start of a plan that will pay huge dividends.

Plumber

Something was askew
About the water flow.
So in he came
Past the living room’s lit tree
In from 28 degrees
At 5:30, December 27.

He was cheery
Articulate
Engaging
And said he knew what to do.
I had right flowing water
In 90 minutes
And he had $270.

CEOs
Spend that much on a Scotch bottle that night
To soothe their self-esteem.
This guy would likely
Throw back a beer
And laugh to the heavens
While beating his kid
At Mario Kart.

So college isn’t everything.

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