After the Craziest Year in Admissions, What Do You Do Next?
Several articles have been written recently about the craziest year in college admissions. Here is a link to the article, This is Peak College Admissions Insanity published in the NYT and my favorite college admissions journalist, Jeffrey Salingo, wrote this article Inside the Craziest College-Admissions Season Ever in March as college admission decisions started to arrive in students' inboxes and college portals.
In the last few weeks, I have heard from many families who are processing their admission decisions or families who are now in fear of their child's admission future, and I thought I would offer some advice and perspective amid the complex business industry of college admissions.
Keep your child at the forefront of all your decisions.
Too often, we strive and invest in programs to meet the stated or unstated requirements of colleges and universities without guaranteed outcomes. However, suppose we instead invested in our children, their interests, academic growth, and innate talents. By choosing to change the focus of our priorities, we will develop children who are prepared to enter young adulthood and their continued educational development in college. We must shift our narrow focus from "What do colleges want?" to thinking about what will best develop and prepare our child for their future. Prioritizing your child's interests over college requirements is a mental shift but will always play in your child's favor.
Remain open-minded.
One mistake I often see with families is unintentionally having a "dream" school based on group norms. Whether it's a typical feeder school for your high school or whatever school has been deemed prestigious within the social circles of your community. However, without having been to college or visited many colleges it is not possible to have a dream school. Many of the ideal colleges students and families have are developed through familiarity rather than genuinely connecting with a specific college campus.
Make a plan and stick to your plan.
Many of the fears, stress, and uncertainty in college admissions comes from looking outside of our homes and into what we see other students achieving. As mentioned earlier, we must look out for the best interests of our children and make a plan that best fits their development.
Make a plan to develop their academic growth. A solid academic plan will always serve your child's best interest. The more a student prepares academically in high school, the more options they will have during the admissions season. More importantly, a robust academic history will prepare them for the rigor required at the university level.
Look at what your child likes to do and make a plan to continue to increase their engagement and impact in their areas of interest. The goal should be for our children to be challenged in areas in which they are engaged so that they can continue on an upward trajectory of aligning their talents, passions, and skills.
Students who focus on their path and unique capabilities carry themselves with confidence and are often the students others begin to look at as examples of achievement. The more we confidently develop a child, the less time we will have to worry about what others are doing and if we should be doing the same thing. (Hint: You shouldn't be doing what they're doing; someone else already has that covered).
I realize this is an uncertain time when we are looking for guarantees regarding college admissions. However, with college admissions, it is best to prepare yourself academically while remaining open-minded about the opportunities that will be available in the future.
