What can students do while in high school to start to build these skills? Create a goal for yourself such as waking up on your own for school each morning. Reach out to family members and let them know what you are working to achieve, and be open to their feedback and guidance. Seeking help from those around you and being open to new ideas are two important keys to success. Find other goals to set for yourself to build these important skills for success.
Managing a schedule and responsibilities while in college is important for academic and social/emotional success for students. It is a skill that students should ideally begin to develop during high school, as it can take time to develop new habits. Many students will need to experiment with a variety of strategies to find what will work best for them. This article offers some great ideas of time management strategies that will be very helpful for students in college.
What can students do while in high school to start to build these skills? Create a goal for yourself such as waking up on your own for school each morning. Reach out to family members and let them know what you are working to achieve, and be open to their feedback and guidance. Seeking help from those around you and being open to new ideas are two important keys to success. Find other goals to set for yourself to build these important skills for success.
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As the month of September comes to a close, the college application to-do list time-line starts to come into greater focus for many students. There are essays to write, applications to fill out, and many other tasks with high school counselors, letters of recommendation, etc. to manage. Staying organized with this process so as not to feel overwhelmed will be key to successfully completing applications. This college application checklist is really helpful for students to keep track of tasks they need to complete. It is also important to realize that there are a tremendous number of on-line resources to guide the process. For example, if you need an overview of how to complete the activities section of the Common App, this article can help. If you need guidance on completing the UC Personal Insight Questions, the UC website has great information. Don’t be hesitant to research information or reach out to a trusted counselor, parent, or friend to help you with this process.
The skill of asking for help is so very important to college success, and the college application process is a great time to practice that skill. Think about the areas where you could benefit from the guidance of another, and practice advocating for what you need. This skill will be so useful in college, as you will feel increasingly comfortable in the role of self-advocate. Remember that all the effort of applying to college is not just to get into college, but to be successful in college. Registering for support services on a college campus may not be the most important thing that a student starting college wants to consider. Many students are excited to start college with a sense of a new beginning, and they do not want to carry forward the resources they received in high school. This is understandable as students strike out on their own. However, educating students and parents about this is very important to their successful transition to college.
The education that students and parents need to have during this critical time between high school and college involves several factors. One factor is how services are different between high school and college,and the laws governing student support is different. Another factor is educating students about the benefits of registering for support services in college. This article does a great job in delineating the reasons why a student should register with the disability office, even if they believe that it is not necessary at this time. I am hopeful that this information resonates with students and they are able to reach out for the resources that can benefit them in college. For students with learning disabilities or other challenges such as autism or ADHD, planning for college can be a bit more complex. That is because there is the additional piece of support services to consider in creating a college list. When thinking about what support a student would benefit from in college, a great place to start is self-advocacy. When students are able to consistently advocate for their needs in a timely fashion, it is easier for students to transition to the independence of college. This video is a great resource to use in learning more about self-advocacy and the transition to college. It also speaks to the larger topic of college readiness, which is helpful information to have.
This article offers additional thoughts about skills students can consider working on to prepare for the transition to college. At this time in the college application process for rising seniors, taking the coming school year to build these skills will allow for increased self-confidence, and a greater ability to manage expectations when you arrive on your college campus next fall. As the college application process moves closer for rising juniors and seniors, it is important to begin to understand the tasks ahead. For rising juniors, a focus is on thinking through your junior year classes to ensure they are a fit for your goals, as well as creating a plan for preparing for and taking the SAT or ACT. Beginning to explore colleges and understanding your options regarding different types of colleges will be important. This article does a great job in reviewing these and other tasks for rising juniors.
For rising seniors, your focus should be on finalizing your college list, ensuring all of your SAT/ACT testing is completed by early fall, communicating clearly with your high school counselor about your application plans and time frame, as well as following-up on financial aspects of the process including completing your FASFA. Here is a list of additional tasks from NACAC for seniors to review. Knowing what is expected of you for the coming year and setting goals and plans for yourself will be important for all juniors and seniors. Take some time today to think through what you can do this coming year to be ready for the college application process. For students with learning differences who may require specific support services that can influence your college choice and your college application, stay tuned for thoughts on that process in July. The month of April can be quite busy for current seniors, as they consider their college options and work to determine where they will enroll. For some students, the decision can be quite clear as the college they will attend is a match for the learning needs, financial needs and academic interests. However, for some students it is difficult to find a school that is a match in all of these areas. In addition, there are many other variables that can be in play to determine the best college fit for a student. These factors include weather, distance from home, size, access to resources outside of the college for psychiatrists, therapists, etc. Taking into account all of the unique needs of a student to find their best match with a college can be overwhelming.
This article offers some additional thoughts and questions you can consider when exploring your options. This article also offers thoughts on making the final college decision. It might be helpful, after you have done some work on narrowing down your list, for the student to consult with a therapist, teacher or other trusted person in addition to reviewing your options with your family. Once you have made your decision it can be a wonderful feeling to begin the process of connecting with your new college and transitioning to your role of college student! The more students and parents understand the importance of college readiness during the high school years, the more opportunities students will have to build the skills they need for a successful transition to college. I have found that many students and parents are not aware of gaps in skills that a student might have in their ability to live independently. Unfortunately, some students first find out about their lack of readiness once they are already in college and struggling. Students can find themselves struggling academically or socially, as well as in areas around life skills such as hygiene, self-advocacy, or emotional regulation to name a few.
I believe that educating families about the importance of college readiness is the best way to bring attention to this issue. This article does a great job in clearly and thoughtfully outlining the importance of college readiness for students and parents. Spend some time thinking about college readiness currently, and where you would like it to be before college. Talk to the support people in your life to understand their view of readiness for a student. Be proactive early to give you the time to build the skills needed for success. Understanding when students are ready for the responsibilities and independence of college is not always clear and easy to determine. Each student is different, and will need to build different skills to be ready for the transition out of high school and into a college setting. This blog article does a great job in articulating important aspects for students to consider when thinking about their transition out of high school. The author focuses on the theme of self-advocacy, which is in itself a critical skill for success in college. But he breaks self-advocacy down into specific areas that students can understand and therefore work on improving as needed.
Starting this type of college readiness skill building should ideally happen in the beginning of high school to allow students a chance to practice as much as possible while still at home. There are many new responsibilities that come with going to college, and having a sense of confidence around self-advocacy will allow students more time to focus on other areas of the transition process that all students go through. Now that it is January and current juniors are starting to consider their college options, an overview of the college application process seems timely. There are many steps in the application process, from standardized testing to essays to letters of recommendation. Many of these tasks require some planning in order to be best prepared. For example, it is a good idea for students to think about when they want to take their SAT or ACT exam and review their calendar to understand the testing dates to ensure there is no conflict with a target date. Planning ahead will also allow students time to decide how they want to prepare for the test and have the time to devote to preparing. Students also should make sure they allow for the option of taking the test a second time in the event they want to try and raise their scores.
As students begin to develop their college lists, they can start to explore the application requirements. This will allow the student to understand the essays expected at each school as well as letters of recommendation and other requirements. The essays, depending on how many a student will have, will require time to complete. Letters of recommendation will need to be requested in a timely fashion that is in line with the student’s targeted application deadlines. This resource is very helpful in offering an overview of what students can expect in the coming months, and allow an opportunity to give thought to how each task will be best completed by each student. This resource offers additional information and guidance. Although all students should be creating a college list that reflects colleges that are a good fit for them academically, socially, financially, etc., students with learning differences must consider an extra element to the list of what will be a good fit for them. College is about learning, and being in an environment where a student is supported in their education is very important. This article talks about the basics of creating a college list.
Taking it a step further, this article expands more deeply on information a student with learning differences should consider. The article is worth the time to sit and read, as it covers many important topics around what students should look for and expect from each college. I particularly appreciate their point about how students are not signing contracts at college, and if they find their college is not providing them with the support they need to thrive, they can transfer to a school that is a better fit. This is very empowering for students to remember throughout their education and beyond. |
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