A Senior's Advice to Parents
Take my word for it - I have parents, too

BY TIM WILLIAMSON

So, your child is looking into colleges. You're probably fretting over the costs and saying good-bye to your little babies. Well, as a high school senior who is going through the process as we speak, I have a few ideas that will hopefully take a little of the stress out of your life (and your child's, too!)

DON'T…

…tell them where they can and cannot go to college. Let them explore all of the options. There are hundreds of colleges out there that might interest them, so let them narrow the selection before you even think of money.

…ask them every day if they've decided and scold them when they don't spend every waking second on finding a college. Our senior year is tough enough as it is.

…force them to go to your alma mater or the home of your favorite football team. That's a bad idea all together.

…limit the distance they can travel for college. Would you rather them get a great education and get a job with a six figure salary at the expense of using e-mail and not seeing them every week, or have them go to a closer school where they might not be happy and might not have as many options for courses of study?

DO…

…encourage them to broaden their search. If they only check out a couple of colleges, then they will have no clue as to what is awaiting them only a few miles in a different direction. They could be missing out big time.

…visit campuses. If there are a few colleges that your child is really looking into then offer to set up a tour of the campus and meetings with the professors of their choice.

…offer help. Can you imagine how much work it is to look up info on 30 different colleges while doing homework, projects, extracurricular activities, filling out applications, testing, etc? It's a huge load. Offer a little help, and it will probably be very appreciated.

…remind them to keep searching for a school once a week or so. Sometimes things slip our minds, and it helps to remind us every once in awhile.

…encourage your child to keep his or her grades up, because it counts towards a lot. Scholarships could decide what college they attend; don't let them miss out on some because of their GPA.

…help your child open a savings account and get a job.

…start now! I don't care if your child is a freshman on up, an early stop never hurts. It's hard to convince them that they need to start now, but it can be done. I can attest from personal experience that my senior year I was hardly able to research, fill out applications, e-mail professors, visit colleges, write essays and everything else that comes along with finding a college while doing my homework, staying for club meetings and going to band practice. It's insane and then the college process is plopped down right in your lap. It's not a fun thing. If you can't convince them then e-mail me and I will. I've already scared a few lower classmen to death.

And one final hint: We know if we're comfortable in the atmosphere of a campus or not. We are adults now and can make decisions. You have to understand, we're the ones getting the education, not you. It is our future, not yours. It's hard to let go, but life is tough. Be proud your child made it this far.