College Planning

Common mistakes made by freshmen

In this week’s blog, I will discuss other mistakes that freshmen can make and how to prevent them. Freshmen year is a big transition year for students with new cultures, expectations and responsibilities. Mistakes will be made but it is helpful to have this information before move in day for freshmen.

Freshmen will experience many new opportunities for socializing. Freshmen are given new freedom, with this must come a new sense of responsibility with academics being the priority. Socializing is a great part of the college experience but it should not be top priority. Freshmen should be socially responsible and abide by the law when they are out with their friends.

 There is such a thing as over socializing as well as under socializing. Colleges will offer many clubs and organizations that students can join. There will be opportunity for travel and for service work. There will be something for everyone. Freshmen should seek out clubs that speak to their extra curricular interests. This is also a good way to make new friends while experiencing new things.

While in the classroom, it is the student’s responsibility to be prepared and to participate. If students are going to miss a class, the student should let the professor know. Students should invest themselves in the course and the work; it is necessary to come to class prepared and ready to learn.

Another mistake that freshmen can make is dropping a class that they do not like or one that seems to be too difficult. Dropping a class can impact financial aid and the intended path toward graduation. Students want to maintain their full course load so that they graduate on time and meet the challenges that a new difficult course can offer.

Freshmen students can be tempted to go home frequently if they live close enough to campus.  Students should try to spend as much time on campus as possible. Going home too frequently can be a mistake and students need to give campus life a fair shot. Campus living should become relaxing and familiar similar to the home that they left behind to come to college. With this sense of familiarity will come new friends, activities and opportunities.

Lastly, freshmen year will be a learning experience. Students should learn from their own mistakes and from mistakes made by their peers. Freshmen should be able to make informed decisions while recognizing their limits. This year is notorious for a time when students make countless errors, students should remember that no one is perfect. The key is to learn, grow and move forward.

 

Be aware of freshmen mistakes

College is a new life experience and it is likely that freshmen students will end up making mistakes during the first year. Students are experiencing a new sense of freedom and with this can come some challenges. In this blog, I will discuss some common mistakes that freshmen can make and how to prevent them.

College is not an extension of high school and some first year students have trouble adjusting to the new academic demands. Students may need to develop new study habits that allow for more time spent studying. Freshmen will find many academic resources that are available to them. Professors maintain office hours; writing centers will be on campus as well as tutors and study skills centers. There are generally more supportive services offered at a private college than at a public institution.  It will be up to the student to seek assistance, as these resources are readily available. Students will be assigned an academic advisor who is accessible to them. This person offers academic counseling and insight into possible major choices.

Freshmen will be balancing their budgets while away from home. They may try to save some money by not purchasing all books for their required courses. Students should buy the books for all courses; this isn’t an expense to try to save on. Students can check with friends or on the internet for used books.

Students will be choosing their course schedules and offerings. Freshmen shouldn’t register for an overload of courses during their first year. A successful first year should include 12-14 hours during the first semester. Adjusting to the academic side of college can take some time; this is an area where the academic counselor can offer assistance.

Most students come to campus with a laptop and there are computers labs on campus for access. Freshmen should read and pay attention to their college email account, as many professors will utilize email for effective communication. Many college wide messages are also sent via email.

Some freshmen students choose to work whether it is on campus or off. A balance must be struck between coursework and paid work.  For first year students, twenty hours would be the recommended maximum hours that should be worked in a week. Freshmen students will need to work on enhancing their time management skills. Students will find themselves having a great deal of free time that will be filled with many new responsibilities.

New challenges will bring new responsibilities. College is a place to learn and to grow. Those who are successful will create a healthy balance between the academic side and the social side of college. College is what you make of it. Students should recognize college as an investment that will provide valuable return on their future.

In next week’s blog, I will outline additional mistakes that freshman can make and I will also offer suggested interventions.

Freshmen year brings parental responsibilities

If you are the parent of a college bound freshman, it is important to spend some time thinking about and planning for unexpected costs or for an emergency that might arise. This consideration will take some research and financial planning.

 Before the summer begins to close, the parent should speak with his student about their financial responsibilities. A detailed plan that specifies expected costs should be developed. Some of the expected costs are: living expenses, travel, and entertainment.

The next step is to outline who will pay for what. It would be beneficial to set up a separate account for this spending.

 The issue of insurance coverage should be looked at i.e.: health, car, renters and technology insurance that covers cell phones and computers.  If the student remains on the parents insurance policies, the parent should decide who is responsible for payment. Parents should pay close attention to detail if the child seeks his own plan.

Parents can keep children on their health insurance plan until age 26. Some colleges do offer health insurance plans. If a parent decides to enroll in a college sponsored plan, make certain to compare the parent plan to the college plan.

 Some colleges allow students to bring cars to campus while others do not. If a student is bringing a car to campus, the student will need car insurance. Rates can increase if a child is in an accident or if he receives a speeding ticket.  Parents should research rates as some companies offer “good student discounts” which grant lower rates.

 Credit card companies are notorious for coming to campus and marketing to students. If a parent decides to cosign for the student, he maybe left financially responsible if the student does not make appropriate payments on the card.  If a parent does cosign for a credit card, he should establish clear financial responsibilities and expectations.

 If the student chooses an off campus housing option and the parents cosign the agreement, the parents could be taking on a financial obligation should there be an issue with payment or damage done. Parents should be knowledgably about their financial responsibilities if this situation arises.

 Parents should do their due diligence with regards to what they are continuing to be responsible for while their child is at college. Even though the child is away, there is a great deal of financial responsibility to establish and track. This is a real world learning experience for the new college student and he should earn a degree of independence if financially successful at the end of June.

The awakening of the college student

In the fall of 2010, President Obama announced that the United States would not be able to compete in a global economy with almost 50% of our enrolled college students not earning degrees.  The President has proposed “a college access and completion fund” to assist some students and ultimately encourage completion of college. This proposal is a start and will assist some with the financial side but there is another side to direct attention to.

The other piece is keeping college students challenged and involved while enrolled in college. In Crossing the Finish Line: Completing College at America’s Public Universities, by William Bowen, Matthew Chingos, and Michael McPherson, it is reported “that 1/3 of students from privileged socioeconomic backgrounds-top half of the income distribution, with at least one parent with a college degree-failed to graduate.” These students are quitting due to lack of motivation and interest.” Money was not the issue for these students.

 It is true that some college courses can be viewed as boring. Long lecture style courses can be unappealing. The Provost at the University of Florida, Joseph Glover, states that his school offers many on line courses. He refers to online courses as the “future of the higher education.”

There is another view to discuss that stresses “a learner-centered” process in which students become more actively involved in their own education.” This style of teaching and learning is labeled as active learning. When students are involved, they begin to own the process and the information that is being translated.

 Mark Carnes is the creator of “Reacting to the Past.” He and others worked on this learning mechanism for 16 years. This work involves students engaged in detailed intellectual games based on classic texts. The concept is as follows: each game lasts for about one month and there are hundreds of pages of rules and roles that will be incorporated on behalf of the students. The following is an example of a game set; it is 1633, Jesuit scholars are supporting Aristotle’s physics and they must contend with the supporters of Galileo’s beliefs. These games are being utilized at more than 300 institutions.

 Professors are seeing success when utilizing the game sets. Fessler, professor of History at Dordt College (Iowa) dedicated a set to the French Revolution. Students volunteered to come to the class 30 minutes early so that they could finish their set, which was involved and heated. Students feel committed and invested in their role in the set.  Students worked together while solving problems.

 Reagin and Driver, professors at Pace University also experienced success with the sets. Their class used a set in the Puritan era. The students were debating all night. 

 The students who were participating in these intellectual games were less likely to become involved in online games, parties and other distractions. The students were creating a community through discussion, debate and sharing.

 Lastly, students learn more when challenged to think in untried ways. The additional financial assistance will help some students but students need to attend class and truly be present. Student will be more successful when they are actively participating in the learning process.

 

The great divide among elite colleges that are awarding Pell Grants

 The Pell Grant program is a federally funded program that is unlike a loan and does not need to be paid back. The current maximum award is $5,550 and the amount that a student is granted depends upon student status, their need and costs. The cut off for earned income is $50,000 per year. Also, if someone earns $50,000 a year and has invested $300,000 in a savings mechanism they would not qualify for the grant unless they do some sort of asset reallocation.  In 2009, the program was expanded in terms of eligbility and maximum awards.

 Over the past 10 years the most elite colleges have been pressured to allow access to lower income students.  Many colleges reacted by altering their recruitment plans and by offering more financial aid.

 A Chronicle analysis of information from the Education Department showed that the efforts have had little effect. The number of those who are receiving Pell Grants has been slow moving in the past 5 years.

 The 2008-09 data showed that about 15% of the students at the 50 wealthiest colleges received Pell Grants. At the public and non-profit 4-year schools, 26% of students received Pell Grants. There is a great divide.

 Some colleges who rank in the elite category have increased their student population seeking Pell Grants while others have not. Some of these schools are competing for the same students, which makes it difficult.

 In another study conducted by the Chronicle, 12 month Pell Grant awards were analyzed as well as the 12-month enrollment figures.  In 2008-09, there was a wide span of undergrads receiving Pell Grants at the 50 wealthiest colleges. Washington University recorded 5.7% and UCLA recorded 30.7%.  These findings demonstrate the challenges that schools are up against in enrolling and educating needy students while achieving the goals of the school.

 Yale has a history of distributing a high level of need-based aid. This message is hard to market because there is a belief etched in our minds that some schools are very out of reach financially. Yale has 12% of their students receiving Pell Grants in 2010-11.

 Elite colleges that revealed the largest number of students receiving Pell Grants from 2004-05 to 2008-09 contributed the allowance to offering better financial aid awards and to admission recruitment outreach. For those schools that did not see success in this area, the administration acknowledges the expansion of the international population, out of state students and summer enrollments as contributing factors.

 Wellesley College saw a large drop in undergrads receiving Pell Grants from 2005-05 to 2008-09 with a decrease of 2.2 points. This could be due to an effort to lower student debt. In 2008, Wellesley made the decision to eliminate offering loans to students whose families earned $60,000 or less a year. This change resulted in an increase in low-income student enrollment.

 The Director of Financial Aid at Duke, Alison Rabil, stated that there is a certain amount of reluctance to borrow on the part of the students whose families are first generation students and whose parents may not have grown up in the states.

 Some Financial Aid Directors cite geography as a barrier when low-income students are deciding upon a school. The students have concerns about being far from home and the cost of travel.

 Lastly, it is important to keep selective colleges affordable for those in need. These institutions have the ability to set precedence with their policies and procedures. The Pell Grant program is valuable. Colleges face many challenges when working to meet their goals. The elite schools should seek out the challenge, get creative and improve their offerings.