Thanksgiving Gratitude for the College Process

By College Advice
Thanksgiving in Connecticut

We have worked with parents throughout Connecticut for the last 15 years on all aspects of the college process.  Right now, we are immersed in college counseling for our seniors who are finishing their early action and early decision applications and taking on college counseling clients for those juniors who are kicking off the going to college transition.

As a parent, you are likely stressed.  The elephant in the room that seemingly few people ever talk about: your baby is leaving home.  That alone is enormously stressful. And bittersweet.  Or just sad.

But the stress also comes from the entire process:  taking the SATs/ACTs, writing college essays and applications, worrying about rejections and the seeming lack of control related to many of these factors.

Here’s a different way to think about it:

Perspective

Considering all that plagues most families throughout the world, the college process is minor. Any family that has gone through a real challenge like a death in the family or a bitter divorce or extended financial problems knows real problems from contrived ones.

College Is Generally Pretty Great

You are sending your child to the young adult version of Disney World. Would you go back to college? Of course! Tremendous freedom. Limited real-world responsibility. Great opportunities to learn, meet new people, have new experiences, all in a reasonably controlled environment (at least compared to moving to New York or Boston at 18).

And the real reason…

Things Have Turned Out Well

If you are from suburban Connecticut, particularly places like Shoreline, CT, it is likely that you hoped that when you thought about your baby, your toddler, your growing child, you hoped he/she would be college bound. So, congratulations! Your child did well enough in school, was sufficiently motivated, has good character and so forth to be college bound. This is NOT as easily accomplished as you might think. There are countless families that I’ve counseled in the last few years who are wondering if it makes sense to send their child to college because of poor grades, work habits, and character.

 

 

The college process is a problem of abundance. You are very lucky to have such a problem.