Yes, it's another Susie talking about college post BUT if you're in high school, or have a high school student, or have a child, etc... This could be helpful.
In high school all I knew about college was that I wanted to go and I would learn. Something.
That's akin to saying that urban southern California traffic will be different than rural northern California traffic. It's true, but very vague and not particularly helpful.
Then I graduated high school and looked at the fine print on my financial aid package and saw total college just under 40 grand per year.
It would have been super helpful and awesome to have a bit of a heads up.
Three years later and five semesters (almost) completed, I've eked out my own collegiate journey, watched my peers, and assisted my siblings. And frankly, the looming C monster is easily vanquished if proper steps are taken in high school.
Step one. Don't apply to just ONE college. Yes, it's great to have dreams and goals--especially goals--but setting one's heart on only one school can be devastating. Apply to between 2-7, depending on the major, goals, life plans. It'll make it so much easier when the dream school doesn't work out and gives you financial options.
Step two: Don't be "too" big for your britches. (Slang, Susie? Really...) Tacky way of putting it, yes, but the concept is still excellent. You are never as awesome as you think you are. Young people especially struggle with this. Don't assume colleges will just hand you money, or good grades, even though the recruiting manuals make it seem that way... They just want the 40 grand.
Step three: You can take the SAT three times, and I would recommend using at least two of the three. There are three sections of the SAT: mathematics, writing, and critical reading, and your highest score in each category from every time you take the test is recorded. Your best scores get sent to colleges. Personally, I would advise students should take the SAT once sophmore, junior, and senior years. Many students find themselves having forgotten the information on the mathematics section by the later years, but a decent study of literature and language really helps on the critical reading section. As for the writing part, I scored very well both times and still am not sure what criteria is used. The SAT can be weird that way.
Also, the best way to study for the SAT is to just take it. I did better on two out of three sections my second time, and got to keep my higher score on the third from my first try. :)
Step four: It doesn't have to take four years.
In high school, I always assumed that I would graduate from high school and four years later graduate from college, having attended the same school for all four years. Oh to be that naive... Really, college can be shorter or longer than four years. I don't en
courage or advise taking longer than 8 semesters but unlike high school and under, college semesters do not have to be 8 consecutively.
I ended up taking the semester immediately following graduation "off" from school and working. It kept me out of debt and that job I worked taught me far more lessons than I have learned in school so far.
But...there are times (most of the time) that I wish I could be finished with my bachelor's, or have only a semester or two left.
ClEP., A.P., Concurrent enrollment. These phrases all mean WAY CHEAPER COLLEGE CREDIT!!!!
As in nearly free, or at the most, 90 bucks a test (class). Students at schools that offer A.P. classes should jump (literally, jump and run to the registar's office) and try to take these classes. A fairly average load of 4 A.P. classes completed could equal 12 units (if the students passes the test) of college credit, that also doubles as high school credit.
This is an incredible option for students who go to schools that offer these classes.
ClEP tests: essentially the student takes a test that covers an entire semester's class on a certain subject. There are many, many subjects in the CLEP test realm--nearly everything for general education--and they can cost around 90 bucks for a test. (To put that in perspective, that same class would cost me $1,600 at school.)
Students can study for the CLEP test using the handy-dandy CLEP test study guide for [insert subject] that stores like Barnes & Noble carry. Or...students who have taken solid high school courses in those subjects can elect not to study. Obviously, some subjects will be easier than others.
Concurrent enrollment:the gist of it is that high school students can attend community college for high school and college credit, free of tuition fees. Many, many people (especially homeschoolers) love this idea and it has worked well for many families. The downside is...it's hard to get in classes, especially in California's impacted community colleges, and concurrent enrollment kids are only on the waitlist. They're not allowed to "register" until after the first day of class--if the class is even open.
Another issue, is the absolute profanity there. Sending an innocent fourteen year old to a community college, where the girl sitting next to him will be high, and the guy on the other side will be profane at best...is an issue for many parents. Certain classes can be very helpful in the concurrent enrollment setting--such as math classes, public speaking classes (those tend to be disgusting, though), etc.
My younger brother has earned a semester of college credit already (he's sixteen and graduating in May) and he's used a combination of CLEP tests and concurrent enrollment classes. It has worked well for him, given him experience, and will ultimately save him time and money.
Step five: I can't think of a way to incorporate five into this idea...I apologize.
Financial aid packages lie. Well, perhaps would suffice to say they're written deceptively. But they pretty much lie. If it looks too good to be true, it probably is. Yes, I just succumbed to a cliche, but it's so concise. Colleges love to be sneaky and they write loans as "aid." A loan is a necessary evil. It is not a free pass. It is not a gift. Taking out five, ten, fifteen thousand dollars a year in student loans is extremely risky. Sometimes, they work out well and students pay them off relatively soon, but often students are unable to pay their debt, and giving that burden to an idealistic seventeen year old seems borderline unethical.
Of course, sometimes it is absolutely necessary to take out loans for school. In such cases, RESEARCH the types of loans, the lenders, and way to minimize the amount being borrowed. The worst route a student can take is blindly accept loans, having no idea of the possible consequences. Also, paying them back AS SOON AS POSSIBLE is a fabulous idea. Don't waste time or money if you have loans. Pay them back! Pay them back! You don't want to have to become an "occupier" holding a sign, complaining... Pay them off and you will not be THAT twenty five year old.
Check to see how much you're actually getting in scholarships, grants, loans, etc, then compare that to the final amount. Check to see what tuition and room and board actually is. Sometimes schools include items like books and travel expenses in loan amounts, which is just an awful idea.
Finally, don't trust them. It's the financial aid department's job to make money stretch as far as possible--not save you money. If necessary, make appeals, set irate parents on them, go in and cry, but never just accept the aid without thorough study. As of this date, I've never seen a documented case of a male crying in a financial aid office. It tends to be a female method.
Five out of ten means I'm half way finished and the next five are going to be in part 2. These are by no means hard and fast axioms of college, just things, ideas, and practices I've learned and noticed in my years since high school. I'm publishing these points because I would have loved if someone had done the same for me in high school.
This post is dedicated to my younger siblings. May you succeed where I failed, save money where I spent, walk in the light where I stumbled, and always know of my love for you and of your Heavenly Father's love.
"Education is not the filling of the pail, but the lighting of the fire."
Yeats
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