How to Prepare for College: Tips and Ideas

FHE Theme: This FHE lesson is for those families who have children preparing for college entrance. I am going to share some tips that I learned from my own college experience and from working for a university for over 6 years.

Lesson: Here are some tips on making the transition to college a little smoother for everyone involved as well as some other great information I’ve learned along the way.

Tips:

1. Attend a campus tour and also attend all the orientations you can! You will want to get the best feel for campus as you can as you make your decision. Going on a campus tour may be the deciding factor in chosing which school you’re going to attend. Make sure you attend orientations. Though it may seem “nerdy”, it’s even more nerdy when you can’t find your way around campus or to your classes.

2. Find & apply for housing a year in advance or as early as you possibly can. I was the first to attend college in my family. My mother drove me 4 hours two weeks before I was to start my college experience and neither one of us thought that housing would be an issue. It was. There was none. So, we made the long trip back home and I was now going to be a semester behind.

3. Get acquainted with all the main offices, such as financial aid, registrar’s and cashiers. Also learn what each of them have available to students such as appeals, withdrawals, grade changes, deadlines, etc. All the stuff that you may need at some point. I didn’t know you could withdraw from courses and during one of my semesters, I went through a horrific ordeal that left me unable to finish the semester. Those F’s on my transcript have never been erased and taint my otherwise perfect college transcripts. It’s also a constant reminder of that semester. Don’t let that happen to you. Life happens and schools can help you out with that.

4. Read and know your course syllabus’, requirements and due dates. I would recommend reading your syllabus or assignment requirement sheet weekly and prior to starting new assignments, papers or projects. You want to make sure you do all that the instructor asks of you. Plus, this is great training for the work force when you can pay attention to details and deliever the correct product.

5. Focus on great grades for all the right reasons, but don’t be OCD about it. Of course, most employers don’t ask for a copy of your college transcripts to check out your grades. However, having great grades helps you in multiple ways; scholarships, graduating with honors (both look great on resumes) and plus, the better you know the information, the more success you’ll have in your profession. Afterall, you are PAYING for this education… get all that you can out of it. Which leads me to this remark– READ ALL YOUR TEXTBOOKS. Even if it isn’t assigned, it doesn’t hurt to have as much knowledge as possible. However, don’t be OCD about it. I was. Sometimes focusing more on getting straight A’s and forgetting to enjoy the classes I was taking. Don’t do that. You’ll have regrets like me.

6. Get involved. Whatever you like to do, there’s a club, group or organization on campus just for you. It’s a perfect way to make new friends, build your character and adds to your whole college experience. Don’t forget to attend the sports games– even if the teams are horrible.

Some of my fondest memories from college are the times when I was involved on campus with this or that.

7. Work on campus. There are countless student jobs available on the majority of college campus’. It’s a great way to work around your school schedule, plus you may even find a job that allows you to work along side your mentors/professors which will help provide great references for graduate schools or employers in your field.

Last little tips: Learn to cook, clean, do laundry, iron, sew a button and all of that prior to leaving home. All those chores you *had* to do throughout your life have been stepping stones to helping you become a capable, productive young adult.

Activity: College Trivia

According to the schools your child(ren) are interested in attending, prepare some trivia facts about them to see how much they really know about the places they want to go to school. Ideas for trivia topics are: what year was it established? how many students attend the school? what is their mascot? and so on.

It would be a great way to involve the entire family on this new experience as one family member transitions from home and off to college.

Treat:

Campfire Cake

(click on the link above to take you to the recipe)

RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
	2 pound cakes
	2 1/2 cups chocolate frosting
	1 cup plus 2 tablespoons white frosting
	12 to 15 glazed chocolate doughnut holes
	Confectioners’ sugar
	Red and orange decorators’ gel
	Red, orange, and yellow fruit leather
	Scissors

Step 1 - Campfire Cake 1. With a knife, shave the square edges off the cakes to give them a log shape. Next, mix 1/4 cup of chocolate frosting into 1 cup of white to make a light tan. Place one log on a platter (a dab of frosting on the bottom will help hold it in place). Frost it with the chocolate and tan frostings as shown. To create bark and tree rings, scrape the tines of a fork across the chocolate frosting, then scratch a spiral into each tan end.

2. Pour the doughnut holes into a bowl and sprinkle them with confectioners’ sugar. Arrange 10 doughnut-hole embers in a single layer next to the frosted log, sticking them in place with frosting.

3. For the branch stub, cut a 1-inch slice from one end of the second log and trim it into a 2-inch circle; set the piece aside. Frost the bottom of the log and set it in place as shown. Use frosting to stick the stub to the second log. Create bark and rings again.

Step 4 - Campfire Cake 4. For flames, take a piece of fruit leather and, with the backing still in place, lightly wet half (lengthwise) of the fruit side with water. Fold it in half lengthwise and press to seal. Cut out flame shapes with scissors as shown, then remove the backing.

Step 5 - Campfire Cake 5. Slice 2 doughnut holes in half. Put a dollop of the remaining white frosting onto the cut surface, then set a flame on top. Squeeze decorators’ gel over the decorated doughnut holes, then set them on the platter. Use any remaining doughnut holes to fill in the gaps between the logs. Decorate them with more flames and gel, if desired.