{"id":541502,"date":"2022-11-16T17:27:16","date_gmt":"2022-11-16T22:27:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?p=541502"},"modified":"2022-11-16T20:18:25","modified_gmt":"2022-11-17T01:18:25","slug":"parents-guardians-influence-college-admissions-process-541502","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/parents-guardians-influence-college-admissions-process-541502\/","title":{"rendered":"How parents can be involved in the college admissions process\u2014without overstepping"},"content":{"rendered":"
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(University of Rochester illustration \/ Julia Joshpe)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Parents and guardians of college-bound students are more involved than ever in choosing the right school\u2014and that\u2019s what their children want.<\/h2>\n

By Robert Alexander, the dean of undergraduate admissions, financial aid, and enrollment management for Arts, Sciences & Engineering, University of Rochester.<\/em><\/h4>\n

A recent survey<\/a> of 2,300 parents by consulting firm EAB found that three out of four parents want direct communications from colleges. Also, 48 percent of students named parents or guardians among their five most trusted sources of information on choosing a college\u2014up 11 percent from 2020. These trends have been steadily increasing over the past two decades, so this clearly isn\u2019t a fad.<\/p>\n

Of course, parents and guardians want to be involved. The college admissions process centers on parents\u2019 two most important assets: their children and their money.<\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>College admission isn\u2019t a prize to be won, but a match to made.\u201d<\/div>\n

But how can parents engage in a helpful way while still allowing their child to know they control the biggest decision in their young lives?<\/p>\n

At the University of Rochester<\/a>, we\u2019ve recognized this trend of increasing parent engagement and have attempted to communicate directly with the parents and families of prospective students. While the student should take the lead in researching college options, preparing their application materials, and certainly writing their own college application essay<\/a>, parents can support and encourage their kids throughout the college admissions process.<\/p>\n

If you feel like you\u2019re constantly bothering your child about college stuff, set a weekly time to talk about college so they won\u2019t feel nagged about it during the rest of your time together.<\/p>\n

Ask your child about their interests\u2014academically as well as outside of classes\u2014and plan college visits close to home. Even if those schools aren\u2019t top choices, touring nearby colleges of varying sizes and types will offer a better sense of what questions to ask and what to look for when touring schools at the top of their list. Parents can bring needed perspective by raising issues their kids might not be thinking about, such as:<\/p>\n