Checklist to College and More

Dear Girl Mom,

When you approach those emotional years just before your daughter graduates from high school, it’s very likely you’re going to experience an extreme range of emotions. Watching our daughters grow up and prepare to begin new lives of their own can cause us to beam with pride while simultaneously dissolve in a puddle of tears.

We are right there with you and are currently in the midst of this transition and season with our own daughters. Join us today as we talk about preparing our girls for the next chapter of their lives. Whether you’re an empty nester, a mom of an older teen, or still navigating how to help your daughter find her path, we hope you find hope and encouragement from today’s conversation.

Love,

Nicole & Stacy

Navigating the Options

With one of our daughters in college, and already having transferred schools at least once, I can honestly say how I wish there would have been someone guiding us along in the overwhelming journey! A checklist of all the things to consider would have been pure gold! Gracious, just understanding applying for financial aid through FAFSA and navigating the application process was a learning curve all unto itself!

All in all, it has been our personal experience that navigating the road to young adulthood, including college endeavors, lends itself to many unanswered questions. The general feeling is that of being completely unprepared. Everyone in the family can very well begin to feel overwhelmed upon the mere mention of college applications!

While every school district and high school experience is different, it can be a challenge to feel as if our daughters are equipped with the information they need as they embark on making all these life decisions. Throw in how applications, processes, deadlines, requirements, etc. consistently change and evolve, and we have a panic attack just waiting to occur! COVID alone has changed SO many things! Goodness knows we all need each other in this journey and process!

In navigating this milestone, we have worked hard to compile many resources we personally found helpful along the way. Below you will find links from everything from your state’s free college application day(s) to gap-year programs, and scholarship application resources. It is our hope that these basics will help you, as parents, in guiding your daughters through the steps in making these important life decisions.

October is College Application Month!

Parents and high school seniors alike, please take note: the month of October, every year, is recognized as College Application Month. What does this mean? It means that high schools across the U.S. are sponsoring free College Application Week (or Month) events where students and families can get help with the application process. It also means, depending on the university, that the college application fee may be waived. Collegiate Parent is a fantastic resource in helping to answer frequently asked questions and provide amazing resources across the nation to help support the parent in their child's academic endeavors post high school. You can find additional information regarding your state's Free College Application Days here: October is College Application Month! - CollegiateParent

However, maybe your daughter desires some breathing room between completing the milestone of attaining her high school diploma and heading into a four-year university. Maybe she is overwhelmed by not knowing the answer to the infamous question of, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" Maybe she needs time to save money before pursuing college endeavors, or she needs time to process all things before making the big decisions of what she specifically wishes to specialize in professionally. There are just as many options for these young-adults as there are for those who are readily college-bound at 18 years old!

Some truly great resources lie within your local community colleges. With a little digging, along with asking questions of your daughter's high school guidance counselor, parents can learn about fifth-year high school programs that allow students to participate in concurrent enrollment the year after 12th grade. These programs allow a student to enroll in postsecondary courses and earn college credit at no tuition cost to them or their families. For instance, the ASCENT program exists within northern Colorado through Front Range Community College. ASCENT stands for Accelerating Students through Concurrent Enrollment. Additional information, as well as enrollment and eligibility requirements, can be found here:

ASCENT | CDE (state.co.us)

Be sure to inquire about these fifth-year high school programs within your local community colleges and high schools today!

The Gap Year

Likewise, some additional great resources for our daughters lie in the amazing gap year planning resources readily available. While a gap year can solely be about the experience of working full time to save money for future academic or young-adult endeavors, a gap year can also be a life experience focused on travel, internship experience, and knowledge gained through stepping outside of one's own comfort zone. A great resource for finding out if this is a great fit for your daughter and family can be found through Gap Year Solutions. Moreover, there are great opportunities through EF Gap Year. This is an organization that "believes in the importance of living intentionally and pursuing a life that is true to ourselves. . .in the transformative power of travel to help us understand who we want to be in the world."

Additionally, there are many Christian Missions organizations designed to foster growth and moving forward in making important life decisions regarding purpose and life pursuits. The World Race is a program that is more than a mere mission trip. It is an opportunity to grow with God, love others, while making a difference in the world.

The World Race is a life-changing mission trip where you will learn to seek first the kingdom of God, so you can experience a deeper life with Jesus, live in authentic community, serve others and share the love of Jesus. Not just on this mission trip, but for the rest of your life. Specifically, the Gap Year Program is a 9-month Christian gap year program created for recent high school graduates to serve others, dive into Christian community, and grow in your identity and faith.

All in all, it truly is a journey figuring out the next steps of life with our daughters! And it is one that truly requires patience on our part as parents. Yearning for grace and wisdom will have us on our knees possibly more than any other time in our lives, as well as crying out for prayers for self-control for when to speak (and when to listen).

Checklist: For Moms and their Daughters

In no particular order:

• Know college eligibility requirements for universities of interest: Do they require taking the SAT? Is there an application fee? What are they looking for in a high school transcript and GPA?

• Be aware of college application deadlines

• Begin student and parent FAFSA application process, and know the deadlines: Have recent federal tax forms readily accessible (for both parents and daughter, if she has been employed and filed taxes), save login information in a safe place, get started here: FAFSA® Application | Federal Student Aid

• Apply for scholarships: a great resource to find scholarships and answer many frequently asked questions, check out Top 50 Free Scholarships for College Students (2023) (accessscholarships.com)

• Store all login, password, username, and transcript ordering information in a safe (and readily accessible) location

• Encourage your daughter to memorize her Social Security Number: she will need it everywhere and for nearly every form she fills out from college to IRS and taxes!

• Extend grace, to both you and your daughter: it is challenging, but so important, to be patient to listen while allowing our daughters time and space to process these big decisions they are making.

• Rest and trust in how God is in control: He delights in His children and longs for nothing more than to see His beloved children thriving. He has you, and He has your daughter in the palm of His Sovereign hand.

Gracious God and Father,

You are the author and Creator of our very lives, and we give you praise for how each of us are fearfully and wonderfully made. You know when we sit and when we rise; you perceive our thoughts from afar. You discern our going out and our lying down; you are familiar with all of our ways. We praise your for Your tender care of each of us, Your beloved children.

You share with us in your Word how each of us should use whatever gift we have received to serve others. We are to be Your faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. Father, guide our steps and the steps of our daughters as we make decisions for the days before us. May our hearts, soul, and minds be ever on You and Your purpose for us in Your created world. May Your light and Your love pour forth from us wherever You place us.

Amen