William Jewell College Top Questions

Make sure that your child is ready for school, especially academically rigorous school. Many times, students in high school that did not really have to try hard in class to pull straight A's will struggle with the change in coursework that they face in college. This can lead to burnout and severe loss of confidence in some students. It may be a good idea to have your child take a summer course right before school starts to give them a jumpstart on the difference between high school and College.

Go to the campus and experience it for a day or so. Make sure you feel at home there before officially deciding and just follow your heart. It always works out for the best.

Find a college that you can live with the whole time you are there. If you pick a college that you hate just to go to college you won't get anything out of it. Get involved whenever you can. This is a great way to meet people and learn more about the people around you and will also give you a little incentive to get through those hard days. Be open-minded to others. You never have to change your own beliefs, but if you can learn to get along with others whose views differ from your own you will find that you can have friends, very good friends, from all walks of life, and these friends are essential to getting through your days at school and beyond.

Let your student decide. His or her level of interest and curiosity is healthy. Let your son or daughter research and choose a school on their own.

When choosing a school, one should choose one that's far enough from home that if the student really gets homesick, home is only a few hours away. But a school should be chosen for its academics AND social activities. Too much studying can take a toll on one's mental health, because the weekends are for unwinding, not for more studying. Freshmen year is where everyone makes 1st impressions. Don't make a mistake because then everyone remembers you from your freshmen year, and you can't erase what's in their mind. Don't enter into serious relationships with someone you date--the 1st college relationship either results in marriage or a crash/burn result. Take studying seriously, and consult teachers during the office hours because those hours help and make you seem like you care about your grades. The Greek life is nice but being independent give you more freedom. Keep in touch with old friends because new ones are fun, but old ones are the ones that know the REAL you, not the new college invented self.

Start early and think things through. Taking the time to weigh ALL the pros and cons of each college is crucial. After that, set up visits, contact professors and current students and get all the information about the college before enrolling. Do not make a decison based off of pressure from parents, teachers, coaches, or even friends. Remember it's one of the most important decisions of your life and it should be treated that way. Its your education, don't waste it.

There is no mathematical equation for finding the right college, and no magic potion to make a college experience enjoyable. Everyone, and every college, is different. The best way to find a good fit at a college (and enjoy your time once you are there) is to take advantage of all your resources! Colleges are selling a product, so take time to find the information you need to make your decision. Do more than surf the web to find out about a college's reputation. If possible, schedule a campus visit and a phone interview with department chairs. Stay overnight in a freshman dorm. Spend a weekend in the town. Walk around the quad: can you see yourself here? Once the term begins, your college will probably offer orientation activities. Go to them! Some of them may be cheesy, but it is definitely easier to start classes seeing some familiar faces. Spend your first semester dabbling in--but not committing to-- all sorts of activities; anything at all you might be interested in. Once you understand what classes and the people are like, you will have a better idea of where and how you'd like to participate on campus.

I would tell students to make sure they visit and look at a lot of colleges before making a decision. Take into consideration more than just academics also, for example study abroad programs, flexibility/availability of classes, activities and honors programs.