Do you have a teen going to college next year? The college search process is brand new to me. This year, I’ll be documenting the “fun” of living with a high school junior/senior and how to best navigate the road to college. Our first lesson is one of my all time favorites (no, you are not wrong in reading my sarcasm in this): standardized tests.
Step One – Standardized Tests
Make sure your high school student has signed up to take the SATs/ACTs. If your teen is anything like mine, this may take a bit of persuasion on your part. Or, maybe you will be the lucky parent who has a student who is so organized she is on top of all the dates and locations. Maybe she has already marked them down on her online calendar. In either case, you can find all the SAT dates here and the ACT dates here.
The SAT signup process is NOT quick and dirty. Don’t think they will have it completed in five minutes, it’s more like 30-40. The simple exercise of registering for a standardized test has now become part of a lengthy marketing survey. The questions range in topic from the very stressful (at least in my teen’s eyes) like: what do you want to major in/what size school; to the very benign: name/address/high school. If your junior is undecided or just not good at making decisions, you may find yourself talking her down after the first five minutes. Never fear, you will complete it. And, as long as you have your credit card handy, you (and she) will be all set – at least for the first test date!
I say “the first test date” because the college search process these days includes taking the SATs two — or three — times to better their original scores. Again, keep the credit card warm and buckle up. I have a feeling this is only the beginning of a lonnnggg financial flight we will be taking together. 😉
Step Two – Identifying Your Student’s Strengths
The college admission process has changed drastically since I went to school. The competition is fierce and the pressure on these kids to get into the “best” school they apply to is intense. If you are like us, you’ve been lecturing your daughter about the importance of grades, extracurricular activities and volunteering since she entered freshman year. So, how can you give her a leg up on the competition now? By helping her identify her strengths.
Helping teens embrace their strengths is a great way to build confidence, alleviate stress and prepare them for all the new experiences they’ll be having over the next year. It will assist with essay writing, in-person interviews, narrowing down interests for selecting a major, etc. Our favorite tool is the Strengths Profile. This online, 180-question assessment, is easy to complete and takes approximately 20 minutes.
What will they learn? The results will reveal 60 distinct qualities that make up their strengths profile. It begins with their “Realized Strengths” (those they perform well, use most often and get energy from). Next they learn about their “Unrealized Strengths” (those they perform well, are energizing, but they don’t use as often as they should). Their “Learned Behaviors” follows (those that are de-energizing and have variable use – think of your Mom saying how great you were at emptying the dishwasher when you were younger!). And, finally they learn their “Weaknesses” (those strengths they find hard and don’t really enjoy).
Hire a Strengths Coach for Additional Insight
In the end, they will receive their 60 strengths organized in a way that encourages them to focus on those things that give them energy and they enjoy.
Our strengths coach walked my daughter through her strengths profile, creating a powerful opportunity to learn about herself. It certainly comes at a crucial time when she is making first-time, independent decisions about her future. With the help of her coach, she learned how to tap a combination of her strengths to master tasks she doesn’t enjoy. She also learned how to answer questions about her strengths/weaknesses that might come up in a job, or school, interview. I almost cried tears of joy as I watched her jot down notes about her strengths assessment.
All I can say is, “YAHOO!” We made it through Step Two.
You can learn more about identifying strengths in RSG’s 5 Minute Insight post: Understanding Strengths to Better Communicate with Teens.
If you have tips you’d like to add regarding the SATs/ACTs please add them in the comment section!
I’m not really sure how many steps there will be in the “Help, My Teen is Going to College” College Search series. I do know the next step is setting up college tours – our first is coming up soon. Stay tuned…
helpful information presented in an easy to read, entertaining way…
thanks for the insight into the complicated and competitive process!