Monthly Archives: June 2015

Scholarship Mom Alert: C.I.P. Scholarship

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Scholarship money. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Scholarship money. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

If your student is heading to college next year or already there, tell him or her about the “College Is Power” scholarship. It may be the way to help pay for their higher education. “Online site CollegeIsPower.com is offering a $1000 college scholarship for students who will be in college within the next 12 months. The application is short and online only, so take a few minutes and don’t miss this one!” says College Scholarship Expert Monica L. Matthews.

Monica reviewed the scholarship requirements and came up with a plan for those interested in applying. Read her “Winning Tips” about the short essay, the only extra material required besides the online application in her post:

C.I.P. College Is Power Scholarship

Good Luck to all applicants!!!

Wednesday’s Parent: Savvy prep for college essays

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Writing college essays. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Writing college essays. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

If your college-bound child isn’t writing in a diary or journal, suggest he or she start one now. It’s a great opportunity for self expression. It’s wonderful practice to form coherent thoughts concisely. And it’s an insightful way to prepare for college essays.

Colleges use essays as another way for admission officers to get to know an applicant and measure how he would fit on their campus. Essays are often required as a major part of scholarship applications, too. A great essay can help net a student entry into a choice college and money towards paying for it.

Yet, many students include reading as a hobby but few think about writing for pleasure. In a personal log, students get to record their thoughts and experiences. This provides a double benefit when it comes time to write college essays.

Writing is a skill and like any other skill, it gets better with practice. Also, journal writing is very different from penning a research paper or school report. The former is about personal opinion and the latter is more concerned with facts and expert sources. College essays are looking for student points of view that come from introspection.

So, the first benefit of keeping a diary is practical. It provides practice in writing one’s unique perspective and ideas. Surprise, the second advantage is also practical. A journal is a great resource and inspiration for topics to write about in college essays.

Read Suzanne’s post: 5 College Essay Tips

READ more:

Wednesday’s Parent: Best question for parents to ask to help with college essays

Finding your happy in college prep

6 high school habits leading to college success

RECAP on storify: #CampusChat 6/24/15 Parent’s Guide to College Essay

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Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Suzanne Shaffer and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

Suzanne @SuzanneShaffer and I @pocsmom will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. Our guest this week will be Ethan Sawyer @CollegeEssayGuy of College Essay Guy discussing the parent’s guide to the college essay. You can follow these simple instructions to join a Twitter chat.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from www.pocsmom.com to http://www.parentscountdowntocollegecoach.com/ and vice versa.

Scholarship Mom Alert: Summer scholarships

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Summer scholarships. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Summer scholarships. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Searching for summer scholarships to help pay for college got a whole lot easier thanks to College Scholarship Expert Monica L. Matthews. She has found and is sharing over a hundred different ones to apply for now or put on the calendar for next year. Read her special article:

Oodles of Summer Scholarships to Help Pay for College

Monica has also written parent and student guides packed with how-to info that provide “Winning Tips” to impress scholarship judges. She breaks the scholarship process down into ten easy to follow sections so applicants can get organized and perfect their scholarship applications to stand out and get noticed. Monica knows what she is talking about. She helped her son win over $100,000 in college scholarship money and can show you exactly how she did it! Find the guides here:

How To Win College Scholarships guide  

Good Luck to all applicants!!!

Wednesday’s Parent: Summer projects clog brain drain

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Summer. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Summer. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Parents, students and teachers dread the anticipated brain drain that occurs during long school breaks. Although it may be inevitable that some facts will drip out, skills don’t have to be lost and others can be strengthened. Summer projects can clog the brain drain and be of particular benefit for the college-bound.

Summer is a great time to create a life-long learning balance between work and play. That includes celebrating accomplishments and filling the schedule with downtime.  Share the following with your teen to explore options that will hone interpersonal and academic skills, add to their college admission resume, and have some summer fun.

8 skill-building job ideas for college-bound students lists eight jobs “tailor-made for the college-bound to gain soft skills, maybe earn some extra money, and build a resume for future careers to impress employers.”

An unusual school break college prep plan shows seven ways to prepare for college “whether students are traveling or staying put.” 

Wednesday’s Parent: 6 unexpected bonuses from summer reading provides six surprising benefits from reading. “There is a physical or virtual book, periodical, newspaper or article to suit every genre and some will cross over. For example, readers of a mystery novel set in 19th century London may be challenged to figure out the puzzle while picking up some historical tidbits about a foreign country. Something from the craft section may spur entrepreneurial talents leading to creation of a new business.”

7 summer to dos for parents of collegebound gives seven things parents can do to help their children “get the jump on college planning” while having some fun.

Read Suzanne’s post: The Summer Scholarship Project

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Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Suzanne Shaffer and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

The bonus is on the fourth Wednesday of each month when Suzanne and I will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will feature an expert on a topic of interest for parents of the college-bound.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from www.pocsmom.com to http://www.parentscountdowntocollegecoach.com/ and vice versa.

Scholarship Mom Alert: PinkRose Breast Cancer Scholarship

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PinkRose Breast Cancer Scholarship. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

PinkRose Breast Cancer Scholarship. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Cancer may be the most dreaded six-letter word in our vocabulary. “The PinkRose Foundation was founded in 2003 with the goal of helping students pay for college after they have been through the tragedy of losing a parent from breast cancer,” according to College Scholarship Expert Monica L. Matthews. There are very specific rules for applicants to follow.

Monica provides details about the scholarship application requirements along with her “Winning Tips.” They give insight into what the scholarship judges are looking for when deciding who to award the PinkRose Breast Cancer Scholarship.

Read Monica’s insightful post before applying:

The PinkRose Breast Cancer College Scholarship

Good Luck to all applicants!!!

Wednesday’s Parent: College prep red flags

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Watch out for college prep red flags. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Watch out for college prep red flags. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Research proved what parents already know: bad behavior can demolish college dreams despite student academic smarts and talents. The range of poor choices run the gamut from awful sleep habits to partying. Parents can pick up the early warning signs and join with their students to address the issues that block success.

First, review the studies which led to two apps to raise GPA. Then go over these 6 tips to deal with partying and your college-bound teen from a previous Wednesday’s Parent. Finally, be wary of changes in your student’s behavior.

Constant drowsiness and irritability may signal more than teenage angst. So can missing deadlines for school work and college prep activities. Lack of motivation and vastly changing interests may also be a red flag. Parents can use the parent-student team to discuss concerns about partying, studying, class attendance, sleep habits, physical activity and socializing. They can also speak with teachers and counselors.

A college education is a privilege that is earned through dedication and commitment. Troubles may arise that divert the college prep course. The earlier the problems are identified, the sooner families can work together for solutions.

Read Suzanne’s post: Talking to Your Teen About Irresponsible Behavior

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Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Suzanne Shaffer and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

The bonus is on the fourth Wednesday of each month when Suzanne and I will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will feature an expert on a topic of interest for parents of the college-bound.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from www.pocsmom.com to http://www.parentscountdowntocollegecoach.com/ and vice versa.

Scholarship Mom Alert: Lint Center Scholarships

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Scholarships about improving national security and global understanding. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Scholarships about improving national security and global understanding. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

If you are a creative problem solver concerned about improving national security and global understanding, then consider applying for the Lint Center’s college scholarships. They are for students interested in the fields of International Affairs, Counterintelligence and National Security. Two of the Lint Center for National Security Studies’ scholarships have July deadlines and winning can help pay for education and career development.

College Scholarship Expert Monica L. Matthews is sharing specific Winning Tips and highlighting important scholarship info and a crucial “required detail” for applicants. Before applying, read Monica’s spot on post

The Lint Center College Scholarships

Good Luck to all applicants!!!

Wednesday’s Parent: 7 great ways to use college ranking lists

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Rank college ranking lists. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

Rank college ranking lists. Photo by Wendy David-Gaines

“Ranking colleges has become a cottage industry with a proliferation of different criteria yielding different college ranking lists. There are plenty of proponents and critics but ultimately the college-bound, stranded in a sea of mixed reviews, must fend for themselves.”

I wrote this back in January of 2012. The controversy over the use and reliability of college ranking lists continues because of the varying criteria the makers use and the mix of fact and opinion. The fact that there are college ranking lists based on the academic to the absurd, from the best in the world universities to the most clean-shaven campuses, adds to the confusion. But there are ways to salvage some useful info to help the college-bound.

I still believe the best list is the one students and parents create but sometimes I catch myself rubbernecking like a driver on a highway. Curiosity takes over and I take a peek. Since many parents and students will, like me, be looking anyway, I’m listing these seven pros for using college ranking lists.

  1. College ranking lists are fun to read and interesting conversation starters between parents and students.
  2. College ranking lists may include important statistics like graduation rate, freshman retention rate, and alumni donations. They may also include important facts about the college selectivity level via current student prior test scores and class standing.
  3. College ranking lists may include schools families have not yet thought about but are worth considering.
  4. College ranking lists show how schools are portrayed and measured up by the list sponsor according to their criteria. If they give great weight to a factor students care about, the school may be worth looking into.
  5. College ranking lists often emphasize brand names and popular colleges which can inspire a search for lesser known or lower rated but better fit schools. These may offer greater chances for admission and more financial aid because they receive much fewer applications.
  6. College ranking lists can serve as tools to hone student critical thinking skills to separate perception from reality.
  7. College ranking lists can be a blueprint for students to create their own personal college ranking list.

Read Suzanne’s post: 5 Reasons You Should Not Rely on College Ranking Lists

READ MORE: 

4 steps to create a personal college ranking list

The right college fit test

Wednesday’s Parent: The prime relationship between college list and college fit

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Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Suzanne Shaffer and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

The bonus is on the fourth Wednesday of each month when Suzanne and I will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will feature an expert on a topic of interest for parents of the college-bound.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from www.pocsmom.com to http://www.parentscountdowntocollegecoach.com/ and vice versa.