Final exams and the end of the academic year are only weeks away. Your child is one year closer to graduation (and the end of tuition payments!). Or perhaps your child is on the verge of graduation. How do you help your child finish out the year on a positive, successful note—with minimal stress?
Encourage your child to . . .
- Face their fears! Fear may be writing that long paper or meeting with a prof for extra help. Too many students avoid what scares them and then end up excessively stressed at semester’s end.
- Do what’s hardest, FIRST! Too many times, students plan to do the “easiest stuff” first, thinking they’ll ease into the hard stuff. But they then never get to the hard stuff.
- Plan to have fun! Make a calendar plan for the end of the semester that includes work that’s due AND significant College and social events they do not want to miss (like Springfest). If they see where the fun stuff falls, projects are due, and tests occur, they will be in a better position to plan how to get enough done to allow them to participate in all the fun stuff that is also part of college.
- Keep this year in perspective. It is one of four! If it was a good year, celebrate! If it was not, know that next year does not have to be the same. Depending on what problems surfaced, reach out to
- Academic Advising for help choosing courses that capitalize on their strengths and for disability accommodations that they didn’t ask for this year (but should have)
- Their faculty advisor for questions about their major
- Residential and First-Year Programs for concerns about housing and roommates
- Counseling Services for help with personal matters.
- Remember why they are IN college. Do a reality check with your child to ensure that they "why" aligns with the "what" they are doing. If your child studies too much, remind them to have some fun—or vice versa.
- Remember their brain is IN their body. If they want to think well and feel good emotionally and physically, they have to do the basics: eat well, sleep regularly, and get some exercise. Don’t dismiss the power of these three things just because they’re "easy."
- They can do it! When your child calls home with worries and fears, remind them that they have been successful before (that’s how they got here!), and they will be again. Now, return to #1 and repeat!
Please know we are invested in having your child succeed. Call on us as needed. And happy spring!
Kathy Bradley, Ph.D.
Director of Counseling Services
Associate Dean for College Life