Preparing Early for College

it's not too early to start thinking about college, visiting, researching, but it really is too early to apply for scholarships. many don't know from year to year how much funding they'll have, let alone to offer you anything this far out. my son was told by the state of maryland that he had won a grant, but then casually told him 'oops, sorry, we're out of money. but you qualified!' not once but two years in a row.
khairete
S.

You really need to research different colleges. Don't worry about the scholarships... those who have money this year may or may not have money her senior year. Just visit different campuses so she can see what they are like.
You also might want to visit the college websites and click the tuition button so you don't get sticker shock in a few years...
Relax. Enjoy your time with her. Don't rush it.
When she enters high school you need to make sure she is in the right classes - the ones that count towards the graduation requirements. Find out what she needs for most colleges and steer her in that direction... 4 years of English, 4 years of Math, 3 years of Foreign Language, 4 years of History, 4 years of science...
Do your research, but really... don't push.
My son is a senior. He has already been accepted to one college. He started his applications and essays over the summer. You can't do it any earlier and most college applications don't open until 9/1 of the senior year...
If your daughter is interested in the Military Academies, you can start the appointment process in the June before she starts her senior year. Not much more can be done before then.
Ditto for the scholarships... there are a few that you can apply for as a Junior, but there aren't all that many...

LBC

8th grade is a bit early for applying for scholarships. It is NOT too early to have college visits. I think it is important for students to understand the importance of college and that does start early. In our daughter's eyes, college is not an option, it is something you just do.

My daughter is almost 16, a 10th grader and we are actively looking at colleges and visiting them. As for the $$, we started her college plan the day she was born. She is fully funded for college now, our goal was to put $10,000 a year in her fund. Some years it was more due to market fluctuations.

I do think you are on a good track by talking about it now. Grades are important (as well as community service hours).

Our daughter loves the college visits. We were at Penn State last week, heading to Arizona State in October and Duke by Christmas. Good luck.

Eighth grade is too early to apply for anything - but you can certainly look around using Google. You won't apply until the year prior to her starting.

Scholarships and other monies available for college change all the time. In the meantime, I would see if TX has a state 529 plan. MN does, and I make deposits of $25 straight from my paycheck into it. It adds up fast, and MN actually matches what I put into it.

Good Morning,

It looks like you already have some good thoughts. I do have to respectfully disagree with a couple of the posters saying it's too early. On one hand, yes, you don't want to burn either one of you out by starting the college search too soon. If it is money you're worried about, I agree that to start saving now will probably get better results at this point than applying for scholarships. BUT, this is what we found out from our experience and how we changed our approach.

When our son was a sophomore we took him to Marquette University. He loved the campus, the area and the fact that it was his grandfather's alma mater. What he found out was he really had very little chance of getting in because he screwed around his freshman year in high school. Yes, as his parents we had been on top of the lack of effort and missing homework, but to hear it from someone else made an impact.
Our daughter is 4 years younger and we did start talking about colleges very early and what was expected. She is very well aware that it is very competitive out there and it's all up to her and her efforts. *While we hope our children get college degrees in something they are passionate about, we do not push that on our children. Each child is different and maybe their passion is something that does not require a college degree. But we do want them to know what is expected and not be surprised by starting too late.

Just my 2 cents.

Fast Web. But yes, 8th grade's a little early.

what is her strength? build on it. I know a young man that got scholarship from an organization of Tall people. Call your local high school and speak to the counselor there to get some websites.

Your daughter IS still young to be worrying about this. I agree with the Mom that suggested putting your efforts to saving money now.

Go to the bookstore, there are books specifically on this, I would Google the topic too. Good luck your daughter. Be sure she starts doing volunteering in your community in high school too. Many colleges look at this in addition to grades when looking at college aps. One college our 9th grade daughter toured told us that the average applicant of this vet med. college had an avg of about 1500 volunteer hrs of time when they applied to this vet med college after undergrad school. Hope this helps

Make sure your child is enjoying school. Make sure she also has outside interests that she has a passion for.. Also help her find volunteer opportunities.

I agree that once she enters high school to make sure she is challenged all 4 years academically. Colleges look at what type of classes your child took all 4 years. They like to see students that are well rounded. Fine arts, athletics, clubs, committees make for a well rounded college student.

Also if your daughter is a good student, she will probably be fine on the big tests like SAT and ACT.. Our daughter did not even study. She DID go to a tutor the week of the exam to review Algebra, because she hadn't taken it since 8th and 9th grades and could not remember the formulas! Hee, hee..

It does not hurt to visit colleges, but really most kids do not even begin to think about where they want to go till about the middle of the junior year in high school.
Here in the spring UT offers an Open house to all children.. It is called Explore UT.. They have every department open for the kids to visit the Professors and students. There are activities that are fun in each department.. We went a couple of times and it was awesome! I bet in Houston Baylor has something similar.

Here is a link to the Explore UT 2011 event..
http://bealonghorn.utexas.edu/meetus/events/riseandshine/

Here is Austin the year our daughter graduated, there was a young man that got a perfect SAT score and was Valedictorian of his graduating class. He applied to 12 colleges and was not accepted to his top 6 choices. His father had actually quit working for 2 years! to help his son work on colleges. They were baffled about the whole thing..

But he had no outside activities except academics.. Debate, robots and Math League.. He took basic PE, but no sports and for his fine arts he took, Art History and Music Theory and Home Ec nutrition class. . He told me he had never attended a school football game or any school sports events.. Bless his heart..

It's way too early. You could start with a savings plan (your state may have one - check with high school guidance). The high school SHOULD have a program for college-bound kids and their parents, with reps from some of these financial plans. You can call the high school now and see what they offer - you could probably attend (without your child) even if it's geared for juniors. It's paid for with public tax money so you're entitled. It will give you a head's up about what's in store for you. Be careful about getting roped into hiring a college-prep consultant in the 9th grade. My brother did that and spent $5000 per child - that would have paid a lot of tuition! There are some good ones that are worth the money but right now it's way too soon for your daughter to have any idea where she wants to go or what she wants to do. Visiting colleges now is not going to be helpful to anyone and it will just put pressure on her. I don't think you'll find much on college websites now. As time goes on, you can get info on federal programs (Stafford loans, Perkins, Pell grants).

I wouldn't involve your child until she is a junior. Many high school English classes help them work on their essays as part of the regular curriculum, which is a huge help. You could start by asking your friends and neighbors who have older kids what they think of the guidance department, programs, etc.

If she is profoundly gifted I would suggest she take the SAT this fall with the College programs that offer it in your state.
In NC they go through Duke, it's called the Duke TIP program. In VA they go through John's Hopkins.
Contact your guidance counselor. The prerequisites are that she have at least a 97% in one subject consistently throughout all her years of education and at least a 95% in all other subjects on the state tests. The colleges then offer classes in the summer and during long holiday weekends. They are intensive and they cost a mint but well worth it if you child is bored in the gifted classes at school.
That will help her in the short term if she needs a challenge besides Algebra and Geometry, this also looks good on college apps and scholarship apps. .
Otherwise you need to wait until she is a junior. Your high school guidance counselor should be able to sit down with you and her and help you start applying for scholarships.