Advice and tips to help you prepare your teenager for higher education and university
Looking at universities and colleges can be a stressful decision for your child. No matter what they are considering, the most important thing for a parent to do is listen.
Here are some tips for guiding your child into making decisions about higher education and university.
Look into hobbies and activities; are any of these transferable to a college or university course? For example, a degree in creative writing or sports theory. What are their favourite subjects at school? If they enjoy DT perhaps they’d like to explore product design or engineering. What do they realistically want to achieve? Talk to them about their goals, do they want to learn more or do they want to progress into a career? There are options for all levels of academics.
Growing up is all about being realistic and starting university or higher education is no different.
The first question to ask is, is your child ready for university or higher education? Some children are better suited to internships and apprenticeships straight out of school. Some children might not have the academic drive that others have and might prefer to do something more physical. If you child does decide they’d like to study higher education and venture off to university or college, be realistic about the skills you’d like to teach them before they leave, for example:
If they don’t already know, teach them how to cook a reasonable number of meals including fajitas and pasta bake. Make sure they can operate the washing machine and that they have a independent bank account set up.
Learning these things will give them the confidence they need to be independent.
Sending your kids to university can be a costly affair so there is a lot to consider:
Student grants
Can your child apply for a maintenance grant? In 2012/13 if the household income is less than £42,600 your child may be a applicable for a grant. There are a variety of other grants for special circumstances. You may be applicable if you are a single parent, if your partner is a student or if you are disabled.
Student loans
Student loans are available to pay for full-time and parttime students’ tuition fees, depending on the circumstances.
Credit cards
Students need a number of supplies to aid their study including laptops, equipment depending on their course, books and stationary. Parent’s have the option of using credit cards to spread out the payments so that it doesn’t seem like such a financial strain.
Many universities offer dedicated help pages for parents and students alike Visit Directgov for more information about student grants and loans in the UK.