California State University-Dominguez Hills Top Questions

Trust your children. Maturity tends to come with independence, so let your children make and solve their own mistakes/problems. If they need help, they will probably come to you first.

i would give the advice to the parents to give the student the choice to choose where they want to go, and to never forget that college is a very fun but stressful part of our lives and students need all of the financial and emotional support possible

try and find one that has a good program in the field that you want to go into

Make sure you save and be wise about your financials before going to college whether it is a 4 year or technical college. When you do go study and give it your all because remember you can't get that money back that you've waisted. Be smart about your studies and see a counslor or academic adivsor to make sure you are on track with your major and not waisting your time. You want to finish school on a timley basis and get out there in the real world to start paying back those student loans you do not want those hanging over your head forever. Oh about student loans try not to overextend yourself on those if you can help it. Enjoy college do the parties and join the frats and sorors just be smart about it.

Research, research and more research. Attend orientations, ask questions and with these hard economical times don't try to over do it and spend extra money by having your child live on campus. It's nice and all but they will get the same degree whether they live at home or at school. The only difference is their college experiences but if you look at everything the most important thing is getting your degree.

Before you even apply, do your research; visit the campus if you can. Make sure that the campus is a good fit financially, academically, AND socially. I wound up at my last choice school, which is predominately compose of students from other racial backgrounds. This in itself is not a problem for me, but their inability to accept me for being different is. I spend most of my days on campus alone, and only the professors talk to me in class. In between classes, I sit alone under a tree studying, even when its raining. Please do your research, college shouldn't be a miserable experience . By looking into your choices, you can wind up at a school where you are happy and valued for who you are.

To find the "right" school, I would start by asking myself or my child, "what do you want as career that you will work hard towards?" By listing what interests them, the parent is already halfway done. The next question would be the location and costs. Those questions can be figured out by accessing college/university websites or going on college tours if the school is near-by. I would suggest finding a student who attends the potential school through Facebook if one would like a first-hand opinion or experience. The way I survived college where I did not know anybody, I just started talking to other students in class and that led to friendships. Also, you can network through alumnis, volunteering, or working! Don't worry about fitting in, this is not high school, you are there to figure out your livelihood or change it to something else. That's the beauty of college! Enjoy!

I would say make sure you do a tour of the campus first to see if that is the environment that you wouldnt mind seeing each day when you come to school.

I would tell them to do more reasearch on the choice of school they want to go. And not to let the financial issues stop them from attending any school they want to go.

I went the community college route which allowed a lot of exploration in different general fields. This was great because I was not positive on what I was going to study right away. I was able to save a lot of money and still transfer to a great college. I also saved money by staying at home with my family. I think that you shouldn't put to much pressure on deciding which school fits your lifestyle and what you think you might do with your life and feel forced to attend a 4 year school. Community college still lets you discover yourself.