Getting Your Child Ready for College: Three Important Factors to Consider

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Your child’s departure from school represents a huge milestone, and in the years prior, there’s a lot to prepare for to make sure the transition goes as smoothly as possible.  These things take a lot of time to properly plan out, and you don’t want to be rushing a couple of months before they start to sort everything. This article will help you get started: here are three of the most important factors when it comes to preparing your child for college and beyond!

Emotional Readiness

For many, emotional readiness is an afterthought, but it should really be at the forefront of getting ready for college. 

It’s common that even a good few years beforehand, your child is starting to worry about the prospect of college, and the earlier you intervene, the better. Have light, casual conversations about them about what they might want to do when they’re older, and if they’re worried about the future, why? Ask them if there’s anything you can do to help.

It’s important for you to nurture their ambitions while simultaneously encouraging them to simply enjoy their school life. Preparing in a calm way for the future is one thing, but you want to reiterate to them the importance of enjoying the here and now. 

Financial Readiness

One of the most important things to figure out early on is how you’re going to finance your child’s education. The totals add up quickly once you account for the college fees, supplies, and potentially living expenses, so you need to spend some time working out a proper budget. 

If your child isn’t going to college for some time yet, one of the best ways to save for their studies is to utilize a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP). A RESP is set up specifically for funding educational pursuits and has special tax advantages that make it better than a traditional savings account for this purpose. 

You should also know that the government can contribute to RESPs once you’ve set one up, so there are options even if you don’t have the opportunity to save a lot yourself. 

Academic Readiness

Finally, there’s academic readiness, and in this area, striking a balance is everything. You want to foster a sense of independence in your child and encourage them to study hard and take extra classes, but you also don’t want to apply too much pressure on them as this can make them resent learning and cause burnout. 

How that balance is weighted will depend on the individual, and it’s something that you’ll have to work on slowly together (it’s not something that can be rushed as this will only cause stress). 

Wrapping Up

Hopefully, you’re now a little clearer on how to adequately prepare your child for college. There are some big changes ahead, but so long as you’re organized and have good communication with them, you’ll help them develop the skills they need to move on to the next stage of life. Good luck!