College search for undecided students

cptofthehouse
Tue, 08 Jul 2008 12:31:35 +0000

My first two kids had specific needs that narrowed the choices somewhat. This time around, I was in your predicament. A kid with no really strong interest in anything. He did not care if he went near or far. He did not care large or small. He did not care about weather. He did not care if it was in a city or out in the boonies. He was pretty evenly distributed in interests, though a stronger math student than verbal/writing skills. So, I, Mom put some of my own preferences in the equation at the onset.

We started by looking at nearby colleges, smaller colleges, residential colleges. All of these were MY preferences. As we looked, he started to acquire and state his preferences. Certain patterns and things started coming clear. He liked the Catholic schools which was a bit of a surprise. We visited because there were a couple of them nearby. He did not like suitcase colleges either. He wanted something different from his high school experiences. Because he did not have strong preferences from the onset, I was able to put in my 2 cents worth without the situation getting argumentative. If he doesn’t care, why shouldn’t my preferences be out there? Especially since I am on his side and looking for the best fit.