Raising
a child is kind of like a multi-stage race. Just as you are finishing
one leg through graduation, you’ve got another to prepare for. So, as
your senior wraps up high school, it’s important to make sure they
finish strong. In my experience, I’ve found that many seniors begin
mentally checking out 4-6 weeks before the end school and in some cases
as soon as they are admitted to the college of their choice. That can
have some dire consequences.
Colleges require a final transcript after graduation. One thing you
need to do upon graduation is request that your high school send that.
It’s important that you do not assume the high school will automatically
send that. You need to specifically request the final transcript be
sent, after graduation. The college is going to take a close look at
this. They want to be sure their incoming freshman maintained the same
kind of academic diligence that got into the college in the first place.
If they didn’t, colleges can and will send letters of rescission.
That
puts a student in an extremely uncomfortable position. As all their
friends pack up and leave for an exciting new chapter of their lives,
this student must explain that their college no longer wants them and
they are forced to scramble for a backup plan. Parents are put in the
same position and are going to be out all the housing deposits or any
other payments they’ve already made to the college.
To
be sure, if your student had a B in a given high school course and
dropped down to a C during the second semester they are unlikely to
receive such a letter, but even a small drop in grades can cause
problems. If a student was accepted into an honors program, that program
is likely to be less lenient with a sudden drop in second semester
senior grades. Many scholarships are also often tied to GPAs. State
scholarships, for example, usually have a GPA requirement and a final
high school GPA that makes a tiny drop, like from a 3.55 to a 3.48, can
cost a family thousands of dollars through the duration of college.
In
addition to having that final transcript, there are a couple of other
things you need to keep tabs on at graduation time or the summer
following that. Depending on how your college does orientation and class
registration, generally earlier is better. Freshman classes and dorms
can fill up fast and you are more likely to get your choice if you are
in the front of the line, so to speak. Colleges will also want
up-to-date immunization records. Your high school likely has these, but
you’d do better trying to get this before school closes up for the
summer and are operating with a skeleton crew. You don’t want to be at
orientation in July, three hours from home, trying to remotely
coordinate efforts between your doctor and half-closed high school
trying to get the right immunization records before you can register.
Lastly, you need to make sure that AP Scores and dual enrollment
transcripts are sent to colleges. Again, you are going to need to
specifically request these from the appropriate sources and it’s
something you have to stay on top of.
A
student’s graduation is an exciting time. It might seem like an end,
but in many ways it is a beginning. There is a lot a parent and young
adult need to do to make sure the next pursuit in life sees a successful
start. It’s easy to let all that get lost in the excitement of
graduation itself, but it’s imperative that a student remains focused
through the very end and that a family stays aware of steps that still
need to be taken. Don’t trip at the finish line and make sure you get
the next leg of the race off on the right foot.
