Philosophy

Preparing for College

Starting college can be a time of joy and excitement or a time filled with apprehension and anxiety for both students and parents. Particularly, for many young people, this period represents a first experience away from family, supervision and home, and is a time of great transition. It is a time to establish independence, learn some of life’s lessons, grow and change. Perhaps college students change more in their first year of college than during any other single year period of their adult lives.

It, therefore, is important that preparative stages leading up to, and including, this transition to college, begin to help students discover:

• who they are;
• what fields of study are available and potentially fulfilling;
• where they want to live as independent adults;
• when to take necessary steps throughout the process; and
• why they choose the options that present themselves.

Transitioning into college

As each student transitions into college, he/she will adjust to new surroundings in individual and personally meaningful ways. Since college is a time for students to establish themselves as active community members and leaders, post-secondary education should not be viewed solely as a place to acquire facts and figures, but also as a living laboratory. It is a place to learn responsibility, community involvement and social skills as independent productive adults. The magical formula, though, is to balance personal activities with academic responsibilities. This provides a stimulating, satisfying and growth-oriented college experience.

It is important to identify schools with both the academic and social contexts that allow a student to find acceptable challenges and activities that are engaging and fulfilling. Most importantly, a student must be “happy” with choices, rather than attending a school merely for the sake of a recognizable name. The “happiness factor” is not one to be taken lightly as it has a decided impact on adjustment and success. It is better for a young student to flourish in a college that provides a personally gratifying and comfortable setting rather than fail or withdraw from a name school.

College Opportunities

There are several thousand colleges and universities in the U.S., yet probably about a hundred (or so) have recognizable names. Many of the remainder are hidden jewels of our educational system offering opportunities to achieve and excel that go unheralded and missed by many students looking to formulate a list of potential colleges. Associated with the many paths contributing to academic satisfaction are such features as class size, student services, research and internship availability and the likelihood of interacting and cultivating relationships with faculty, students with similar interests and (where available) graduate students. Students need to develop the skill to identify these factors, evaluate them and finally make an informed decision that allows increased prospects to function both effectively and successfully. No opportunity or school should be overlooked or dismissed as inferior.

Pathways Consulting Services

Pathways Consulting Services offers students a means of guided discovery to help them along the path toward attaining their academic goals. Students are encouraged to see themselves as the accomplished young adults they’ve become, with innate gifts and talents to explore during their college experience. Part of this discovery process is realizing that every student is in control of his/her own education through not only the decisions made but also the opportunities presented in an academic setting or created by the student’s own initiative. College should be a time to explore and expand interests, to promote and build self-confidence and to develop and understand responsibility and independence. The college experience should enrich, gratify and reward the student both academically and personally.