Paramus High School Guidance Program Offers Tips to Help You Survive the College Application Process

College applications can be a confusing process. With financial aid, college visits and standardized testing to worry about, just picking a school can get lost in the shuffle.

So with an interest in making the process clearer for parents, the guidance department has a few tips:

Sign up for Naviance

The high school's web-based guidance program has everything parents need for college and career planning. Both parents and students can access Naviance, whose features include career and college searches based on personality tests and grades.

What to ask during visits

"It' really depends on the visit," said guidance counselor Kelly Hunsberger. Many questions, relating to demographics, size, majors and cost are answered during tours. But many parents forget to ask about schools' academic requirements.

"The step from high school to college is a very big one," in terms of academic difficulty, Hunsberger said.

Parents also sometimes lose sight of what comes after college: Getting a job. A schools' job placement rate is an important statistic to consider when choosing a college.

Let them do the work

"You're independent when you get to college," Hunsberger said.

With that in mind, parents should let students take the lead in the application process, since ultimately, they'll be taking the lead in their education once they ship off to school. If parents let students take the reins, they'll be in for less of a shock once classes start.

Financial aid

Parents should never have to pay for financial aid information. The FAFSA application is free—that's why it's called the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

There are many sites out there that claim to have FAFSA information but ask for money—don't be fooled.

Aside from that point, parents should talk with their children as soon as possible about finances and figure out what they can afford. It can be disappointing for students to find out they can't attend a school they love because of money.

On the topic of money, there are many easy ways to find and apply for scholarships to help shoulder the financial burden. Fastweb.com is a good resource for scholarships, and Hunsberger suggests checking individual college sites for opportunities as well.

Visit

You wouldn't rent an apartment without seeing it first. The same goes for picking a college.

"I think a lot of students make a decision based on a college, sight unseen," Hunsberger said.

Without visiting, she said, it's difficult to understand the climate of college: Do people stick around on weekends? Is there student life? Is the school walkable? It sounds obvious because it is obvious—students can learn a lot about a school from physically being there.

Important dates

Finally, Hunsberger said, make sure to use the resources provided by Paramus High School. The guidance department is holding a trio of events over the next few months to help students make the all-important college decision:

Junior Parent/Student College Nights: Feb, 9, 10, 7 p.m., Paramus High School Cafeteria. The guidance department will prepare parents of juniors for the college process.

Special Education College Information Night: March 22, 7 p.m., Paramus High School. Representatives from various colleges will come to speak to parents of special education students about the issues pertaining to their children's continuing education, and about the accommodations at their schools.

Spring College Fair: April 28, 7 p.m., Paramus High School Gymnasium. More than 100 colleges will be represented. Students can check out each college's table, meet admission representatives and pick up information.