Prospective Parents
Choosing a college is a journey you take with your student. We invite you to experience Northwestern for yourself. Regardless of how you choose to visit, you will experience Northwestern’s Christ-centered community, rigorous academic programs, and outstanding commitment to career and life preparation. We look forward to hosting you!
We know how big of an investment private education is! We want to come alongside you and your family to educate, equip, and empower you to make the best decision for your family! Here are helpful tips and resources to help our high school parents along the way!
Your students’ high school years should be joyful, exploratory, and full of learning. Your student is developing an academic foundation for college and managing their many activities.
What does your student enjoy? Leading in student government? Playing the trumpet in band? Writing projects in English? Wearing lab goggles in the chemistry lab? As a parent, you see your student’s strengths and aspiring passions. You can encourage your student’s exploration of interests.
Another tip we have is encouraging your student to get plugged in and commit to activities. Nothing looks better on a college application than leadership qualities and time invested into programs—whether it’s an athletic team and student counsel, or the National Honors Society and ceramics club.
High school is also a time for you to support your student and help to set the pace. Your student might want more independence, but remember, they still really need you. So, while your student is focusing on navigating the rigors of high school, take a moment to check out Northwestern, to see if we might be a future fit for your student.
General Action Items:
- Help your student narrow down a list of potential colleges to manageable groupings. For example, does your student know he wants to go to a small, private school? Or does she want to complete a 2-year technical degree? Large state school you watch on TV? Or is faith an important aspect?
- Visit campuses, generally. Consider this “test driving.” See what types of colleges feel like. Go visit events rather than personalized one on ones. Get a feel for different campuses to continue to narrow down the list.
- Crush high school. Help your student develop study skills, take college prep classes, participate in extracurricular activities. Get involved in leadership and volunteering. Remember the payoff is scholarships.
- If you live in Minnesota, PSEO is important to you. Find out what schools participate and when your student is eligible to start.
- Major Exploration. Dream and Discover. Imagine the tradeoff, long term, of pushing your student to dream and discover in lieu of finding a part time job. Could you student shadow a chiropractor, lawyer, mechanic, and plumber instead of being paid to work retail? Pushing discovery helps save money down the road because you’ll help your student find a school that’s right for them.
- Encourage your son or daughter to pursue academically rigorous high school classes.
- Attend a college fair to gather helpful information. Check with your high school counselor on which fairs are in your area.
Northwestern Action Items:
- Learn about Northwestern’s values. It’s important to know the mission behind each university.
- See how your family can afford a UNW education with our financial planning tools.
- Attend admissions events!
- Learn about online PSEO for juniors and seniors to save money before even stepping foot on campus! PSEO on Purpose is a great event to learn more.
