Welcome to The College Countdown Series, your go-to guide for surviving (and thriving) through the wild ride of college prep! We know that navigating high school, test scores, applications, and your teen’s ever-changing moods can feel like a full-time job. That’s why this series is packed with practical advice, helpful tips, and a sprinkle of humor to keep you from losing your cool. Whether you’re wrestling with essay drafts or just trying to figure out what the FAFSA is, we’re here to help make this college journey a little less stressful—and a lot more fun!

Ready to get started? Download our College Countdown Digital Prep Series now and take the stress out of college planning!


Must-Read Articles

Applying To College 101: Key Online Sites and Terms
By Tanni Haas, Ph.D.

Whether your kid is a rising high school senior who’s just about to apply to college, or the process is several years away, it’s useful to know the key online sites that they’ll use and the most important terms. The process is entirely electronic and may be unfamiliar to many parents.

Major Application Sites
There are three major sites for submitting college applications, in addition to the web sites of individual colleges. The Common App (commonapp.org) is used by more than 800 colleges across the U.S. as well as selected colleges in Asia, Canada, and Europe. Applicants respond to questions that are “common” to all of the colleges, as well as questions chosen by each individual college to which the applicant is applying.

The Coalition App (coalitionforcollegeaccess.org) and the Universal College App
(universalcollegeapp.com) are smaller, competing apps that are used by about 150 and 40 colleges, respectively. You can also apply for college via the websites of individual colleges. Your high schooler should use that option if the colleges they’re interested in aren’t included on any of the larger sites.

Admissions Options
Parents should be more familiar with the four general admissions options: early decision, early action, regular decision, and rolling admission. Early decision is the best option if your high schoolers have a favorite college that they want to attend over all other colleges. The important factor is that the decision is binding, meaning that applicants must accept an offer of admission. Therefore, you can only make this choice for a single college. Early action also signals real commitment to colleges; the main difference is that offers of admission are non-binding (as are those of regular decision and rolling admission). You can make this choice for more than one college. Both early decisions and early actions have deadlines in the fall. Regular admission is the option most applicants choose as the deadline is typically in the spring. This admission option gives them more time to get their applications in shape. Rolling admission means that applications are evaluated as they’re received, and evaluations continue until all the spots for the incoming class are filled. This option has no set deadline.

Connecting The Application With Their High School Record
Once their applications are finished, your kids must “link” them to one of several online sites that high schools use to submit their high school records; only then is the process considered complete. The high school record includes the official description of the high school (aka the “secondary school report”), letters of recommendation from the student’s guidance counselor and/or one or more teachers, and the student’s high school transcript. Most high schools use one of four sites: Naviance, Overgrad, Parchment, and Scoir. Find out which site your kid’s high school uses and spend some time familiarizing yourself with it. Some of these sites also offer students opportunities to research colleges, estimate their chances of getting admitted, compare themselves to other applicants, calculate the costs, and add additional information about themselves such as uploading their resume.

Who’s There To Help?
You’re not alone in the college application process. Most high schools have guidance and college counselors who are there to guide your kids and you through the process. Counselors typically work together but have distinct responsibilities: the guidance counselor is there to help your kid select the courses that best prepare them for college, while the college counselor helps them use the various college application sites. Contact your kid’s high school to get the names of their guidance and college counselors.

College Bound: 9 Great Apps Your High Schoolers Should Get
By Tanni Haas, Ph.D.

There’s nothing easy about applying to and preparing for college. Thankfully, there are many great apps that can make the process a little easier. Here are 9 of the very best ones. They’re all free, so encourage your high schoolers to download them when they’re ready to start the journey.

SAT: Practice, Prep, Flashcards
Available at: Apple Appstore; Google Play
For most high schoolers, the college admissions process starts when they take the SAT—the most widely-used admissions test in the U.S. There are many SAT apps available; one of the best is SAT: Practice, Prep, Flashcards. The app includes full-length practice tests, lots of questions from the different subject areas, and an extensive database of flashcards as study aids. Students can track their progress over time and get feedback on their strengths and weaknesses.

ACT Online Prep
Available at: Apple Appstore; Google Play
Many high schoolers choose to take the ACT instead. ACT test takers can use a calculator for all the math questions (you can’t do that for the SAT) but, unlike the SAT, the ACT also includes a science section. ACT Online Prep is a great resource for preparing for the test. The app includes a practice test which automatically generates personalized study suggestions, lots of practice questions, and detailed explanations of answers.

College Search Guide
Available at: Apple Appstore; Google Play
The next step in the process is to find colleges that suit your kids’ interests and preferences. Many helpful apps exist; the most comprehensive one is the College Search Guide which lets them search almost all of the 7,000 colleges in the U.S. They can search by type of college, degrees offered, campus environment, cost, acceptance rates, distance from home, among other things. The app also has a list of the top 100 colleges across different categories.

YouVisit Colleges
Available at: Apple Appstore; Google Play
Once they’ve narrowed down the search, it’s great to visit the colleges they’re most excited about to really get a sense of what these colleges have to offer. When that’s not possible, or if they just want to get an idea of what a certain college looks like, download YouVisit Colleges. This app lets them virtually tour more than 500 colleges across the U.S.

Scholarships.com
Available at: Apple Appstore; Google Play
For most parents the biggest concern isn’t which college to send their kids to but how to find the money for it. After all, college tuition is getting higher and higher every year. The largest and most widely used scholarship app is Scholarship.com. It has a database of more than 3.7 million scholarships and is continuously expanded and updated. Your kids list their academic interests and accomplishments and are then matched with scholarships for which they’re eligible to apply.

Khan Academy
Available at: Apple Appstore; Google Play
College work isn’t high school work; it’s much, much harder. As your kids are getting ready for college, they should stay up-to-date on their academic knowledge. If they’re a little rusty in one or more subjects, encourage them to download the Khan Academy app. It has 10,000 video tutorials on all the major academic subjects as well in-depth articles and interactive exercises.

My Study Life
Available at: Apple Appstore; Google Play
Once your kids arrive at college, they should stay organized and on top of everything. First task: download My Study Life. This easy-to-use app lets them keep track of all their homework assignments and exams which will help them organize their time efficiently. They can also use the app to set reminders, so that they get alerts before any particular task is due.

Flashcards with Cram
Available at: Apple Appstore; Google Play
When your kids sit down to study, one of the most useful study tools is flashcards. Flashcards with Cram lets them access more than eight million flashcards on all the major academic subjects. They can also create their own flashcards, using text and images, and share them with study partners. They can go through entire sets of flashcards when they study or hide flashcards they already know for more effective studying.

Mint: Personal Finance & Money
Available at: Apple Appstore; Google Play
For many kids college is the first time in their lives they get to experience real independence, and that includes budgeting their money. If you don’t want them to call you every time they run out of money, encourage them to download Mint: Personal Finance & Money. This money- management app lets them track their expenses, see the balances on their checking and savings accounts, and create realistic budgets.


Prepare Your Kids for College: 10 Things to Do Now So They Are Ready
By Rebecca Hastings

My son looked at me with dread in his eyes. He needed to find out about driver’s education classes, and there was minimal information on the website. I smiled and told him he needed to call them. As he held the phone in his hand, he wasn’t sure what to do, what to say, or what to ask. He didn’t want to make the call, but I knew he needed to.

As kids approach adulthood, there are things you can do to help them feel prepared and confident. From simple things like making a phone call to more complex skills like financial planning, you can help your child feel ready for college and more.

Here are 10 helpful things to teach your child:

Life Skills
Cook simple meals: Yes, they will probably have a meal plan if they go away to college. But knowing how to make a few meals will help them far beyond their college years. Spend time including them in food preparation. Teach them how to follow a recipe, measure, and prep ingredients.

Transfer healthcare: While you have been responsible for every aspect of their healthcare, they need to learn how to navigate their health. Let them make appointments, handle check-in, and share insurance information. Give them a chance to answer questions at doctor’s appointments before you give any input and be sure to give them one on one time with the doctor. Letting go of the control in this area can feel hard, but they must learn how to do this. The more you equip them to handle these things the easier it will be when they get sick and are away from home.

Run errands: Things that seem simple to us can be challenging for teens because they haven’t done them before. Give them a chance to run errands like going to the grocery store or pumping gas so they learn how to do these things on their own. Even having them take the car in for an oil change or bring the dog to the groomer so they learn how to interact with service providers independently is helpful to prepare them for college and adulthood.

Self-care: This isn’t about relaxing or taking time for yourself, although that is a helpful thing to model and teach. This is about teaching your child how to take care of things like hygiene, laundry, making a bed, wiping down counters, cleaning out the fridge, getting rest and exercise, and even managing time. While it is nice to do these things for them sometimes, make that the exception. In life, it is not typical for someone else to handle these things. Teach them how to do it now and they will be much better off down the road. 

Financial Skills
Open a bank account: Help your child open their bank account. If they are under eighteen, you will need to be on the account with them but many banks offer student accounts that can be opened as young as fifteen and used until their early to mid-twenties. Be sure to get an account with a debit card and teach them how it works as well as how to monitor their spending.

Pay bills: Kids need to learn how to pay bills on time. Even if they don’t have any official bills, you can start teaching them to contribute to their expenses such as cell phone or car insurance bills on a certain day each month.

Plan spending and saving: Have regular conversations about how to plan their spending. Budgeting can sound too intense for many teens, so asking questions to get them thinking about upcoming expenses or savings. For example, “I saw that the fair is coming. How much do you plan on spending when you go with your friends?” or “I know you’re hoping to get a computer before college starts. How much do you need to save each month to make that happen?” will help your child think ahead about how to best use their money. 

Learning & Professional Skills
Talk about plans: Have regular conversations about what options are available to your child. If they are going to college, make them part of the process and help them understand the financing. Whether you are paying for school, they are paying for school or they are utilizing aid, clear communication is essential so they know what they are responsible for now and in the future.

Prepare documents: College requires a lot of documents. From resumes to applications, essays to scheduling, there are a lot of things to fill out. Let your child fill them out. Yes, you can answer questions. But help them take responsibility for their learning by handling this process. There can be a lot of questions and discussions that need to happen for them to do this. Consider setting aside a weekly time to answer any questions they may have so you both have the time and attention you need for the tasks to be done.

Pay attention to deadlines: The college application process is full of deadlines. Taking tests, sending transcripts, completing admissions and financial applications, and sending deposits all have very specific deadlines. Discuss these with your child and expect them to meet these deadlines. It is helpful to talk about upcoming deadlines together and even ask them to plan time to complete the tasks. Visual and digital reminders will help them stay on track so they meet any upcoming deadlines.

If you give them the opportunity to do these things now when you are available to help if needed, they will feel ready and better equipped to do these things.


10 College Bound Things We Love
By Amanda Ciani

Your teen is excited to embark on their new educational journey. But parents may be worried about their child moving out and surviving on their own! This step towards independence and adulthood is BIG, almost as big as the list of essentials they will need to make it on their own. Whether your Freshman is slated to live in the dorms or off campus, we have put together an A+ list of things WE love for college students to pack up for their new dwelling 

Marigold Living
After a long day of learning, students can hit the hay in exceptional comfort. These refined bedding pieces offered by Marigold Living celebrate the rich design heritage and cultural influence of India. Eyecatching and comfortable, the bedding is also machine washable for easy care. $42-555 at marigoldliving.com

Just Move Protein Power
Power through the semester with this certified vegan complete protein powder that is rich in essential vitamins and minerals. It also tastes “straight out of Grandma’s kitchen” with delicious flavors like banana pudding, blueberry muffin, chocolate cake, buttercream cupcake and more. Keep your energy up and make the grade! $29.99+ at amazon.com or justmovesupplements.com

Funky Junque Ponytail Hat
Stuck with an early class? Students can wake up and roll out of bed, put this hat on and go. This hat’s criss-cross elastic bands allow the wearer to sport ponytails at multiple levels making it both functional and fun. Funky Junque also has a variety of trendy men’s golf, trucker and retro hats.  $19.99 at funky-junque.net

Fleks Footwear
These sandals are perfect for college students sharing communal bathrooms. Slip on these East Beach Slides made of 85% recycled material called FLEKSfoam. Super comfortable, remarkably durable and they look great, too. Available in a variety of collegiate colors so students can support their schools; these swanky sandals would also add a perfect pop of color during a fashionable summer vacay!  $65 at fleksfootwear.com

Domingo Backpack
Hauling books around campus can actually be super cute! Check out this adorable diamond patterned Domingo bag from Panache Collection. The straps are adjustable for comfort and the bag is big enough to carry a laptop and some books. Also available in green (Element), orange (New Horizons), white (Alayah), tan (Marissa), yellow (Gold Rush), olive (Off the Grid).  $72 at panache-collection.com

Cribsi – Lotus Boutique Hotel Towels
College life doesn’t have to feel like roughing it! Bring the feel of hotel luxury with you to school with these soft, absorbent, long-lasting towels make of 100% ringspun cotton. Hand towelers, face towels, bath towels and bath sheets are available in white or charcoal.
$9.99+ at cribsi.com 

Attmu Portable Shower Caddy
Large and in charge, this caddy is big enough to hold all of a college student’s full-size shower goodies using seven  interior flexible holders to keep things in place. The bag is waterproof, has a sturdy hook and even boasts a touchable transparent phone holder pocket. Available in six colors.  $12.99-14.99 at amazon.com

Cleanbar Soap
With moisture-rich ingredients, these soaps leave the skin feeling good and smelling decadent. For Her and For Him Bundles are available so students can try a variety of scents and subscriptions make repurchasing monthly or bimonthly a breeze. Cleanbar is made in the USA by a woman-owned company! $8.50+ bars/ $25+ bundles at CleanbarSoapCo.com

MADECA DERMA Ready Cure Patch Intensive
College stress causing breakouts? Don’t let acne stand in your way to having a clear outlook. Students will adore these overnight patches that help treat acne and acne scars. Feel pampered, on a budget! Each pack includes 66 patches in two different sizes. $19.98 at madeca.com

Aquasonic Black Series
Show up to school with all smiles. This ultra-whitening electric toothbrush is top of the line, producing 40,000 vibrations per minute and with ultra-fast wireless charging. This brush is powerful but also lightweight. The kit comes with 8 brushheads, which will last about 2.5 years!  $39.95 at amazon.com