Congratulations! You've been admitted to Zoom University for August 2020
Yes, we’re all aware of how sad it is that COVID-19 has impacted our current high school Seniors and current college students. COVID-19 has impacted every single person, regardless of their developmental stage. No matter how optimistic any of present being, this young population has been given the short end of the stick for their year. They’re grieving lost experiences, disappointed in stalled rituals, and anxious about their unknown futures. Will there be summer jobs? That probably won’t happen. Will college be in person in August? I wouldn’t hold my breath. Knowing this, the idea of hopping on the college train has some high school students really questioning their futures.
Instead of attending college out-of-state or at a private school, students are looking at more local institutions, community colleges, or even considering deferring enrollment altogether. We can thank a public health pandemic for being the log, not the straw, that broke the back for systemic change regarding college being the best choice after high school. Students are now exploring vocational programs, volunteer opportunities, gap semester or gap year options, or even just staying close to home to weather the virus storm until antibodies exist. For those students, you may be waiting awhile. For everyone else, the world is your oyster!
Typically, parents are the ones thinking about the financials of higher education. They make sacrifices to invest in their child’s education and future. But now, I’m reading about more and more high school Seniors, and continuing college students, realizing that paying for their expensive college while studying from home is not fiscally responsible. Don’t fret, colleges are anticipating the drop in student retention, for both incoming and returning students. Some colleges and universities will survive this, yet I’m afraid a lot won’t. MacMurray College already announced their closing at the end of May. It’s only a matter of time before other colleges follow suite. For a student concerned about going to school in the fall, you may want to expand that to even ponder whether your college will exist after November 2020.
If you are a parent grieving the loss for your children, keep doing so. Everyone is grieving in one way or another right now. Being quarantined, we can use this time to focus on family. Now is a time to serious consider pushing back on enrolling in college. Discuss with your child alternative options. Link them up with an experience that will still foster their passion for education, while teaching resiliency, and diverting them from slipping into a depression after being forced to return home. Don’t let your fear for their safety be the thing that holds them back from relaunching into life during our new normal. Seek out a professional who can help in navigating this new territory. One who understands the need to be financially savvy, and who can provide options that will be so transformative your child will be talking about it for the rest of their life!
For questions or comments contact Joanna.
