In the last post, we explored the first of Chickering’s 7 vectors, Developing Competence, from the student point of view. In the next few posts, we’ll look at this area of development from the perspective of college parents. What can you do to support your student’s development in this area?
Part I: Developing Intellectual Competence:
Talk to your student about his or her study habits . College has a very different pace than high school, and it’s easy to get lost in class if you don’t keep up. It’s also incredibly important that your student begin to take responsibility for planning their own study habits. You aren’t going to be there to make sure they studied every evening, and calling to ask really doesn’t solve the problem. It just gives your student an excuse to lean on if they aren’t doing well.
- Ask your student where he or she studies. As someone who works in Residence Life, I can tell you that your student’s room isn’t always the best answer. Today’s connected residence halls are full of distractions, including internet, cable TV, video games, friends down the hall looking for something to do, not to mention a roommate that might have different habits altogether. Encourage your student to find a place outside the room to study. On many campuses, there is a big building with books and study tables called a library. Tell your kid it’s like Wikipedia, except real. Most have computer labs these days, and an increasing number have wireless hotspots and coffee shops.
- If your student has always been one to study with others, suggest a study group. Class is the best place to start looking. It’s as easy as asking the people sitting nearby in the classroom, or if the class has a listserv or online coursespace, your student can send a message out asking if anyone is interested. Another good place to look is your student’s residence hall. Many schools encourage RAs to put up “study buddy” information on bulletin boards, so people will know who else on the floor is taking the same course. If this kind of thing isn’t available, then your student could put up a flyer or send out a message to a floor listserv looking for study buddies.
- Encourage your student to get involved in a major-related student organization. Most colleges have this type of club in one form or another. I ran an office for student organizations for Penn State’s Smeal College of Business Administration for two years in between Residence Life positions, and I can tell you from this experience that some of the most successful students in just about any given major can be found in major-related organizations. It makes sense. After all, wouldn’t you expect to find people interested in accounting in the accounting club, or business majors in the business special interest house in the residence halls? These are great places to find people with similar interests, but also great places to be found-by employers! A significant part of my job was linking corporate sponsors of the college to student organizations and events where they could meet and interact with students majoring in their target recruiting fields. So joining a major-related organization also gives you more opportunities to connect with possible employers.
- Ask your student why he or she chose his/her major, and what he/she hopes to do with it. Hopefully, you’ve done this by the time your student has reached school. But it’s a topic you should periodically return to, especially if your student is having academic difficulties. Answering these questions for themselves, students can re-connect to the bigger picture, which should help them keep their “eyes on the ball.” If your student can’t answer these questions for himself/herself, then it’s time for some exploration. Encourage your student to go to the career center for assistance exploring options, or consider hiring a career coach. It may also be time for some introspection on your part. Have you encouraged your student to choose a particular major, or to choose a major they will enjoy? You can send your child to medical school, but if he or she doesn’t want to be a doctor, then sooner or later, they are NOT going to be one. Why not bypass a long string of heartaches and soul-searching, in favor of letting your student discover what he or she is meant to do? You can plan out someone else’s life, but you can’t make them live it. The plans won’t work unless the people do. So why not let your student work on the plan?
- Encourage your student to seek out internships, co-ops and volunteer opportunities related to his/her major. Colleges seek out relationships with companies to establish internships and co-ops, because they know that delivering quality employees into the workforce is the best way to build a reputation for excellence in a given field. Companies seek out interns because internships are a great way to get quality people for less money, and to get an early look at the next wave of graduates. It should come as no surprise, then, that many interns go on t accept full-time positions at the companies where they do internships. After a “test drive” of sorts around the company, they know what they’ll be getting into, and are more likely to stay a while. For those who don’t go on to work for the company they interned for, there are usually personal or professional reasons they could cite for why they kept looking. Either way, it is a win-win, because the student is able to examine his or her motivation for doing certain work, see if the reality matches expectations, and figure out if a company’s work environment would be a good fit for his or her personality.
These are just a few starting points for discussion with your student, and by no means comprehensive. Hopefully, they will give you some context for how to help and encourage your student to take responsibility for his or her own intellectual development. Good luck with your discussions.
Coming next: Developing Manual Competence?
Related posts:
- Developing Competence
- Chickering’s 7 Vectors of Development
- I Can’t Believe My Baby is Growing Up!: Some Basics About Student Development Theory for College Parents
- Are You a Helicopter Parent?
Sean Cook has 15 years of experience working in Higher Education, as a Student Affairs Professional. He is a Certified Life and Career Coach through the Life Purpose Institute, a program accredited by the International Coach Federation. Sean also writes about career issues in higher education for our companion site, HigherEdCareerCoach.com and is a periodic contributor to the Student Affairs Collaborative Blog.
