As a parent of a college student, you are using the college website to gather information, and to have a sense of the place where your child will be spending significant time during the coming years. The following are ten suggestions for parents on how to look at the college website to gather the most information.

1. Ten Ways Parents of College
Students Can Use the College
Website
Don’t go to College without us….

2. Ten Ways Parents Can Use the College Website
When your son or daughter was in the midst of the search
process for college, chances are that he or she
(and possibly you) spent countless hours poring over college
websites. College websites have become an extremely important
admissions tool.
Once your child heads to college, you should begin to look at the
college’s website differently. As a parent of a college student,
you’re no longer looking at a website to evaluate the institution, but
using it to gather information, and to have a sense of the place
where your child will be spending significant time during the coming
years.
Use this tool to it fullest advantage. Spend time browsing the site,
look beyond the “For Parents” section. Enter the site through the
“Current Students” portal as well as the “For Parents” area.
The following are ten suggestions for parents on how to look at the
college website to gather the most information.

3. 1. Look at the Pictures.
Spend some time browsing the website to
look at the pictures of the students. This
will give you a sense of the students at the
college and the activities in which they
are engaged.
Yes, colleges do put their “best foot
forward” on the sites, but you will certainly
get a feel for the institution. Who knows,
you may even spot your own son or
daughter!

4. 2. Explore the college catalogue.
Many colleges now post their college
catalogue on line. (Some institutions
now only post their catalogue on line.)
The college catalogue has almost all of the important
information a student needs to know. In addition to
course descriptions and major requirements, the
catalogue will tell you college policies, procedures,
deadlines, special programs, contact information,
graduation requirements, and much, much more.
Remember, the more you know, the more you can direct
your student toward important information.

5. 3. Check out the “For Parents” section.
Although you may not want to limit
yourself to looking at the “For
Parents” section of the website,
don’t overlook it.
In addition to Parent or Family
Weekend information and local
hotel and/or restaurant information,
you may learn about orientations, e-
mail sign-ups, parent associations,
even local parent groups in your
area.
Definitely take advantage of
information available here. It is one
way in which the college can reach
out to you as a parent.

6. 4. Check the Calendar.
One of the advantages of an on-line calendar,
is that it doesn’t go out of date once it is printed.
Most colleges work hard to keep their on-line calendar
current. Check the calendar for important dates,
deadlines, and events.
End of semester dates are especially important if you
need to make travel or other arrangements for your
student. Be sure to check the final exam schedule as
well as the last day of class dates.

7. 5. Explore upcoming campus events.
Checking out the events coming up on campus will give
you a sense of campus life. It may also give you
something interesting to talk about with your student. Ask
him if he is planning to attend an event. Ask how it was.
Encourage him to take advantage of the opportunities
available on campus.

8. 6. Look for important contact information.
Keeping in mind that you should
only be contacting offices at the
college as a last resort, the
website can be a source of
information about who to
contact, and how to contact
them, if you need help.
As you encourage your college
student to take responsibility and
deal with any issues, you may be
able to help him by steering him
to the correct person.

9. 7. Spend some time with the campus map.
Looking at the campus map
will give you a better sense of
the college and will help you
to visualize your college
student’s life and routine.
Find her residence hall on the
map. Look for the student center
and major classroom buildings. Try
to imagine her getting around
campus.
The more closely we can imagine
the daily routine of our students, the
more comfortable we become with
it.

10. 8. Check out campus life activities.
This is another way to visualize your student’s routine, and to
talk to him about things happening on campus.
Look at the student life area for clubs and organizations,
events, off-campus trips sponsored by the school.
Look to see if the student newspaper is available on-line or
whether a radio station might be streamed on the internet.
Check out athletics schedules and major games or
matches.

11. 9. Look to see what academic support
might be available to your student.
If your student is struggling or has
academic questions, there is
probably plenty of help available at
the school.
If you understand what is available
you can do more to encourage him
to explore his options.
What services does the library
offer? Is there a tutoring
center? Are advisors available to
help students?

12. 10. Look at housing information.
Check carefully for housing
deadlines in the spring, including
the deadlines for housing
deposits.
Look at the different housing
options so you’ll be informed as
your student talks about his living
arrangements.
Colleges are using their websites to post more and more
information. Take advantage of the amount of information
they are sharing. Have fun imagining your student at college
as you check out the website.
Article brought to you by Vicki Nelson. Read the complete article here.

13. You have questions, we have answers!
College Parents of America and get more tips and advice on:
What is my role as a college parent;
How should I communicate with my college student;
How to avoid becoming a helicopter parent; and Much More…
For more information, please contact us the following ways:
www.CollegeParents.org
888-761-6702