Your student’s first year of college is a transition for the entire family, and may be emotional for both you and your student. Families who understand the transition to college and the cycle of the academic year can better help their student navigate important decisions and challenges. Parents and family members are a critical part of the support network for students.
At Penn State, we use the First-Year Learning Outcomes to guide our work to support new students in this transition. New Student Orientation will introduce you and your student to the tools and resources that will help to set them up for success.
The First Weeks: Everything is New
Students are experiencing college life for the first time. They are excited to explore many opportunities and are trying to make connections with other students, staff, and faculty. Students may be:
- Excited, yet apprehensive
- Exploring new freedoms
- Learning to manage new responsibilities
- Solving problems on their own
- Feeling homesick and lonely
- Trying to find their place socially
- Anxious about new academic challenges
Mid-Semester: Reality Check
Classes are in full swing. Early assignments and exams have been returned and students may be surprised (either pleasantly or unpleasantly) by their grades. Students start to realize that friends from the first few weeks may or may not stick around. The roommate honeymoon may end. Students may be:
- Questioning academic abilities and choices
- Adjusting study habits, learning styles, and time management skills
- Wondering if they fit in socially
- Seeking additional opportunities to become involved
- Dealing with consequences of poor decision-making
- Selecting appropriate courses for next semester
- Thinking about living arrangements and roommates for next year
End of First Semester: Information and Stress Overload
Students are sorting out how to approach their first final exam period as the first semester winds down. The realization that academic work in college is much harder than high school has set in for many. For those who have procrastinated or stumbled in the early months, the pressure is now a reality. Students who are working or have joined various student organizations may have increased end-of-semester commitments. Students may be:
- Anxious about preparing for final exams
- Finding it difficult to get along with their roommate
- Overwhelmed by their commitments
- Questioning their decision to attend college
- Excited or apprehensive to head home for break
Home for Break: New Expectations
Most students (and families) welcome the first long break, and they are usually eager to return home. They look forward to the comforts of home, privacy, reconnecting with friends, and some much-needed rest. Tensions over curfews and family expectations can happen at this time. Communicating expectations in advance and keeping a sense of humor can help families enjoy this longer visit home.
Second Semester: A New Beginning
While a new semester is a fresh start, the experience students have is heavily influenced by their first semester. Some students will enjoy being home and reconnecting with their families and friends, which may make it harder to return, while others experience challenges at home that make them excited about being back on campus. Other elements, like first semester grades and confidence in the friendships they established the last term, also influence their excitement or apprehension about the start of the new semester. During their second semester students may be:
- Feeling renewed interest in opportunities to make friends
- Getting more involved in co-curricular activities
- Finding a better balance between academic, co-curricular, and social commitments
- Contemplating their academic interests, strengths, and choice of major
- Exploring internships and opportunities for summer break
Adapted from Empowering parents of first-year college students: A guide for success by R. H. Mullendore and L. Banahan (2007) and The happiest kid on campus: A parent’s guide to the very best college experience (for you and your child) by H. Cohen (2010).