As a parent, family member or advocate for your student, have you asked yourself this question: “How can I support my student in recognizing and embracing their interests and skills to inspire and maximize their potential to successfully navigate college life?”
Success coaching may be your answer. It's an empowering, reflective process for student self-discovery and provides an openness to possibilities and new ways of thinking. This leads to goal setting, action planning and confident decision-making based on the student's interests.
Success coaching is offered to students at Kent State, but you too can be a success coach for your student.
Success coaching gives your student an opportunity to think and talk 100% about themself, their goals and aspirations related to academic, personal and social development. The goal of success coaching is to help students develop confidence in their decision-making to increase their individual student success.
SUCCESS COACHING STARTS WITH YOU!
Your student's ability to make decisions confidently starts with you. Try talking to your student about the following:
- Who is your “go-to” person in high school?
- In college it could be residence hall staff, academic advisor, professor/instructor, success coach, staff member or a trained peer-mentor.
- What activities do you enjoy? What activities do you hope Kent State offers?
- There are a variety of opportunities for involvement such as intramural sports; student clubs; community service; leadership groups; cultural, academic and religious organizations; outdoor clubs; campus employment and more.
- What can I do to support you through the preparation and the transition to college?
- Let’s make a list of your interests. Then, let’s make a list of people who are connected to your areas of interest at Kent State. We will then create a "KSU network list" with their contact information. This will help build relationships before coming to campus in the fall.
Most importantly, tell your student often, "I am proud of you. You will be successful!"
CONTINUE SUCCESS COACHING DURING COLLEGE
Success coaching in college guides students toward achieving their academic goals while navigating school and life balance by focusing on the following development areas:
- Academic development
- Personal development
- University involvement and connections
- School and life balance
You can also address the same questions above but relate each question to college instead of high school and connect your student to success coaching at Kent State.
SUGGESTED BOOKS TO CONSIDER
- Letting Go: A Parent’s Guide to Understanding the College Years by Karen Levin Coburn and Madge Lawrence Treeger (Fourth Edition)
- As You Think by Mark Allen (Second Edition)
- Coaching Your Child to Academic Success by Cynthia M. DeVese, M.Ed.
- College Ready 2022: Expert Advice for Parents to Simplify the College Transition by Chelsea Petree, Ph.D.
For more information about success coaching, contact Pamela Jones at 330-672-0972 at pjones@kent.edu or visit our success coaching webpage.