Navigating Your Way Through Bulldog Country

Detours. Dead ends. The Open Road. Sometimes the highway of life can be overwhelming with its twists and turns. This “Road Map to Success” is full of advice on how to navigate your way as a parent through Bulldog Country. With tips on making the trip easier and more enjoyable, this guide highlights areas of interest, areas of caution, and places to visit for further information.

Change

Change is a natural, inevitable part of anyone’s growth. Your student will change in many different ways. With exposure to new,  different, exciting and challenging experiences, this change can be inspiring and beautiful. It can also be challenging to you as a parent. The key to your success as the parent of a new college student is an open mind and a sense of humor.

Your student may call you on Tuesday night and bristle at the idea of relaying specifics of their day-to-day life, then call you Wednesday and tell you how much they need your advice about some situation. As long as you remain flexible and provide strong, enduring support, you will be doing all you can to help your student be successful.

“My parents would call me once or twice a week, but they realized that a huge part of the adjustment process was giving me space. Most of the time, they left it up to me to initiate communication.”

— Tim Anderson, Class of 2008

One of the toughest adjustments a parent must make is redefining the boundaries surrounding your parent-child relationship. Though they continue to desire the security of knowing someone loves them, first-year students tend to resist interference with their new  lifestyle. Honest inquiries, communication and conversation tend to help foster healthy parent-student relationships.

Challenge for Parents

As much as you would like to take a more active role in helping your son or daughter navigate the bureaucracy of the University, they will become more self-reliant if you let them take ownership of issues affecting their life as a student. As much as you think that you can do a better job of resolving the challenges they will face, encourage your student to take the appropriate steps themselves.

Please know there are many people on campus whose life’s work is to help your student succeed. Try to give your student a chance to explore the appropriate solutions independently. Instead of making a telephone call yourself, suggest that your son or daughter take the necessary steps to resolve the problem. They still need your support, but you will help them most by teaching them to help themselves.

Parents & Families Programs

The University of Georgia greatly values our UGA parent and family members and the role they play in the lives of their students. The Parent programs at UGA offer ways for parents and family members to stay informed and connected to the University community and their students.

The UGA Parents and Families Association is one way to be involved and serves undergraduate parents and families by organizing parents’ weekends, monthly email newsletters, and web updates to keep parents informed.

The Parents and Families Leadership Council serves as the leadership group representing undergraduate parents in meetings with UGA leadership and administration. The council also administers the Parents and Families grants program which has awarded over $800,000 in grant support to various programs and organizations across campus that impact undergraduate students every day.

The UGA Parents and Families Association enhances communication between families and the University; enriches the college experience for both parents, families, and their students; involves parents and their families in activities to promote UGA; and financially supports UGA and its academic programs.

More information on both the UGA Parents and Families Association and the Leadership Council is on our web site.

Should you ever have a question or a concern, please email the UGA Parent Program Office or call toll free (888) 268-5442. Thank you for your involvement and for supporting your students at our great university!

Homesickness and Adjustment

Most students face a relatively easy transition from home to college. However, first-year students often have an idealized view of the college experience. If UGA does not immediately fit this idealized image, some students may jump to the conclusion that they made the wrong college decision. This is a normal reaction. Most students will adjust and grow to love UGA and all that it offers.

The adjustment process may take longer for some than others. Be patient and encourage your student. Sometimes just showing that you believe in your student will be all it takes to start  down the path toward success. Encourage your child to be proactive and remind him or her that every first-year at UGA is in the same boat.

“This may sound a bit strange, but we told our children NOT to come home for at least three weeks. Time away from mom and dad is needed in order to make friends, feel at ease, and figure out for themselves how to get things done. Confidence comes from doing things for yourself. As parents, we always want to help our children. Sometimes, they need to help themselves and trust in their own abilities to solve problems and handle situations.”

— Mrs. Tina Patrick, mother of two recent UGA graduates.

Communiication

The first semester is filled with new responsibilities, new friendships, new experiences and new freedoms. Regular contact with your student is often appreciated, as finding oneself in the midst of a new environment can be tricky. Keep in mind that even if your student doesn’t tell you during those first few weeks that he or she misses you, for most students, there is nothing worse than weeks of empty voice mail or no email or texts from home. 

“Almost every day, I would receive emails from my mom wishing me a good day. It’s the little stuff that you begin to appreciate when you aren’t able to see your parents on a regular basis.”

— Steven Dasher, class of 2009

Come visit — but not too often. Visiting gives your student a chance to show off his or her new environment, while helping you empathize with their experience. Beginning college can be one of the most exciting, yet challenging experiences of a  young person’s life. Lifestyle adjustments, a sense of newfound independence, and the introduction to that glamorous idea of “the college lifestyle” can sometimes combine to overwhelm a new college student. However, with your support and guidance, your student can, and will, successfully acclimate into life at UGA.

Road Smarts: Academics at UGA

You, as a parent, may well be concerned about your student’s academic progress. It is not at all unusual for a new student’s grades to be lower than they were in high school. This can be surprising because as high school seniors, the average UGA student had above a 3.8 GPA. Different methods of instruction, the more difficult workload, the more intense competition, and the intriguing and numerous diversions are reasons for this discrepancy.

If these factors create a problem, students often will not admit it because it may embarrass them. Often, by the time they do seek help, it may be too late, or the situation has grown to the point that it may be impossible to reverse. Encourage your student to see the professor, attend class, and know when to drop a class.

Academic Advising

Advising is so important at UGA that it is required before a student can register each semester. Advisors not only suggest courses to take, but they also help students select a major, minor, internship, and other ways to get the most out of an academic program. At Orientation, an advising appointment is scheduled for your student, but in future registration periods, it is your student’s responsibility to make an advising appointment each semester. The date when appointments begin sneaks up on students because advising begins early in the semester in many schools and departments. It may be beneficial if you occasionally provide a reminder to look into the upcoming registration period.

Undecided or “Open-Minded”

A large number of first-year students are undecided about their academic majors. The average student changes majors two or more times during college, so it’s safe to select core courses the first year. It is important for students to take a sampling of varied classes to see where their interests lie. An academic advisor can suggest several ways to learn more about academic areas that interest your student. Taking time to learn what’s involved in a prospective major is time well spent. The best resource for requirements and major selection is UGA’s Bulletin.

Remember, ultimately your student is the one who must go to class, read the books, do the research, and take the tests. Let them make the important academic decisions, as well as explore future career choices. Of course, you may want to mention factors to consider, such as demand for employees in a particular field, average salaries, and long-range opportunities. Regardless of their ultimate career, your student will have the strong foundation of a UGA degree as support in future endeavors.