Tips for Parents
College life presents students with challenging and rewarding experiences from the first days as a freshman through to graduation. At Texas A&M University we encourage our students to periodically explore their reasons for choosing to attend college and to determine what they hope to obtain from their experience here. Being a college student involves much more than being academically successful. It involves developing into a responsible adult in all facets of life, and the decisions they make will often have lifelong effects. We also believe wholeheartedly in each student’s capacity to succeed. Your role as parents is as important as ever throughout this time. As Aggie Parents, we hope that you will encourage your student to seek a balance in her/his life while also encouraging the transition to self-sufficiency and independence. Below are some tips on how to prepare yourself for facilitate these transitions:
- Be aware of the unique challenges and opportunities facing today’s college students, including the academic and non-academic expectations for your student as a university student
- Learn about student support services at Texas A&M University and understand how your student can access these services
- Challenge your student to identify, define, and solve problems independently
- Encourage your student to set and achieve her/his personal goals and make responsible decisions related to academics, career planning, social interactions, and community engagement
- Understand and support Texas A&M University’s commitment to its Core Values of loyalty, integrity, excellence, leadership, selfless-service, and respect (http://www.tamu.edu/home/aboutam/coreValues.html) and to the Aggie Code of Honor (http://student-rules.tamu.edu/aggiecode.htm)
- Empower your student to examine her/his personal values;
- Encourage your student to learn about and respect the values and beliefs of others
- Support your student as he/she faces conditions of uncertainty and learns to perform in complex environments and challenging situations
- Allow your student to accept consequences of his/her actions and accept responsibility for personal errors; urge student to examine disappointments and unexpected experiences in order to assess what caused them, what can be done about them, and how to avoid them in the future
- Understand the role parents play as mentors to their student
- Know and understand limitations to access student records, as delineated by federal requirements outlined in
- Promote self-advocacy by allowing student to make decisions independently
- Allow your student to learn from mistakes made within the safe environment provided in college
- Be alert to signs that your student is under significant stress, is taking unhealthy risks, or is ill; if you have any concerns, discuss them openly with your student and assist her/him in developing a plan to address the problem
- If your student’s physical or mental health is endangered, contact appropriate campus or community authorities (http://scs.tamu.edu/emergency/)
- Understand that parents, as a primary supporters of your students, are part of the University community (http://www.aggienetwork.com/giveback/apn.aspx)
- Participate in campus events; your participation supports and encourages all students as they learn, perform, lead, or serve through campus and community activities.
- Assist other parents in understanding the student experience
- Promote goodwill on behalf of higher education at the state and federal level
(adapted from the University of Minnesota Parent Home)
