We all know college is expensive.... It’s an unfortunate, but universal truth.
The sky is blue, the grass is green... and college is expensive.
According to US News and CNBC, the average student graduates college with an average of $37,172 worth of debt! However, the statistic that’s even more shocking is... only 49% of students actually end up using their degree!
A survey from the Association of American Colleges and Universities found that although 70% of college students believed they possessed the skills needed to succeed in the workplace, less than a third of employers think newly minted college grads are ready for the real world!
I don’t know about you... but this scares the heck out of me!
We’re talking about a student who just spent 4 years of their life stacking up almost $40,000 in debt to gain the “skills” necessary to be successful and are being told…
“Sorry you don’t have the skills we are looking for… NEXT!”
Picture in front of the Student-Tutor Van after my College planning presentation in La Jolla, CA!
Hello parents, my name is Todd VanDuzer, CEO and co-founder of Student-Tutor.
Considering the fact you’re most likely reading this article on the internet, you’d probably like to know what makes me qualified to discuss the subject of “long-term academic and life success” … right?
Well, I started as a private tutor for 7+ years, managed to land $85,000 in scholarships, co-authored a custom SAT/ACT, and currently, I spend my days as a personal mentor, specializing in helping students worldwide create the RIGHT plan with the RIGHT steps for college, scholarship, and most importantly... life success!
While building Student-Tutor from the ground up, we had the honor of working with over a thousand high school students, and were able to interview dozens of teachers, professionals, leaders, counselors, etc.
The personal insight gathered from some of the brightest minds in education has allowed our team to develop over 250 articles, and gain a clear understanding of what it takes for a teenager to be successful in this new “digital age”.
We’ve come to realize that the “traditional path” to success, which was developed in the industrial age, is no longer valid… but nobody’s talking about it!
Most parents believe that if their child gets good grades, scores well on the SAT/ACT, and gets into a good college... they’ll be set for success!
Sadly, this just isn’t the case anymore…
Recently, we’ve been interviewing dozens of successful millennials from ALL walks of life for our weekly podcast. These are people who have built 7 to 8 figure company's, work for massive corporations like Linkedin & Facebook, Olympic athletes, Broadway performers, and more… and most fall between the ages of 25 and 35.
With such a diverse set of backgrounds, it’s amazing to see how nearly all of them agree that high school and college did NOT teach them what it actually takes to be successful!
“For the last sixty or so years, the job market for educated workers worked like an escalator. If you were basically competent, put forth good effort, and weren’t unlucky, the strong winds at your back would eventually shoot you to the top. Each generation would be better off than their parents.
But now, that escalators Is jammed at every level. Technology and globalization are destroying traditional career paths and undoing assumptions about how you master the world of work. Old premises that guided your parents have given way to new realities, and with new realities come new rules.
The new rules are ones entrepreneurs have mastered for years, and they are what every student today needs to know in order to launch a successful career.”
- Reid Hoffman, Co-Founder of Linkedin
So, how do you ensure your child experiences their true potential?
Play the game that currently exists - by getting good grades, SAT/ACT test scores, and getting into a good College; however, make it a priority for your student to prepare for the world in which they’re headed.
Step 1: Make Time for Your Student to Explore their Curiosities
When you were a child, you had down-time to reflect and discover your true identity. Students these days DON’T! They’re being bombarded by noise from every angle!
Case Study: The Teenage Ballerina
A teenage girl posts a 15 second video on instagram showcasing her ballerina twirl.
This post results in dozens of likes from her friends which in turn releases dopamine for the young girl (the same chemical that is realized when you smoke a cigarette).
Suddenly, through classical conditioning, this social reward system starts building an image in the girl’s mind, and she begins to associate the feedback with doing something “right.”
This is the same process we use when training the family dog to “sit” on command - by giving it a treat each time it’s successful. After a few weeks, Fido doesn’t even need a treat to accept the command!
Taking this example a step further, savvy marketers can use this social validation system, combined with new computer algorithms, to place an ad for new ballerina shoes in front of the girl.
Their “naturally” placed ad shows up among posts from her friends and people in her field of interest, aiming to convince her that buying these shoes will bring her closer to her dreams, and will make her a more skilled and respected dancer.
At this point, her “ballerina” label has been deeply ingrained into her identity.
The combination of social validation, “happy chemical” brain functions, and a burning desire to elevate her status within the community lead her to believe this must be the next step!
She doesn’t think twice about buying the shoes, and doing so triggers another chemical reaction in her brain giving her that familiar burst of excitement which is often mistaken as true happiness.
Then… The cycle repeats and continues indefinitely...
Often times, we find that students are mixing up true happiness with simple pleasure.
Pleasure can result from a number of things... and not all of these things are necessarily “real” or “good” - they can be generated artificially, like in the case of the “pleasure” when smoking a cigarette.
We all KNOW smoking is a TERRIBLE thing to do to your body… but why do people “feel good” when they do?
This confusion of pleasure and true happiness causes children (and adults!) to crave instant gratification - a “quick fix” to the up’s and down’s of the human experience.
On the other hand, true happiness stems from the pursuit of a worthwhile goal.
This enduring sense of satisfaction is the result of hard work, focus, consistency, and discipline. Achievement is based on a love for the PROCESS, not simply the RESULTS.
Gratification from a worthwhile goal comes in waves. Sometimes, you’ll feel on top of the world… other times, you’ll feel frustrated and ready to quit. Don’t!
Commitment to the process, combined with a willingness to try and fail will get you through any slump... and that’s when breakthroughs happen!
I’m sure we can all agree that a breakthrough feels better than ANY instant gratification!
If your child hasn’t already know what they’re interested in… get them started!
Have your student start by jotting down some things they’re CURIOUS about.
This doesn’t have to be anything revolutionary, and you certainly don’t have to get it right the first time! Just get a list started! Ex. Video games, cooking, computers, entrepreneurship, etc.
Then, spend a couple evenings each week reaching out to individuals who are currently DOING the things they are curious about. Look into meetups, clubs, and mentorship programs online and in your area!
If they are curious about engineering or computer science, get on linkedin and send someone from Intel a message! Ask them if they’d be willing to share some insight and their personal experience in the field. Most people are GLAD to chat!
Afterwards, have them write a short summary of what they learned while exploring this curiosity and post it on LinkedIn Pulse! This will give them a chance to connect with even more individuals in the field!
Students should take a chance to reflect and discover their true passions, rather than the ones that have been “marketed” to them from society. The internet is very good at identifying what we think we “Like” - based on everything we’ve ALREADY DONE!
This small action, repeated consistently, will SIGNIFICANTLY reduce the chance your child ends up going to college “just because,” and instead pursues something that they’re truly interested in. Something that will provide TRUE happiness and success.
Fun fact: Literally ALL of the successful millennials I have interviewed for the Student-Tutor podcast agree that exploring curiosities is the #1 most critical step students need to take in high school… don’t take it from me? You can trust them!
Step 2: Develop a College & Scholarship Plan
Remember when I said the average student graduates with $37,700 in loan debt?
Think… what if there were a way to get a college education completely debt-free?
Having personally earned over $85,000 in scholarships, and helping dozens of other students do the same, I am here to tell you it is not HARD... you just need to take the right steps.
Here are some things to keep in mind:
- The PSAT is not a practice SAT exam. It’s a chance to earn scholarships as great as full tuition + room and board to dozens of schools across the states!
- The SAT/ACT can be mastered. Doing so could results in ten’s of thousand’s of dollars in merit based scholarships, regardless of household income!
- AP/Honors classes could ruin college & scholarships opportunities. Understand that most colleges rarely look at student’s weighted GPA’s (with exception to California schools and elite universities). Plan accordingly!
- Perfect GPA & test scores will not get you into schools like Stanford, Harvard, and MIT. You need to be well angled, not just well rounded.
- In some states, community College can be more expensive than a 4-year university. Do your research and take merit based scholarships into account!
- Earning private scholarships is a numbers game. The first few can take a long time to complete, but you will quickly build a database of essays likely to fit following application’s criteria.
Write out a plan for what your student needs to do their 8th grade, freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior year.
Make sure the goals are SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, timely) and take the value vs. effort of each task into account.
Step 3: Instill the Belief that Your Student is in Control
If you think teenagers of this generation are less motivated than the past... You’re right!
A study done at Columbia University, by Claudia M. Mueller and Carol S Dweck, showed that not believing you have control over the situation can hinder your motivation levels.
Due to standardization in our schooling system, paired with laws like the “no child left behind act” and “common core standards,” teachers can no longer allow students to think creatively or solve problems on their own. Instead, they are required to follow a step-by-step standardized curriculum.
This standardization has resulted in an astounding 40% of high school students feeling chronically disengaged from school, according to Forbes magazine.
I recently had the opportunity to interview the superintendent of the Peoria School District, Dr. Darwin Stiffler, where I presented this finding. He told me, the people in power are well aware of the problem and are in the midst of fixing it.
Unfortunately, by the time they fix it an entire generation of students will have been trained by a system focused on following directions and filling in bubbles. When it comes to critical thinking and creative problem solving, they’re on their own!
It’s no wonder why only ⅓ of employers feel students are ready for the real world!
Without the belief they’re in control, they won’t develop their own motivation. Without motivation, where will they find confidence and a passion for innovation?
What happens when your child inevitably gets laid off as a result of their industry being disrupted by technology?
What happens when the computer programming skills they gained in college become obsolete?
Students need to know how to reinvent themselves, creatively solve problems on their own, and gain the “entrepreneurial skills” that will prove critical as we rapidly move into this freelance economy.
It’s our responsibility as parents and educators to inspire students to start making decisions on their own, and instill the belief they are in control of their own life!
This will result in higher levels of motivation, confidence, self-worth, and happiness.
In Conclusion
The digital age has changed everything!
The education system and the job market is not like it was 20 years ago!
Play the game that currently exists, but play it smart by not accumulating upwards of $40k in loan debt by following the steps above.
Realize that your child needs more than what’s currently being offered. If you want your student to get ahead and be successful in this era, you need to take action!
Did this information leave you feeling a little overwhelmed?
Don’t worry, we’re here to help… and it won’t cost a dime!
Book a FREE 20-minute college & life planning consultation with me, and I will personally help you create the RIGHT plan with the RIGHT steps for college, scholarship, and life success!
Happy Learning,
Todd (Your Educational Advisor) VanDuzer