“I’ll be up in the middle of the night and my brain says, 'Hey! let’s stay up for no good reason and think about random things…' that’s when I sometimes I think about college.” - Alex, age 13.

I asked my thirteen-year old son Alex, “Do you ever think about college?”
His response,  “Not really. They don’t talk about college in middle school.  But, randomly I will daydream about it, or I’ll be up in the middle of the night and my brain says, 'Hey! let’s stay up for no good reason and think about random things…' that’s when I sometimes think about college.” 

I asked, “So, then what do you think about it?”
His response, “I wonder if I will get into a good college?  Will I get into an Ivy league and be able to handle it?  What if what I like to study isn’t what will make enough money?  Like, everyone says they want to be a professional football player, but then noone ever is - so then what do they do?  How do they go about it…That’s really all I think about college at this point.”  Note to self...Alex is more pensive than I had expected for a thirteen-year old.   

College and career readiness necessitate a MIGHTY plan. Parents are paying beaucoup money for pre-college admittance counseling - sometimes $10 - $30K in the hopes of selecting the most befitting school.  It’s a necessary, detailed and arduous process.  Starting the process early can only help manage our us.  

I was happy to come across Coursera.com’s Applying to U.S. Universities.  My husband and I have registered, begun and completed several of the fascinating and free online courses at their fabulous website.

The Applying to U.S. Universities course is structured to take the overwhelming confusion out of the applications processes:

- addresses the most relevant questions regarding U.S. Universities’ admissions processes
- animated videos explaining how concepts are put into practice
- actual admission counselors representing a variety of schools
- highlighting how every U.S. school is a unique place with unique personality and admissions process
- the readings, assignments and fundamentals for application
- how schools evaluate
- how to submit 
- how important you are in their process 
- connect at various discussion forums
- global, worldwide community all working toward the same goals related to U.S. admissions

Who knows how the collegiate landscape will render in five-ten years, but this course is a revolutionary idea worth sharing.  Visit www.coursera.com