3 Assumptions College Students (And Their Parents!) Can't Afford To Make

Well-intentioned students and their college-paying parents are investing thousands in college degrees, only to feel short-changed.

(PRWEB) March 15, 2006 -- Before writing out the next check for that hefty college tuition bill, career expert, J.T. O'Donnell, says students and their parents should take a moment to see if they're guilty of making some costly assumptions.

O'Donnell is a career specialist who says, like any financial investment, students and parents who don't pay attention and ensure the investment in their future is being well-managed; often end up very unhappy with the nresults.

O'Donnell owns the career coaching company, BLUE KILOWATT, is an author, and also the creator of the hot new career coaching kit, CAREERJUICE. She cautions against three incorrect assumptions she sees being made by students and parents today. They are:

#1: Parents shouldn't assume paying for a college degree will ensure their student will automatically find a career success after they graduate.

"Parents are using the outdated belief that a college degree guarantees professional success. While this may have been the case years ago, times have changed, and the reasons for going to college have changed with them. The results are parents and students who are both surprised and disappointed after graduation day," states O'Donnell.

#2: Parents shouldn't teach their student that a college degree is all they'll need to find a satisfying and successful career path.

"Today, college students primarily attend school in order to gain acceptance and praise from parents and society. Simply put, going to college is expected. But students have also been conditioned to believe the money being invested in their education is going to guarantee them a prosperous future. Subsequently, many students fail to explore career options that appeal to them during college." O'Donnell says this assumption is having a very negative impact on young professionals, both in their perceptions of work and their ability to be successful and satisfied in their careers.

But O'Donnell says the third assumption is the most serious:

#3: Parents and students shouldn't assume the student will 'find their calling' in college or that the college will take on the responsibility of helping them find it.

O'Donnell says when it comes to the hard work of helping students find career direction; some Americans are guilty of throwing money at the problem. "They believe that in paying for college, the student will automatically get what they need from the experience in order to be successful professionally."

O'Donnell says while some colleges provide career coaching resources, many students don't usually bother to seek out help with a career direction during college. "The average student feels their only job at school is to get through it and get the degree. The emphasis has always been on finishing school, not getting a career direction out of it. So, instead of focusing on how to make their education valuable to them after they graduate, they only worry about fulfilling the requirements for a diploma." O'Donnell says for many students, all they have to show after graduation is a very expensive piece of paper.

Finally, O'Donnell says parents need to recognize that unlike when they went to college, their children have the added challenge of narrowing down an unlimited amount of career options. "There are literally thousands of careers today, and subsequently hundreds of degrees a student can pursue. Parents make the mistake of saying to their children, "You are so lucky, you can be anything you want to be," but they need to look at just how overwhelming that statement really is." O'Donnell says given the magnitude of this choice, coupled with students' lack of knowledge on how to make an informed decision on the subject, they subsequently opt to avoid the challenge of identifying a career path, until they are forced to.

What does O'Donnell suggest parents who are guilty of these assumptions do? "Students and their parents need to take responsibility and recognize that going to college without having any internal motivation to attend beyond the fact that society expects them to has the potential to backfire. Not only does the student fail to get the most out of the college experience, they also falsely believe a career will eventually be handed to them after graduation as well."

O'Donnell says parents need to coach their student on how to find an internal motivation for work. In other words, "help students find careers they are drawn to because of the satisfaction they would derive while doing them." However, O'Donnell does warn parents against making the mistake of guiding students in the direction of a career based on their own personal experiences. "Encouraging a student to pursue a career without letting them find their own reasons for choosing it is a lost cause. While they may follow your wishes, they are doing it for the wrong reasons, and eventually will come to resent the decision, and potentially the source, for their misguided choice."

O'Donnell has two websites, http://www.bluekilowatt.com and http://www.careerjuice.com. She can be reached toll-free at (877)588-5455.

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