The Key to Success in Community College

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We live in amazing times. Your child can pursue a higher education at a community college—regardless of high school achievement—if she wishes. When your parents were in high school, a college education was restricted to only those students with the highest grades. Back then, students with C averages or lower went right into the workforce. As you are well aware, our world has changed quite a bit over the past half century. Today, community colleges' open admissions policies and remedial course options have broken down academic barriers. The enormous growth in community colleges over the past several decades has expanded access to college in just one generation.

Encouraging your child to reach her highest potential by attending college is clearly a positive message. And if your child's grades are not adequate to get into a moderately or highly selective four-year college, let her know about the opportunity community college affords. In addition, it is equally important to inform your child about the connection between high school achievement and success in college. In the book Beyond College for All, author James Rosenbaum makes the point that while poor high school grades are no longer an obstacle to getting a higher education, studies show that students with low grades are less likely to attain a college degree. Moreover, many students mistakenly believe that they don't need to work hard in high school because they will "only" be going to a community college. Perhaps it's not surprising then that while access to college has increased, especially for low-achieving students, so, too, has the dropout rate.

Preparation + Information = Future Success

According to Rosenbaum, preparing for success in college requires more than just encouraging students to attend. You need to inform your child early in her high school career about what's required to do well in college. It is important to emphasize the connection between low high school achievement and failure in college, so your child will have the opportunity to work harder while still in high school, thereby increasing her chance of earning an Associate of Arts or a Bachelor of Arts degree.

Stephen Handel, director of Community College, suggests that you have your child take diagnostic exams like the PSAT/NMSQT® as a sophomore or junior to help pinpoint strengths and weaknesses. Many school districts require all students to take the PSAT/NMSQT, which is the warm-up for the SAT®. One benefit of taking this exam, explains Handel, is that it provides a comprehensive academic profile. Your child can then use this information to strengthen her skills in anticipation of college. The PSAT/NMSQT is not the only test that provides this type of overview. Many community colleges go into high schools and administer their English and math placement exams to sophomores and juniors so they can identify areas they need to work on before they attend college.

Obviously, if you are the parent of a high school senior, the advice differs somewhat, as your child no longer has the time and opportunity to significantly boost her high school grades and overall effort. Handel makes the point that seniors who end up at community colleges are often unaware of the hard work necessary for success and are frustrated by all the remedial courses they are required to take—many of which offer no credit toward a degree.

In response, he suggests that you prepare your child for what to expect during the first year at a community college, emphasizing that the focus will be on strengthening basic skills in remedial courses. "Students should understand that while remedial courses often carry no credit for the degree, these classes are absolutely essential if they want to gain the skills they will need for college success," says Handel. If your child is informed and recognizes that making an effort will make a difference, there is a better chance she will stick with it. It's when students go to school expecting to be promoted, whether or not they make an effort, that failure is most likely. For these students in particular, their eventual success depends on being informed about the effort they'll have to make to get through their first year of college.

Making Community College Work for All

All students deserve the chance to be successful in their educational pursuits, no matter what grades they earn in high school. Luckily, we live in a time when institutions such as community colleges make access to those opportunities available. Some critics argue that students who don't prepare themselves for postsecondary education and who perceive college merely as an extension of high school should not be encouraged to obtain a college degree that they are not ready to earn. They believe that promoting college for all directs some students toward educational goals for which they are insufficiently equipped and motivated. In actuality, all students can succeed if adequately prepared and informed. The work of Rosenbaum and others in the field suggests that for this to be possible, parents need to work harder to show their children how their efforts in high school can lead to better lives through a college education.

Additionally, the perception of community colleges must change. Counselors, students, parents, teachers, and the media need to recognize that community college is college, and it requires prerequisite skills best gained in high school. While community colleges provide higher education for all, they nonetheless have standards that students must meet to advance academically.