Parent Tips
As you would probably expect, your relationship with your son or daughter will undergo some changes in the coming months and years. Be ready! Here are our tips on how to make the transition smoother for your student....and for you!

• If possible, plan a campus visit, i.e., a ball game, a weekend or a day in Bowling Green with your student. Take your son or daughter and their friend(s) to lunch, dinner, or for an outing. You will not believe how many friends your child has when a free meal is involved, especially at the end of the semester when money is low. If you include friends, you are a welcome guest just about anytime.
  
  
• Never show up on campus unannounced!
  
  
• Send lots of mail, especially in the beginning of the year. No matter how many times you phone, e-mail or fax, they truly want to have a tangible piece of paper. Your student will be thrilled to receive an article of clothing once in a while or just something silly.
  
  
• Visit the student newspaper, The Herald, on-line to keep informed on current events on campus.
  
  
• Young women love to receive flowers. Whether it's a bouquet or a single rose, they make her the envy of the residence hall. This is great during Sorority Recruitment or the first week of school.
  
  
• During the semester, send a beloved food item. If your student comes home on the weekends, send the leftovers back to campus.
  
  
• If you live in an area where there is a Kroger, Wal-mart, etc. you may purchase gift cards in various denominations. Your student can then spend the gift cards in Bowling Green to purchase food or other necessesities. You know this money will go for what it was intended!
  
  
• For holidays that you are not with them, send something appropriate, i.e., plastic pumpkins filled with Halloween candy, Valentine and Easter baskets, etc. They love traditions whether they are home or not.
  
  
• Students should balance their checkbooks before they leave WKU for breaks. This is a common problem period because students are not at school to check their mail.
  
  
• Have your student do a monthly budget instead of a semester budget for the first year. Be somewhat flexible the first semester.
  
  
• If you attend football games, plan to tailgate. Bring home-cooked meals...enough for an army. You will be like the Pied Piper when your student's friends discover you cooked real food. You will never hear a complaint about your cooking again.
  
  
• Remember that you have limited control over your student. Have patience. Trust your student to make the right decisions.
  
  
• Treat your student as an adult.
  
  
• If you have not begun giving your young adult added responsibilities at home during his or her high school years, budgeting, washing and ironing, extended curfews, getting a job, managing time, or decision making, do it now.
  
  
• Remember that parental guidance does not mean trying to control your child's decisions or actions from home. Keep criticisms to yourself, and you will be able to keep lines of communication open.
  
  
• Encourage your student to foster a good rapport with his/her academic advisor and to continue to seek their advice throughout his/her academic career. As students become more confident they tend to think they know everything. Mistakes can prove costly in terms of expenses and possibly delay graduation.
  
  
• Make sure your health insurance carrier will cover your child out of state.
  
  
• Check Western's Academic and Events Calendars online to help you keep up with important dates.
  
  
• Encourage your son or daughter to develop a network of peers, administrators, faculty and staff they can count on for advise and guidance.
  
  
• Obtain a copy of the Bowling Green, KY telephone directory.
  
  
• Make sure your student keeps the Registrar's Office informed of address changes for both local addresses and mailing addresses. This will help avoid problems with grades and billing.
  
  
• If your student gets into academic trouble, refer him or her to Academic Advising early on, don't wait until they are already on probation.
  
  
• Students who get involved on campus have greater academic success that students who only study. WKU has more than 200 clubs and organizations. Encourage your student to explore what's available.
  
  
• Don't be upset if you do not hear from your son or daughter the first week of college...be pleased they are fitting in so well, having a good time and keeping busy.
  
  
• Most of all, keep a sense of humor no matter what you see or hear.