Wendie Lubic: Hi! I am Wendie Lubic from the Parent Encouragement Program. I am talking to you today about how to smooth the transition between high school and college for you and your teenager. Now I am going to discuss how to take a realistic assessment of, what your teen's skills and abilities are and balance that with what aspects about the college experience are important to you and to your teen. One of the things that you need to know is that the competition to get into college these days is harder than ever before. So it's important to know what your child's academic background is and how it will compare to others. Make sure that you take a look at their transcript as early as 10th grade and make sure that they are on track to complete the requirements that they need to get into the college that they want -- that you think that you think that they might want to go to. Even as early as 9th grade start thinking about planning their academic career so that they actually achieve the four Sciences, the four Englishes, the four Histories and the four Math classes, that they are going to need for most competitive colleges. Also look at those expectations that we discussed in the last segment and think about what is reasonable in terms of your child's achievements and their goals. Remember not everybody can or should become a doctor. Not everyone can or should become a doctor, not everyone can and should go to an IVY League School. Look at your teen's skill. Remember that every teen is different, some are going to have better Math skills, better English skills, some are going to be more academic and some are going to be more athletic. You want to look at those skills and help your teen position themselves in a way so that they are going to stand apart from their peers and really show themselves off to their best advantage. You also want to work on the organizational skills that we talked about in segment two. A more organized team is going to have an easier time applying for college and you can help them by starting in 9th grade keeping lists of what classes they have taken, what awards they have won, what extra-curricular they have participated in. The other thing to be aware of is your teen's need for autonomy and independence. This is a developmental skill for them. They needed to break away from parents and learn to be their own person. So you need to be aware of their needs not to be controlled by you. Next I am going to discuss the importance of the division of labor between you and your teen.