This coaching session is created for the mom who wants to feel confident about planning, preparing, and paying for their son or daughter’s college education.

I’m here to expedite your learning curve! I’ve already pored through the books, website, college fairs, tour, informational sessions, and more. Through my experience as a mom first, and a college counselor second, I have found a way to simplify this information and provide you with the clearest understanding of how you can help your teen plan, prepare, and pay for college.

Package Overview

All of my coaching is customized to the needs of my client and where they are in the process, but here is a brief outline of the available packages.

Starting Line Package

You’re moving into the thick of things with your son or daughter. Details and deadlines matter. No time for a steep learning curve or mistakes. Mom of a 10th & 11th grader (one student)

• Free 30-minute initial phone call/Skype
• Written personalized coaching plan for mom
• Four One-Hour one-on-one coaching sessions (call/Skype)

Session 1) Planning for College – Review of written personalized plan Session 2) Getting Prepared – TBD- Discuss needs laid out in the plan Session 3) Getting Prepared – TBD- Discuss needs laid out in the plan Session 4) Paying for College – Financial Aid and Scholarships

• Coaching Summary + Next-Steps Report

Can you tell me more about you?

Visit my ‘about me’ page for both personal and professional information about me. Eager for some fun facts not included on that page? I love supporting moms so much that I’m also a certified doula (birth coach)! I spent years helping moms fill their ‘nests’ and now I’m here to help you empty yours (sending your young ones off to college!).

Couldn’t I just learn all of this on my own?

Of course you could! There are thousands of books available and over 695 million Google search results about ‘getting into college’. Unfortunately, much of it is poor information (for example, scaring parents into believing that no student can get into college without a 4.0 GPA!) and what isn’t is often full of overly complex explanations and jargon that is simply not useful for parents. Not to mention, none of this information is customized to your child’s and family’s needs, goals, and expectations. I know from experience that sacrificing large amounts of time, emotional energy, sleep, and patience is not worth a mom’s sanity! Being guided by an expert will save you time and frustration, giving you the confidence and know-how needed to navigate the college planning, preparation, and paying process. As smooth and pain-free as possible.

I’m a mom of a 12 grader, why don’t I see a package for me?

Due to the high demands of admissions season during the final senior year of high school, I am not able to commit to the time necessary to bring you up to speed on college admissions and financial aid process in a designated coaching package. However, not all hope is lost! I offer Skype sessions at an hourly rate (TBD) for admissions and financial aid questions (though I do request you email me in advance at Darlene@darlenebellcarson.com for availability and scheduling). Also, check out my FREE blog posts and training video series for answers to common questions and concerns about admissions and financial aid.

I’m a busy mom, how much time does your coaching package take?

Remember: Productive and proactive time is always shorter than reactive time! The pre-coaching parent questionnaire is SUPER important and should be completed thoughtfully and fully, to the best of your ability. The questionnaire will help you get clear on your expectations and goals for your coaching and help me to design a plan that best supports your needs. Additionally, I request you email me all the supporting academic documents (see checklist included in questionnaire) to allow me to create a personalized coaching plan for you. In addition to the prep-work, you will have 3 or 4 one-hour coaching sessions. To get the most out of our time, feel free to email additional questions or concerns anytime before your next coaching session for me to prepare answers for. You have a total of 6-weeks to complete your 3 or 4 coaching sessions (1 hour). Any remaining session after this period will be forfeited. The first day of the 6-week period begins the day you receive your “personalized coaching plan” included in the package. After completion of the session included in your package, you are welcome to purchase additional coaching sessions at an hourly rate (TBD).

I am uncomfortable giving my student’s information on the checklist to you. Do I have to?

All of my coaching is customized and, more importantly, private. This information about your son or daughter is essential in designing a personalized coaching plan. But rest assured that it will be handled professionally and confidentially. If there is specific information you are not comfortable with sharing (for example, full name, birthdate, Social Security #, home address, photos, student ID number, etc) you are welcome to black these out with a Sharpie or cover them digitally. Note: Oftentimes knowing the school’s profile and their grading system is especially useful for me to know to better understand your child’s needs.

Do you work with dads?

Great question. YES, I do! I’ve worked in admissions and financial aid for years and understand that there are dads (and other caregivers) that take the lead with the college planning and financial aid process. The reason I cater my services, at first glance, to moms is because my desire to do this work came from a common struggle I shared with other moms struggling to navigate the complex process and I wanted to address their worries here at darlenbellcarson.com. But dads, feel free to replace ‘mama bear’ comments with ‘papa bear’ whenever you run into it on the site! I welcome dads, family members, and guardians to ALL my information and services.

I hear everything you are saying, buttttt we have a really nice counselor at our school, why do I really need this coaching program?

Good question! Here are the four top reasons why this personalized coaching plan will help you:

• Parent support and encouragement is a chief predictor of college enrollment. I want to help families create a college-going culture in their family as early as possible. There is a college for every student to flourish (and I’m not just talking about the Ivy League schools). I want moms to know all their options.

• High School guidance is not as readily available as you may think. According to the National Association for College Admissions Counseling (NACAC), the majority of high school guidance counselors spend only 38 minutes per year with each student on college planning and college admissions! The American School Counseling Association (ASCA) says that guidance counselors should see no more than 250 students, but the average counselor is responsible yearly for 457 students. School counselors are few in numbers, often with large student caseloads, and they don’t have a lot of time to implement college counseling in addition to their other responsibilities such as class scheduling, student discipline, crisis counseling and more. Ideally, you want a college counseling plan that helps build college aspirations understands a variety of college and university requirements, helps with college exploration, college applications, and financial aid support topping the list. I am here to ensure big picture planning and help you be your son/daughters greatest advocate.

• The college admission process is becoming increasing competitive and complex. For many families, the infinite number of steps, dates, applications and financial aid details can feel very overwhelming. If you have been away from the college admission process for a while or if your son or daughter will be the first to attend college, you will find my coaching essential to your success. If you wait until senior year to figure out what you need to know, your family will likely approach the admission process in a panic mode and reactive mode. I want to help you spend your time, now, getting answers, planning, and preparing with less time worrying about what you don’t know and your fears.

• I love what I do! I eat and sleep this stuff. I’ve already pored through the books, websites, college fairs, tours, informational sessions, and more! Through my experience as a mom first, and a college counselor second, I have found a way to simplify this information and provide you with the clearest understanding of how you can help your son/daughter. I’m YOUR cheerleader!

This sounds too good to be true! Can you really help me through this?

Yes, I really can equip you with all the tools and guidance you need to plan, prepare, and pay for your son or daughter’s college education! My promise to you is clarity and confidence every step of the way. Join me for a FREE 30-minute consultation to explore any of your remaining questions/worries in detail and prepare for our coaching together! If you need additional planning support from an educational learning specialist or medical/psychological expert as part of your planning process, we can together list out your concerns and questions and make an action plan for you to follow to get additional support. Two heads are always better than one when looking for a solution.

Can I pay you in installments?

Unfortunately, I do not offer installment payments at this time. I also can’t break up the behind the scenes work that I do, as I put a lot of thought and research into each client’s needs and concerns. If you chose to work with me, payment is required in full after your 30-minute FREE consultation. Once I have your payment and supplemental checklist items included in the pre-coaching parent questionnaire, I will create the personalized coaching plan for you. After receiving your personalized plan, you have six weeks to complete our 3 or 4 one-hour coaching sessions. If you have any questions, please reach out to me at Darlene@darlenebellcarson.com.