The letters are rolling in, andthe celebrations are blowing up the internet.
There will be joy, but there will also be lots of disappointment.
or Everything happens for a reason, dont.
Let the kid mourn.
But for a teen who may not have experienced a lot of it yet, it can feel crushing.
You should also avoid expressing outrage at the school, saying, How could they not accept you?
You are brilliant and clearly they are out of their minds.
Give yourself permission to vent if you need tojust dont do it in front of your kid.
Do, however, say something.
Staying silent might make your child think youre disappointed in him, not for him.
Theres no need for some profound parental speech right now, just a simple, Im sorry.
I know how much you wanted this.
I love you and Im here for you.
Encourage her to close all the tweets declaring #UPENN2022, bay-beeee!!!!!
and go outside for a run or a swim.
Maybe you might even arrange for a tech-free family day at a rock climbing gym or a soup kitchen.
Your kid might protest, but its worth it to get her some space.
Put Things in Perspective
Help your teen know that shes not alonenot even close.
you might pull up someadmissions statsto prove that getting into college is hard, sometimes insanely so.
So a lot of it has to do with luck.
Its nothing personalmaybe your teen just wasnt the one fencer a school was looking for this year.
We could start with the fact that only a
third of adults hold degrees from four-year colleges
.
Basically, its not about the college, but what you make of college.
If there are schools he was accepted into, take him for a tour.
Help him expand his vision of success, and hell be sure to find it.
