Last year at this time, I shared this piece from the Common App’s Scott Anderson, Make Thanksgiving a College-Free Zone. I’m reposting it again this year, as I can’t think of a better piece of advice to help families with a college applicant in the house enjoy their Thanksgiving together.
“This week, as you gather with family and friends to celebrate Thanksgiving, be mindful of the high school seniors seated at the table. Odds are they don’t want to talk about their college applications any more than you want to talk about work.”
It’s entirely possible that some students may need to work on their applications over the break. But working on them and talking about them are two different things. The former might be a necessity, but the latter certainly isn’t, especially at the Thanksgiving table.