How Much Contact with Your College Freshman is Best?

Dropping a child off at college is truly and adjustment for everyone, and the tendency may be for both students and parents to stay a little too much in touch.  For some parents, though, they just want to know that their student is okay.

How much is too much?  It all depends on the student. Let them lead.  If your son or daughter has always been the one to follow you around after school, filling you in on every little detail, then some of that will probably carry on.  You may receive several texts a day, or even phone calls and Skype session, too.

If your son or daughter has already been fairly independent of you, though, you may not hear anything for days or even weeks at a time.  

I am told that boys are less likely to communicate once they leave.  Fortunately, it stands to reason that, “no news is good news,” when it comes to this subject.

If you aren’t hearing from your student as often as you would like, rest assured that this probably means that he or she is adjusting well, making new friends and is having a great time, too.  Not being a part of it is sad, but also the point of the independence that we want to foster in our children.

Keep calm and wait it out.  They will eventually let you back in.