Help Your College Student Ask for Help

There are many resources available on every college campus to help your student succeed.  Sometimes, however, the problem is getting students to ask for the help that they need.  Perhaps you’ve already done a great job helping your student discover what resources are available.  Now you may need to encourage him to actually use these resources.

Asking for help is sometimes difficult for students.  Even if your student understands that she needs help, actually approaching the right person and asking may be intimidating.  This can be especially true if your student has missed classes or missed assignments.  Here are a few suggestions that you might pass on to your student to help her take those first steps.

• Ask for help early and often.  Don’t wait until the problem has gotten out of control.  Seeking help early may prevent a bigger problem later.
• Don’t think that asking for help substitutes for actually doing the work.  Asking for help should never come before attempting to solve the problem first.
• Be specific in your request for help.  Describe the difficulty or the assignment or the cause of the issue as specifically as possible.  Don’t expect the professor to read your mind.
• Prepare ahead of time.  Gather any necessary materials.  Write down questions.  Gather  tests or assignments to bring with you.
• Make an appointment.  This assures that the professor will have time to spend with you and also allows him to prepare ahead of time.
• Show up prepared to take some notes during the session.  Write down any suggestions.  Ask for clarification if anything doesn’t make sense.

• Thank the person for taking time to work with you.

Students are often unsure of the best way to make productive use of the help that they are given.  Providing your student with a few of these suggestions will put him at ease and help him to get the most out of any resources he uses.