Though academics are extremely important, the season of preparation for your young people must include more practical grounding as well. Both college admissions offices and scholarship review boards want students who are more than great minds. By the time our young people launch out, they need to be able to demonstrate to the world that

1. They care about others and have invested themselves in the community
2. They have usable skills which have already been tested
3. They have vision and focus

For themselves, our youth need to know that they are competent enough that others will value their work. They need to know that they have marketable skills and that they do not have to be subject to the vagaries of an insane job market. They need work experience – better yet, they need entrepreneurial experience.

None of these things has a place in the transcript. In fact, much of what we want our young people to develop in these final critical years before they launch can’t be adequately described or celebrated on a transcript.

In short, they need a resume! Tune in on Tuesdays for resume-building ideas and resources.