From Yale to Columbia, a record number of South Africans have secured early acceptance into prestigious institutions in the US.
Fuelling the trend is the American higher education system facing mounting pressure. Funding cuts and travel bans under President Donald Trump’s administration have fuelled widespread uncertainty, with universities across the US recording a 17% drop in new international student enrolments compared to last year’s intake.
While some faculties downsized due to budget cuts, funding for students remained largely intact. Panic and misinformation created the impression opportunities were disappearing, even as South African interest stayed strong.
“Students are aware of the headlines and political noise, but remain focused on the long-term value of a world-class education. Just as encouraging is their confidence in South Africa itself. For most, studying abroad is about gaining experience and perspective, with every intention of bringing those skills back home,” said Brad Latilla-Campbell, country manager at Crimson Education, a global mentorship company that helps students gain admission to Ivy League institutions.
“Despite these challenges, 19 of our students of have been accepted, our strongest result to date.”
Speaking to Crimson Education’s team of educational experts, they shared the following recommendations on tactics to help parents find solutions to help their children stay calm and ace their final exams:
Practice makes perfect
Knowing what to expect will give your child the confidence boost they may need. Encourage them to use past papers to practise for upcoming exams. This will also help them to identify where they are struggling most, giving them an opportunity to put extra time into understanding the sections. Many past papers are available for free download on the Western Cape education department (WCED) ePortal and the Telematic Schools Programme, hosted by the WCED and Stellenbosch University. The IEB website also offers past papers for the NSC exams for download.
Help them plan their time
Research has shown effective time management helps reduce stress. Help your child plan a schedule of balanced activities which includes planning enough time for each subject. Encourage them to avoid leaving their studying until the end of the day, and to study soon after class or their most recent exam. Time-management apps installed on their phone can also help.
Healthy body, healthy mind
Ensure your child eats healthy food to nourish mind and body. They should schedule time to be active and get outdoors. Time in nature is good for mental health and physical activity increases blood flow to the brain and the rest of the body.
Help them set goals
Setting goals has been shown to improve performance. If your child’s dream is to study overseas after school, encourage them to put pictures of where they want to be above their desk or as their screensaver.
Encourage your child to ask for help
If your child isn’t feeling confident about a particular subject, encourage them to reach out for help from teachers at their school or find an online tutor for them. Personal one-on-one tutoring can improve academic performance and provide reassurance when it is needed most.
Location, location, location
When studying, sitting in the same spot all day can make your child feel anxious, uncomfortable and like they have been working for longer than they have. This will reduce their productivity. Encourage them to change their environment every now and then to keep their brain fresh.
Strength in numbers
Encourage your child to create study groups with friends so they can cover the content together and feed off each other’s knowledge and energy. If they have a mix of abilities and academic strengths in their group, they can use the differences to support each other and level up their own learning.
Unleash their creativity
Long pages of text can be exhausting to look at and they can make it more difficult to retain information. To liven up their material and ensure they retain it, encourage your child to use different colours and diagrams to divide up concepts and difficult content. Adding some creativity to the study process keeps their brain sharp, and can help with memory recall for certain topics.
All it takes is five minutes
It is easier to commit to five minutes of studying than an hour. Once your child has started, they’ve conquered the hardest part. It’s like eating an elephant — you can only do it one small piece at a time.
Let Tyla play
It may feel counterintuitive, but music can help your child concentrate and keep them relaxed during stressful study sessions. Encourage them to use a speaker on low volume instead of earphones, and make sure their phone is far away so they are not tempted to start scrolling.
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