The Senator George Mitchell Scholarship Research Institute awards college scholarships to Maine students and conducts research on access to higher education in Maine. The Mitchell Institute’s recent study of barriers to college in Maine found that while Maine students and parents have high aspirations, they are not always taking the concrete steps that are needed to plan for the future. The study also found that parents are the single most important resource in helping students prepare for life after high school. Here is a list of simple steps parents can take to make sure their children have the best possible educational opportunities. As the suggested timeline shows, it is never too early to start.

For all ages

Let your children know from a very early age that college is an option for them. In Maine alone, there are 18 four-year colleges and nine technical colleges, as well as Job Corps and postsecondary education options through the military. Financial aid makes college possible for middle- and low-income families. Postsecondary education really is for everyone.

Talk about career interests with your children, and stress the importance of education. Start talking early about what comes after high school. Today, postsecondary education or training is needed for almost every entry-level job that pays well. A college degree gives a person many career options and opportunities, regardless of the student’s major. Many successful professionals work in career fields that are not directly related to their college major.

Learn how to use the Internet. It is an excellent resource for a wealth of free information to help with planning for life after high school. If you do not have a computer with Internet access at home, local libraries offer free use of computers and some offer free classes on using the Internet. If your child or a young relative is an Internet user, this is a great opportunity for you to learn from them.

Encourage your kids to develop their special interests and talents by getting involved in school- and community-based extracurricular activities like sports, music and volunteering.

Birth to age 5

Read to your child every day.

Establish a college savings account. Local banks and credit unions offer a range of savings options. Maine has a college-investing plan called NextGen that now offers matching contributions for families with incomes below $50,000. For more information, visit your local bank or www.famemaine.com/html/education/nextgen.htm. For a complete list of all state college investing plans visit www.savingforcollege.com.

Elementary school

Help your children do their best in school. Discover which subjects are your child’s best and any areas where he needs extra help. Ensure that she does her homework, and make sure she has a quiet space and adequate time to study.

Get involved. Attend parent nights at school and parent-teacher meetings. Call your child’s teacher at other times if concerns or problems arise. Volunteer to help at school events, chaperone field trips, etc.

Visit local college campuses. Attend sporting events, festivals, etc.

Middle school

Meet with the guidance counselor to participate in your child’s course selections. As early as seventh grade, a student’s classes can either ensure or prevent him from taking college-preparatory and advanced classes in high school.

Stay involved at school and with your child’s teachers.

Continue to save for college. U.S. savings bonds (series EE) are good for medium and longer-term savings (at least five years), and can be purchased from banks, post offices or online at www.savingsbonds.gov.

High school

Advise your child to take the most challenging courses she can. Colleges prefer students who challenged themselves and received lower grades to those who took easier courses to ensure high grades.

Continue to save. As college gets closer, you may want to look at more conservative, shorter-term investment options like simple savings accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs), money market accounts, and money market mutual funds.

Attend college information sessions and financial aid nights for parents at school.

Attend a local college fair, and make sure your child attends. UMaine is holding a college fair Monday Sept. 23 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Tuesday the 24th from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Field House in Orono.

Help your child develop a list of steps for college preparation and make sure he or she stays on track. The PSAT and SAT exams, federal FASFA financial aid form and college applications have strict deadlines. Guidance counselors and the Internet are great resources for planning timelines.

Take your child to tour the campuses of as many of the colleges he is interested in as possible.

Learn about financial aid. It is a complicated system, but a combination of grants and loans makes college possible for most students. In some cases, colleges with a higher “sticker prices” are actually less expensive for students because of the amount of scholarship aid they offer.

Where to start on the Internet:

. A good general college planning resource is www.collegeispossible.org.

. Texas’s Adventures in Education web site has planning information for students and parents at www.adventuresineducation.org/AIEhome.html.

. The Mitchell Institute’s web site has a college planning section at http://www.mitchellinstitute.org/planning/body.html

. Several free publications about college planning for parents are available at www.ed.gov/pubs/parents or by calling 1-877-4-ED-PUBS (ask for Preparing Your Child for College, A Resource Book for Parents, ERIC #ED445602).

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Financial aid Web sites:

. www.finaid.org has a free online national scholarship search

. The Finance Authority of Maine (FAME) Web site (www.famemaine.com) has an online search of Maine scholarships and information on student and parent loans.

. An essential step in applying for financial aid is the Free Application for Student Financial Aid (FASFA). Information is available online at wwww.fafsa.ed.gov or call 1-800-4FED-AID.

Lisa Plimpton is research director of the Senator George Mitchell Scholarship Research Institute in Portland.