How to Reverse the Effects of "Summer Melt"

Summer melt is a major problem facing students across the US. Summer melt occurs when a student commits to attending a college post high-school graduation and even pays a deposit to secure this commitment, but fails to turn up at the college following fall. This phenomenon is largely seen mostly among students from low-income households, ones planning to attend two-year colleges, and students of color.

There are a number of reasons that are attributed to summer melt. The top three reasons being: the cost of further studies, social anxiety and informational barriers.

Cost of funding college education

The biggest barrier for students of color from low-income households is the cost of funding education, stay, and other living expenses once they start college. College education can be expensive and living expenses added to it can become a major source of tension for students. Faced by this problem, they prefer to shut the idea of going to college altogether.

Providing finance focused counseling to these students can help them understand the ways in which they can fund their education and living expenses and lower their chances of melting. Giving financial aids and grants to these students might also help in getting them to college as there might be many students who are genuinely interested in getting a college education, but financial problems are hindering them from getting one.

Dealing with social anxiety

Transitioning from school life to college life is quite a different experience. Students are no longer bound to school routines and have much more freedom when it comes to social engagements. But this very freedom can lead to social anxiety as youngsters try to remove themselves from the shell and reach out to new individuals, groups, and communities and make new friends. Many a time, the thought of being unable to make new friends and belong to the new institution make students melt.

This can be taken care of by forming communities through social media platforms that keep students in loop and up-to-date about the events at the college and facilitate finding new friends and interact with students who are already studying at the college. This will help students mingle better, make new friends, and look forward to meeting them when they go to college the following fall. College developed social communities should make it a point to reach out to every registered student and have them connect with other students based on hometowns, majors, and common interests.

Informational barriers

Not being updated about the events and deadlines of the college also lead students to miss out on important dates. Colleges send out emails with reminders and other important information but due to many reasons- students not accessing their emails being one- the information is lost.

A foolproof way of sending information and updates to students is necessary. Colleges should find out a way to use social media and text messaging to reach out to students, as these are communication channels they follow up on a daily basis. Through these modes of communication, students can stay up-to-date about all relevant information and make sure that no melt occurs due to missing information.