In accordance with the Act respecting Access to documents held by public bodies and the Protection of personal information, a cégep cannot provide a parent with identifying information about any student, unless the student is still a minor. As soon as they reach the age of majority, the educational institution is prohibited from sharing any information, including whether or not the student is attending classes, registered as a full- or part-time student, what their results are, etc.
Cégep corresponds to the period in life when an adolescent makes the transition to adulthood and with it, greater autonomy. Children, as well as their parents need to adapt, and you are more apt to keep the conversation going with them if you refrain from only asking questions about their grades or performance.
To know more about their progress, opt instead for open-ended questions that show your interest, for example:
- “How are your courses going?”
- “What do you find most difficult?”
- “What extra curricular activities do you find interesting?”
- Any question connected to their career interests
The College Education Regulations, common to all cégeps, gives students the responsibility to attend and actively participate in all their courses. Class attendance is one of the important practices that students must learn, so to help them assume this new responsibility first-session teachers take systematic attendance. If a student has an important reason to be absent from a class, it is his responsibility to notify the teacher, and plan to catch up on missed work and lectures.
As a parent, you can
- Help them be aware of their responsibility to attend all classes.
- Help them avoid the temptation to take a vacation during a school session with you or their friends.
Cégeps have internet portals that students access via a password. They will not only use it to retrieve their schedule at the beginning of the term, but they can also consult their accumulated evaluation results throughout the semester as well as final grades. Teachers also use it to transmit personal comments, and your child has access to a virtual space wherein teachers can deposit their class notes, corrections and other useful course materials.
Cégep students can also use a messaging service to communicate with all their teachers as well as receive important information from the school. In short, your child has access to a wealth of important information regarding their studies in just a few clicks!
The R score is the CRC, cote de rendement au collegial.
The R score is used in the selection of candidates for university quota programs. It can be used as an admission threshold for university studies and can also be used for changes in college programs.
The R score explained
The Bureau de coopération inter-universitaire (formerly the Conférence des recteurs et des principaux des universités du Québec), offers explanations to help you better understand the R score.
Yes, it is possible to drop a course after the beginning of the term, but there is a course withdrawal deadline to respect to avoid it being recorded as a failure on your transcript. This date is found in the school calendar for each semester.
Before proceeding, your child can get advice from their academic adviser to evaluate the impacts of such a decision on their school career (extending their education, summer courses, etc.), and by the same token, verify if alternatives are possible.
All courses dropped after the official deadline will receive a failed grade on the student’s transcript, which will be calculated in their R score, even if the courses are retaken and completed.
Yes, dropping a course can entail consequences on their educational path. It’s important to consult their academic adviser before withdrawing from a class to ensure that it’s not a prerequisite to another course, or to see if dropping the course does not create extra delays to complete their studies. In some programs dropping one single course can prolong studies by year.
Students must retake all failed courses. These failed classes remain registered in their transcript even if they retake the course and obtain a passing grade – the course will be registered twice on their transcript. It’s important to know that it can also create extra delays to the initial duration of their studies.
To succeed in college, the study time suggested, beyond course hours, is estimated at a minimum of 15 hours per week and varies according to the programs and times of the year. For advice on efficient study strategies, students can participate in workshops offered at the beginning of the term or consult an academic adviser.
Many studies prove it: college students with the best grades are those that work less than 15 – 20 hours per week. Those that work more than 20 hours per week risk seriously compromising their school success. It is important that full-time students remember that their studies must be a priority.
The cost is quite varied and depends on several factors, like the choice of private or public college, where the student will live (family residence, relative, apartment, student residence, etc.). Lifestyle, choice of meals and debt obligations are also factors with enormous influence on the costs.
Inspired by cégep de Ste-Foy and cégep de Victoriaville.