Parents of College Class of 2018 (A.K.A., "Is this the line to the poor house?")

[madge]

How many schools is your child applying too? not sure. we're still in visiting mode. If I had to guess, I'd say 4.

How many of those schools are on the Common App? I don't think any of them are.

Do any of the schools your child is applying to require an audition, tryout, portfolio or an additional piece? no.
Is your child taking the ACT or the SAT again? yes. September.

Is your child doing EA for any of ths schools on thier list? I don't think so.

What have you gotten done so far? me? nothing. DS has maintained his list of extra curriculars, checked with the office about his official GPA & class rank, and finished all his AP chem summer homework before school started. He started school on Thursday ... and is caught up on the already assigned homework & decided to add journalism to his schedule.

IDoDis- I don't even know what this is.

 

[Bluestars]

I have a son starting his senior year, so I will join this thread.

He's been back and forth about several schools, but is thinking of applying to Rensselaer Polytech in NY. Has anyone heard of this school? We are flying out there for a tour in September. If he really likes it, he will apply for early decision.

Does anyone have experience with early decision? From what I have read, it's easier to get into a school if you do this, but you are committed to that school.

He has taken the ACT several times and has good scores, but he will take it at least two more times to see if he can improve.

He's doing all of the other things like clubs, community service, National Honor Society, debate team, sports, government, etc.

I haven't booked his senior pictures yet. From reading this thread, I guess I am behind.

 

[Chelley00]

What would be the best way to go? Only take the 4 classes or take 5 classes? Will it affect her rank if she takes one less class? She has to register for school on Tuesday so any feedback I can get before then would be great!

Our school ranks by GPA so taking 4 or 5 classes wouldn't hurt rank. It's divided by how many classes you do take, not divided by how many classes you can take. Ask your guidance counselor just to be sure, though.



How many schools is your child applying too? Probably just 2 or 3. He's pretty set on staying local.

How many of those schools are on the Common App? I'm not sure.

Do any of the schools your child is applying to require an audition, tryout, portfolio or an additional piece? Nope, but he will be trying out for soccer. His JV coach from 2 years ago is now the college coach, so he's thinking he has a pretty good chance

Is your child taking the ACT or the SAT again? He needs to bump up his ACT one lousy point for his academic honors diploma, so he's going to retake that.

Is your child doing EA for any of ths schools on thier list? Probably his first pick school, but not the rest

What have you gotten done so far? me? He knows he needs to start applying to his first choice, but he's been so busy with starting school, soccer and work that he really hasn't had a chance to sit down and start the application.

 

[powellrj]

How is everyone's list coming? Not good, she really isn't doing much about school, she is more into senior year activities

How many schools is your child applying too? II think 4 or 5
How many of those schools are on the Common App? 0 only Purdue and I am more about Purdue than she is

Do any of the schools your child is applying to require an audition, tryout, portfolio or an additional piece?No

Is your child taking the ACT or the SAT again?Yes to both

Is your child doing EA for any of ths schools on thier list? I am not sure

What has your child gotten done so far? Other than taking the SAT and ACT, nothing

She is #3 and I am letting her do the leg work, I was way too involved with my oldest and it ended with him dropping out second semester of his freshman year and joining the Army during the early day of the war in Iraq. With #2 he did all the leg work himself and he only applied to one school. He got in and will graduate in December of this year, but he is sorry he didn't apply to more schools.

Like I said, I will help when I am asked and I will make suggestions, but she has to have a stake in the process by doing the leg work on her own. I will go on as many visits as she wants, but so far she hasn't made one appointment. She is set on going to a private christian school that all of her friends are going to which is fine, but I am not sure we can afford it and she hasn't done the work needed to find out what she needs to do to get in. She is on track for her academic honor diploma so that is a plus and she has taken the SAT and ACT, but she still needs to get busy.

 

[JeannieNM]

I'm laughing at myself. I wrote what have "you" gotten done when I meant what has "your child" gotten done... I am sure Frued would have something to say about that.

 

[MrsPete]

However, she's worried that if she doesn't take a full load it will affect her class rank when she graduates, thus affecting her scholarship potential.

From a 20+ year teacher of high school seniors:

Yes, it can affect her scholarship potential. It is not an absolute kiss of death, but so often these things come down to the wire, and it could be the one thing onto which a scholarship committee latches. You don't know who's making these decisions, or what they will consider important.

A way to avoid this: Add in an online college class. She doesn't need yet another credit for high school, and this will fill her schedule AND put her a credit ahead for college. You should check into your school's rules, but at our school these classes would show up on the transcript, but they would not help/hurt her GPA; thus, they would not affect her class rank. If she were to take a simple elective (i.e., Art 101), an A in the class could actually bring down her AP-heavy GPA.

Her class rank will probably be recalculated at Christmas and then again after spring exams; however, class rank is probably the least important of all the numbers involved in this whole process. Colleges recognize that no matter how smart and hardworking your kid may be, someone else may be just a smidge more capable.

On the other hand, you mentioned that she's feeling some stress concerning AP classes and other activities. A high schooler should not feel stressed -- not on a regular basis. An empty class period is better than lackluster grades across the board.

The scholarship applications want her official transcripts through her Junior year. That's what they base the GPA and class rank on, correct? Aren't most scholarhip decisions from the colleges made by December/January? Not that senior year doesn't matter because they will want a final transcript sent in after she graduates, but the scholarship decisions are all made based on the first three years of high school, or so it seems.

Yes and no. Because most college admissions are sent in September -December, yes, they're essentially based upon grades 9-11. The college acceptance letter will remind students that their admission is "conditional" upon completing the senior year in good standing . . . but really it's the first three years of high school that helps the student get into college.

Scholarships aren't necessarily the same. The big deal scholarships (which are few in number and have massive numbers of applicants) tend to have deadlines of November or December 1st, so obviously they're based upon the first three years. However, scholarships are far from "done" in December/January. My daughter actually won a rather nice scholarship in July AFTER her graduation. The smaller scholarships tend to have January-April deadlines, so they are able to consider the fall semester grades as well. More students end up winning the smaller scholarships, and they are not to be ignored!

 

[MrsPete]

How many schools is your child applying too? [5-7 for our DD]

How many of those schools are on the Common App? [2-3 for us]

Do any of the schools your child is applying to require an audition, tryout, portfolio or an additional piece? [yes, 5-6]

Is your child taking the ACT or the SAT again? [Yes, ACT, Sept and maybe Oct]

Is your child doing EA for any of ths schools on thier list? [yes, 2 for us]

What has your child gotten done so far?

I don't have a senior this year, but I have lots of experience with the college application process and can give general help:

Four schools is plenty. More means you may not have been selective enough in your screening process, and your net is spread too widely. Junior year is for exploring what's available; by senior year, you should have it narrowed down a bit.

In past years my students didn't use the Common App much. Most of our schools didn't accept it, but that's changing. I don't think it helps or hurts.

Ideally your student would take the SAT as soon as possible after completing Algebra 2, which is the highest math tested. The verbal score isn't as likely to change based upon more coursework. Ideally a student begins his senior year with his SAT completed. If he simply must take it again, it should be at the very first opportunity. Otherwise, it can delay the application process, and sending in those applications SOON is tremendously important.

I am not a big fan of Early Admission. It's like saying, "I will do anything to attend your school. Don't even consider me for scholarships -- save them for someone who's on the fence about attending your school." Instead, apply by the first deadline and trust that your high school grades will serve you well.

As of today, early August, I would expect a student to have chosen the schools to which he will apply -- and nothing else. Applications tend to open up September 1st, and I'd expect the student to begin on them right away. Ask teachers for recommendations as soon as possible (students HATE asking teachers for recommendations, and they put it off, which hurts them in the long run). If you're itching for your student to do something, have him put together a list of his high school achievements /extracurriculars, especially including leadership positions, and make multiple copies to hand to the teachers as they write his recommendations.

Once the applications start rolling in, the student should keep a file of all his application essays. Often these can be re-used -- or, more likely -- revised to suit a similar question, which is a huge time-saver for the student. The student will really appreciate having been organized when he discovers a scholarship possibility two days before the deadline.

Another thing that the student should be doing now is discussing finances with his parents. Just how much can everyone afford? What's realistic in terms of financial aid? Do you have a financial safety school in your sites just in case things don't work out as well as you hope?

 

[MrsPete]

My DD17 is applying to only one. After visiting her top choices, one school seems to be a perfect fit. A program and opportunities that excited her and it's in a metro area which she really wanted. It's a state school and she has the class rank to be an automatic acceptance. So as far as school selection goes- she's done!

I've got to tell you, I don't like it! I've seen top students choose to apply to only one school, and, yes, it usually works out. However, I've also seen it turn ugly, usually at the last minute:

Occasionally as the senior year rolls by, that perfect school starts to seem less than appealing. Sometimes the shoe-in scholarship doesn't materialize and the financial aid fairies are unkind, and the school's just a little too expensive. And every now and then the student just plain balks at the last minute and decides he's not ready to leave home. That happened to a friend of mine's son. He'd done all the visiting, etc. and was very excited about college. He went to orientation, registered for classes, and purchased dorm items. But the weekend before he was to move into school, when his mom said, "You should start packing," he announced, "I AM NOT GOING, AND YOU CAN'T MAKE ME!" This was not a boy whom you would've expected to have last minute fears. They scurried around and were able to enroll him in community college for the fall semester, then a university within commuting range for the spring semester.

Incidentally, if you have a daughter, you can count on her having a 2-3 day freak-out in late April or early May (right around the last-day-to-accept-date). For a couple days, she will reconsider every plan she's made, sometimes even to the point of considering not going to college at all. This is totally normal. If you don't feed the flames, if you just remind her that she's made good choices and now it's time to see them through, this will pass quickly. I'd say 90% of my daughter's friends' moms report their daughter went through this phase as high school graduation started to appear real to them.

But back to the OP's comment, I strongly suggest that she apply to at least one more school. Things sometimes change radically during senior year, and you don't want her to be left with only one path ahead of her.

 

[MrsPete]

Does the school have special dorms for the students in the honors program? That would be a big perk living with like-minded, hard-working students vs the party animals.

Oh, don't fool yourself: These two descriptors aren't mutually exclusive!

When I was a freshman I lived in an honors dorm, and it was like living in two different worlds: Sunday night - Friday morning you could walk onto our floor and see people in the commons area or the small private rooms reading or typing away. You could hear a pin drop. On the weekends, it was one of the loudest, drunkest floors on campus. And I have never since lived among such a mean, backstabbing bunch of . . . well, you can fill in the blanks for yourself. Okay, in all honesty, the fact that they were just foul people was an anomaly; it's not likely that all honors dorms are filled with nasty people. My roommate and I thought we were making a responsible decision when we chose that dorm, but we got out of there after one semester.

When we moved, we found that our new dorm mates were somewhat mixed in their attitudes towards their studies. The majority of them were just like those who'd lived in the honors dorm: They could be seen cuddled up to their books most nights. The few who didn't bother, didn't tend to hang around the dorm much anyway -- they went out, and they were often "one semester wonders".

The honors program has some perks; in my mind, the best details are that they tend to be given some of the newest, nicest living facilities, and they get priority registration. The rest doesn't amount to much in the grand scheme of things. But don't for a minute think that students in those dorms are quieter and more serious about their studies.

Also don't hold any false impressions about a school because it's a party school or a "serious school". My daughter informed me recently that her school is now considered the #1 party school in our state. I didn't know. Regardless, she has a 3.95 GPA in a science-oriented major (and she absolutely loves living on one of the wildest floors in one of the wildest dorms). Her individual success is what really matters to me.

Instead of focusing on finding an honors dorm and expecting an ideal study situation, I'd help my student figure out how best to carve out study time while living in a sometimes chaotic place:

- Make a study schedule. You have three hours of free time on Tuesday and Thursday mornings? Without a plan, that'll probably turn into a nap or video game time, but it's actually perfect study time. Without exception, dorms tend to be dead quiet during the day.
- Find quiet spots in your dorm. Perhaps people tend to congregate in your floor's common areas, and they can be heard down the hall. But the laundry room and the basement commons areas are almost always quiet. It's also good to know these areas for times when your roommate wants to watch TV or go to sleep early. For students who are easily distracted, studying away from the room can be a good choice: No TV, no ipod to call out, "Take a break with me!"
- Remember that the library's always available. Look into how to reserve small private rooms in the library (or perhaps even in your dorm) for times when you want to study with a group. Many of these rooms include conference tables, SmartBoards, and other study aids.
- Pay attention to your dorm's quiet hours. Most dorms are at their more rowdy between dinner and 10:00 pm. After that, most dorms have quiet hours. So go with the flow: Plan to be social during those loudest times and study at other times.

Another thing that really does matter in this regard is your student's roommate. It's one thing to live on a wild floor /in a wild dorm. It's quite another thing to share a room with an individual who comes in drunk and wakes you up on a regular basis. My daughter and her roommate are both very serious students. They love being able to go out and enjoy themselves with their dorm mates, but they know when to say goodbye and go back to their rooms. A wild roommate can be a real problem.

 

[TLuvsD]

Even if everything is guaranteed, in writing, I would encourage a couple of additional applications. Things change over the course of a year--what is perfect now may not be perfect in April. And not having a choice can be a problem in and of itself. Especially when everyone else in the class is doing visits to make a decision and they don't have any options. It may be that she ends up at the current top choice, but it's about having a choice.

 

[Chelley00]

Oh, don't fool yourself: These two descriptors aren't mutually exclusive!

When I was a freshman I lived in an honors dorm, and it was like living in two different worlds: Sunday night - Friday morning you could walk onto our floor and see people in the commons area or the small private rooms reading or typing away. You could hear a pin drop. On the weekends, it was one of the loudest, drunkest floors on campus.

Our oldest DS was in an honors dorm. He said he saw more drugs and alcohol in his dorm than when he visited friends in other dorms and frat houses because they are so stressed from trying to be the perfect student that come the weekend they were all high or drunk.

He also said that 90% of them were international students and most of them ignored anyone American and anyone who wasn't international was very much a loner.

DS liked it because they give you a huge break on housing costs, they were all single rooms with air conditioning, but he won't go back because of the people. He was the only "jock" in his building and found it really hard to make friends.

 

[madge]

I have a question that maybe some parents can answer who already had one child past the senior year and is currently in college.

DD is ahead on her credits since she's taken a zero hour senate class for two years. This means she doesn't have to take an elective this year. However, she's worried that if she doesn't take a full load it will affect her class rank when she graduates, thus affecting her scholarship potential. I am not sure of her most recent ranking because it wasn't on her final report card that was mailed out at the end of May. On her January report card, she was ranked 6th unweighted and 13th weighted (out of 400).

If she only takes 4 classes instead of 5, that would leave her more time for homework (3 AP classes) and more time for EC's (clubs and volunteer work) and her job where she works 15 hrs/wk without being so stressed for time.

The scholarship applications want her official transcripts through her Junior year. That's what they base the GPA and class rank on, correct? Aren't most scholarhip decisions from the colleges made by December/January? Not that senior year doesn't matter because they will want a final transcript sent in after she graduates, but the scholarship decisions are all made based on the first three years of high school, or so it seems.

Should DD take another class even though she doesn't have to in order to keep her rank or does it not matter? The elective she would take would be some class on Roman culture. Why she chose that, I have no clue. Since she will have 3 AP classes, she doesn't want to add in heavy-duty elective.

What would be the best way to go? Only take the 4 classes or take 5 classes? Will it affect her rank if she takes one less class? She has to register for school on Tuesday so any feedback I can get before then would be great!

our situation is not exactly the same, but similar.

here's what happened with DS ... and all his friends this year (the higher level learning track students)

they were all placed in at least 2 AP classes. DS has AP Stats, AP Chem, and is also taking Physics & Honors English. it's a tradition at their school for seniors to be teacher's aids, so that's one class ... and then their 6th class is a random elective. Many were placed in art or PE 2. DS was originally placed in a desktop publishing class, but learned of an opening in journalism so he's taking that (good move on his part ) I'm not sure of the rhyme or reason for this scheduling ... but I do know that they'll all have their hands full in the 4 subject area classes, so the off class will be a nice break.

will it hurt DS when it's time to compete for scholarships? I don't think so. I'm hoping that adding the journalism & working on the newspaper will help. He will graduate with 5 years of math, 5 years of science, 4 years of social studies & English, 2 years of language, and arts & humanities ... all at the honors or AP level. (and the PE, keyboarding, etc. electives) He also has a 4.0 in 6 hours of college credit taken this summer. His GPA is strong and ACT is excellent. (hoping to get that excellent-er in September)

I guess we'll find out soon enough.

 

[Marymom]

Hi all!

My oldest daughter is a senior this year. She applied to USF and Auburn this weekend. She also scheduled to re-take the SAT in November. I spent around $150 in fees this weekend. Ouch. I think she will apply to at least 2 more schools but, honestly, it will depend if she can get her SAT score up. Ga Tech will be a reach even with a better score! The average last year was 2000.

 

[sbtrfly74]

I am not a big fan of Early Admission. It's like saying, "I will do anything to attend your school. Don't even consider me for scholarships -- save them for someone who's on the fence about attending your school." Instead, apply by the first deadline and trust that your high school grades will serve you well.

Thank you, Ive been freaking out thinking Im really behind hearing all these ppl already applying for Fall 2014 I always though you applied around Nov. Im still a little behind in the process but since my DD isnt on the ball as much as she should be in her own education I tell her either she does some of the work in finding schools, getting teacher recommendations etc, or she can spend 2 yrs at CC and Ill save money.

 

[JeannieNM]

Thank you, Ive been freaking out thinking Im really behind hearing all these ppl already applying for Fall 2014 I always though you applied around Nov. Im still a little behind in the process but since my DD isnt on the ball as much as she should be in her own education I tell her either she does some of the work in finding schools, getting teacher recommendations etc, or she can spend 2 yrs at CC and Ill save money.

Please don't freak out. What sets this thread apart from some of the other college boards is that we know there is no one way fits all. What is right for one family is not necessarily right for another. We are here to observe each others journey, support each other and to answer questions when asked. We are here to give each parent support as they help move on to the next phase of thier lives as thier children move on to the next phase of thiers.

Each one of our children will aproach this process differently. Some will fill out no applications, go to CC, live at home while others will fill out countless apllications (the recommended average for performing arts applicants is 12 schools) and go thousands of miles away to college and everything in between. That's what makes this fun and interesting.

So, don't freak out alone!

Let's keep being supportive without judgement, it is so refreshing.

Thanks

 

[TLuvsD]

I found it helpful to have a quick, not too specific answer when casual acquantiances (or just plain nosy folks) asked about D's college admissions. I'm not talking about family or long time friends. More the folks who ask a million questions at the grocery store when they haven't done more than smile and say hi for years. "She's working on her list, its such an exciting time for her, how is (insert name of someone in their family) doing?" worked for a while. She was accepted early to an honors college at a well known school so it changed to "She's been accepted to Univ of XXX honors with an amazing scholarship, we are waiting to hear from other schools".

Just think of a quick sentence or two. I didn't want to be rude, but she really wanted privacy (and I did too). The whole world doesn't need to know where your senior is applying, or where they were accepted/denied.

 

[IDoDis]

From a 20+ year teacher of high school seniors:

Yes, it can affect her scholarship potential. It is not an absolute kiss of death, but so often these things come down to the wire, and it could be the one thing onto which a scholarship committee latches. You don't know who's making these decisions, or what they will consider important.

A way to avoid this: Add in an online college class. She doesn't need yet another credit for high school, and this will fill her schedule AND put her a credit ahead for college. You should check into your school's rules, but at our school these classes would show up on the transcript, but they would not help/hurt her GPA; thus, they would not affect her class rank. If she were to take a simple elective (i.e., Art 101), an A in the class could actually bring down her AP-heavy GPA.

Her class rank will probably be recalculated at Christmas and then again after spring exams; however, class rank is probably the least important of all the numbers involved in this whole process. Colleges recognize that no matter how smart and hardworking your kid may be, someone else may be just a smidge more capable.

On the other hand, you mentioned that she's feeling some stress concerning AP classes and other activities. A high schooler should not feel stressed -- not on a regular basis. An empty class period is better than lackluster grades across the board.
Yes and no. Because most college admissions are sent in September -December, yes, they're essentially based upon grades 9-11. The college acceptance letter will remind students that their admission is "conditional" upon completing the senior year in good standing . . . but really it's the first three years of high school that helps the student get into college.

Scholarships aren't necessarily the same. The big deal scholarships (which are few in number and have massive numbers of applicants) tend to have deadlines of November or December 1st, so obviously they're based upon the first three years. However, scholarships are far from "done" in December/January. My daughter actually won a rather nice scholarship in July AFTER her graduation. The smaller scholarships tend to have January-April deadlines, so they are able to consider the fall semester grades as well. More students end up winning the smaller scholarships, and they are not to be ignored!

Thanks for the helpful info! DD decided to go ahead and take the Roman history class. Online college courses are not accepted to the program she's going to be applying for. If she wasn't taking AP Calc, she would have done a dual enrollment math college class. Even with the extra class and the zero hour class she's taking again, she'll still get out at 12:30pm each day.

Mrs. Pete, DD has already taken and passed the AP English Lang test and has a 34 on the English portion of her ACT. Should she even bother taking the AP English Lit exam in the spring? Based on her ACT score, she won't have to take the two required English classes in college, so why bother taking the test? Does it look bad to colleges if she doesn't take the AP test at the end? Why pay the exam cost and bother with it unless it would look bad.

 

[scrapquitler]

I have a son starting his senior year, so I will join this thread.

He's been back and forth about several schools, but is thinking of applying to Rensselaer Polytech in NY. Has anyone heard of this school? We are flying out there for a tour in September. If he really likes it, he will apply for early decision.

Does anyone have experience with early decision? From what I have read, it's easier to get into a school if you do this, but you are committed to that school.

He has taken the ACT several times and has good scores, but he will take it at least two more times to see if he can improve.

He's doing all of the other things like clubs, community service, National Honor Society, debate team, sports, government, etc.

I haven't booked his senior pictures yet. From reading this thread, I guess I am behind.

My husband is an RPI graduate. I'm trying to get my daughter interested in applying there, but so far she's not motivated (she's not doing ANYTHING for the college search yet). We are definitely going to tour RPi, but she has already been on campus there numerous times growing up.

 

[MrsPete]

Mrs. Pete, DD has already taken and passed the AP English Lang test and has a 34 on the English portion of her ACT. Should she even bother taking the AP English Lit exam in the spring? Based on her ACT score, she won't have to take the two required English classes in college, so why bother taking the test? Does it look bad to colleges if she doesn't take the AP test at the end? Why pay the exam cost and bother with it unless it would look bad.

Are you SURE that this is the case? Is it true for all the colleges she is considering? Can you point to this rule in writing (i.e., on the school's website, not on College Confidential)? I ask because I'm not familiar with this concept, but then students don't really take the ACT in my area; instead, the SAT reigns supreme here. If you're completely certain of your facts, then I agree -- she doesn't need to bother with the AP test.

Will it look bad to colleges? No, not at all. Here's why: You'll apply to colleges in the fall, scholarships in the fall and spring. The latest college acceptance letters will arrive in late January/early February, and your student will have to "accept" no later than May 1st. AP tests aren't taken until the first two weeks of May, and the scores don't come back 'til June. By the time AP scores are available, your daughter will already have accepted a certain school and will probably already have been assigned to a dorm and have attended orientation/registration. The school will care about her AP tests, but they'll only care so that they can properly credit her transcripts. Her AP test scores -- good, bad, or non-existent -- will neither help nor hurt her in the college admissions process or the scholarship search.

Case in point, a hundred years ago when I was in high school I took several AP classes, but by the time spring semester rolled around, I realized that the college I was going to attend would give credit for NONE of them. So, in the end, I didn't take the AP exams. It would've cost money, and I would've received no reward for even the best of scores.

To be completely clear: Although the test scores won't help her with college admissions, having taken the AP class is a huge help. Colleges say that the #1 predictor of success in college is the rigor of the high school schedule. The student who has been enrolled in multiple AP classes throughout high school will come to college better prepared than the student who breezed through general-level classes.

 

[Gina]

Please don't freak out. What sets this thread apart from some of the other college boards is that we know there is no one way fits all. What is right for one family is not necessarily right for another. We are here to observe each others journey, support each other and to answer questions when asked. We are here to give each parent support as they help move on to the next phase of thier lives as thier children move on to the next phase of thiers.

Each one of our children will aproach this process differently. Some will fill out no applications, go to CC, live at home while others will fill out countless apllications (the recommended average for performing arts applicants is 12 schools) and go thousands of miles away to college and everything in between. That's what makes this fun and interesting.

So, don't freak out alone!

Let's keep being supportive without judgement, it is so refreshing.

Excellent post! I totally agree. This thread has been so wonderful, and I am fascinated by the incredible range of both experiences and situations of everyone here. We and our kids and their choices are all so different, and that is an awesome thing!! I can't speak for anyone else, but I have learned lots of stuff from y'all, even when the situation is completely different.

In a way, I'm kinda jealous of those of you going to see all these different campuses and have these bonding trips with your '14ers... Not that I could afford it, but it sounds like such great memories being made! And I would love to see some of these campuses. But it is what it is, and my DS is just extremely sure what he wants to do and where he wants to do it. It's not about motivation, believe me, LOL -- he put off writing those essays until right at the last moment. I had to keep reminding him that he was the one who wanted in that new dorm, and so needed to get his app in the day it opened.

So while in one way I'm glad the whole process is done, in another I'm also kinda sad... in the same way that anticipation and planning and research for a trip is half the fun for me. I would love these "final" bonding times with my DS that a lot of you are getting, and I would love the research.

Bottom line is, as Jeannie put it so well, we are all in this together even if the circumstances and situations and challenges and triumphs for each of us are different. I'm just really glad I started this thread -- I was afraid when I did that no one would join it.

My most recent triumph? When we were on campus last weekend I found a t-shirt with Mickey AND Texas A&M on it!! I am quite sure that everyone else in the bookstore did not understand my excitement at ALL... but I figure at least a few of you will.