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

[PrincessKsMom]

DD was Accepted at Richard Stockton College of NJ She's going for Marine Science. She still wants to see Coastal Carolina in SC but it will be double the price. We'll submit an app and see how it goes

Today is her first day of senior year. How quickly time has flown by. I lovey daughter anc who she has become but I miss my baby.

 

[madge]

Went for Instant Decision Day yesterday. Loved it! She got her acceptance letter and a $5k scholarship. They also leave the scholarship open so when she takes the SAT again in October, if she moves up another level (20 points), they'll raise her scholarship to $7k. If she somehow, miraculously moves up 120 points, they'll raise to scholarship to $11k! Non-binding, she has until May 2014 to send in her acceptance response and deposit. Wow, this is definitely the way to go if it's offered.

Bellarmine University has a similar instant decision/early action program -- DS got a packet from them yesterday with all the information. If he applies before 11/1, they waive the application fee & he will know in December what his merit aid will be .... BUT, if he waits until December 1, then he pays the $25 and will be considered for other awards, stipends, and scholarships. As far as I know, this is the only school he's interested in that has the type of admission program.

I assume he'll wait for the December 1 cutoff to be considered for the other scholarships.

 

[PrincessKsMom]

Bellarmine University has a similar instant decision/early action program -- DS got a packet from them yesterday with all the information. If he applies before 11/1, they waive the application fee & he will know in December what his merit aid will be .... BUT, if he waits until December 1, then he pays the $25 and will be considered for other awards, stipends, and scholarships. As far as I know, this is the only school he's interested in that has the type of admission program.

I assume he'll wait for the December 1 cutoff to be considered for the other scholarships.

Good luck to your son!

What I also liked is that they allow you to stack your scholarships. So if DD gets a $2k scholarship from another source, the school will NOT decrease her scholarship by that amount. It will come off the parents' total, not the school's side.

 

[Gina]

Congrats on the acceptances so far!! Still waiting, here. We keep checking the Howdy portal for A&M, but from what I've read on the College Confidential boards no one has received an admission decision yet. My son asked me if they'll still send a physical letter in the mail along with the electronic notice, but I have no idea. He really wants that piece of paper in his hand, I guess so it feels more "real."

I have a question y'all might have an answer to... Does it help to apply to other places, if you have no intention of going there, to use as a bargaining chip for merit aid? Like, would it help him to be able to go in and say, "I got accepted to X, Y, and Z... but I really want to go *here*."

I don't have the $$ for him to apply all over the place, but some are sending app fee waivers. I would still have to pay to have test scores sent, though, and I really can't right now. And we've talked about it at length, looked through the info, etc., but he really has zero desire to go to these fancier places, and has no interest in "collecting" acceptances -- but he knows that every dollar we can get through merit aid is one less dollar he'll end up owing when he graduates.

This year is going to fly by SO fast... I wish I could slow it down somehow!!

 

[aggiemomx3]

When my son was accepted to Texas A&M (College Station) everything was electronic. However, when he was accepted to Graduate school at TAMU-Corpus Christi, he received an official letter in the mail. I'm not sure what TAMU-Galveston will do. I hope he gets his letter soon!

 

[camreesmom]

I feel like I'm approaching the steepest hill on a rollercoaster. Once September 4 gets here, the ride will begin.

This is EXACTLY how I feel! School started for us on the 26th so we're just into week 2. The craziness has already begun. My daughter is on the cheer squad so games every Friday....debate tournaments on Saturday and Teen ACTS team meetings every Sunday. Afterschool, she has cheer practice, theatre rehearsals, debate practice so I don't know when this kid is going to rest! She also seems to be in no hurry to start driving so I'm still playing taxi driver. I'm going to be sad when she is gone though. I feel like I am always right on the edge of crying. I'm going to miss her but at the same time, I'm excited for her.

 

[powellrj]

Bellarmine University has a similar instant decision/early action program -- DS got a packet from them yesterday with all the information. If he applies before 11/1, they waive the application fee & he will know in December what his merit aid will be .... BUT, if he waits until December 1, then he pays the $25 and will be considered for other awards, stipends, and scholarships. As far as I know, this is the only school he's interested in that has the type of admission program.

I assume he'll wait for the December 1 cutoff to be considered for the other scholarships.

DD got the same thing in the mail yesterday. We have never heard of the school and had to google it to see what it was about. I think she may apply just because she is wanting to go with a smaller christian school. She has pretty much decided on a small school. Her brother is trying to talk her out of that, but she seems set. She has only visited small schools at this point, but she has friends that are going to large schools that she may visit soon. I know one of her best friends is going to Purdue, so I think she will be going there once her friend gets settled in.

 

[elgerber]

Ok, I got curious, and logged into my daughters app (I had the login info from when we called their tech support line to get some help) and her status is accepted! I knew she would be, but it's nice that it's official. Now to get her to check it, so she doesn't know I did.

 

[lazer]

Bellermine is a great small school. I looked there when I was hunting for schools. Went with a small catholic school the same size, but in Illinois. We played Bellarmine in soccer and the campus was very nice. And, I know some graduates that loved their experience!

 

[PrincessKsMom]

Ok, I got curious, and logged into my daughters app (I had the login info from when we called their tech support line to get some help) and her status is accepted! I knew she would be, but it's nice that it's official. Now to get her to check it, so she doesn't know I did.

Congrats! And mum's the word.

 

[powellrj]

Bellermine is a great small school. I looked there when I was hunting for schools. Went with a small catholic school the same size, but in Illinois. We played Bellarmine in soccer and the campus was very nice. And, I know some graduates that loved their experience!

Thats good to hear. I googled it and and looked like a nice school. I just called my DSIL who lives in KY and she really didn't know anything about it, but she was going to ask my brother who tends to keep up on things like this. He use to work in Louisville and may know more he can tell us.

 

[Gina]

Ok, I got curious, and logged into my daughters app (I had the login info from when we called their tech support line to get some help) and her status is accepted! I knew she would be, but it's nice that it's official. Now to get her to check it, so she doesn't know I did.

Congrats to your DD!!

 

[madge]

DD got the same thing in the mail yesterday. We have never heard of the school and had to google it to see what it was about. I think she may apply just because she is wanting to go with a smaller christian school. She has pretty much decided on a small school. Her brother is trying to talk her out of that, but she seems set. She has only visited small schools at this point, but she has friends that are going to large schools that she may visit soon. I know one of her best friends is going to Purdue, so I think she will be going there once her friend gets settled in.

Bellarmine's a good school. I'm not sure it's the caliber of Centre, Transy, Hanover, etc. What sets it apart is being in/near downtown Louisville. That may be what turns DS off about it. He's not an urban kind of kid. LOL

 

[madge]

Thats good to hear. I googled it and and looked like a nice school. I just called my DSIL who lives in KY and she really didn't know anything about it, but she was going to ask my brother who tends to keep up on things like this. He use to work in Louisville and may know more he can tell us.

I should've explained in my earlier post -- I live about 45 miles south of Louisville. Bellarmine is a popular choice around here. They give pretty generous aid packages (at least they did a few years ago) and the campus is lovely. It was on our older son's short list.

DS is going to apply for the scholarships, make a visit, and see how that all plays out. So far it's in the top 5. LOL

 

[elgerber]

Congrats! And mum's the word.

And I suggested she check the website for updates...and she hasn't :-(. What a goof!

 

[PrincessKsMom]

And I suggested she check the website for updates...and she hasn't :-(. What a goof!

 

[elgerber]

And I suggested she check the website for updates...and she hasn't :-(. What a goof!

Finally she checked!!!

 

[PrincessKsMom]

Finally she checked!!!

(lots of this going on in your house I would imagine).

 

[elgerber]

(lots of this going on in your house I would imagine).

She didn't check until after she went to bed, then sent me a text LOL.

 

[PrincessKsMom]

She didn't check until after she went to bed, then sent me a text LOL.

Gotta love teenagers!