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

[JeannieNM]

All my son has been thinking about is college. He's been working on applications for hours and hours over the past month.

He has already visited a school in Washington, DC and one in the state we live in. We are flying to New York this month and then Texas the first weekend of October. Then he will visit another in-state school in October and I think that will do it for college visits. He has a list of the ones he likes, but will know more after the visits.

He is taking the ACT test again in Sept and I signed him up for the Oct one too. That will probably be his last ACT test. He already has a good score, but it doesn't hurt to try for a better one. Some schools super score, so taking it more often is beneficial.

He gets his senior pictures taken tomorrow. I have a feeling this year will fly by.

Where did he look in DC, and what did he think of the school? I went to GW undergrad and AU grad school. Of course that was back in the day...DC was a great place to go to school and live. We now live out west so DD is not inclined to go that far east though, she is considering U of Maryland where DH went. Also, where in NYC are you looking? DD is somewhat considering NYU and Pace but again she wants to be in Cali so they are just backup thoughts at this time. I wish we had more time to look at more schools, there are so many great choices out there.

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.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

So my daughter who has so far refused to do any thinking about where to apply or what campuses to visit came to me last night and said, "I've decided to apply to Rensselaer (my DH went there) because I looked at the college board website and my SATs are good enough that I'll probably get in AND they have a quidditch team called the Rememberalls"



So now I know the important critera: the college she attends must have a quidditch team.

It's going to be a very long year around here.

I was happy that at least she looked at a website (finally). DH told her she shouldn't bother to apply there because she's not smart enough. Just what I need...she finally at least thinks about SOMETHING and he shoots her down.

Sigh.

I am so sorry your DH said this to your DD. I hope she applies anyway and gets in. Big Hugs!!!! Can you talk to him and tell him to cool it. I know our DD is applying to one school with an admit rate of 18%, we've talked about it being difficult for anyone to get into but she needs to go for it as long as she applies to a few schools that are easier admits.

DD is going gang busters with 6 classes, cast in the fall Shakespeare play, dancing 4 days a week at a studio, and Pres of one state organization, and one school organization. We counted that she will have 10-12 essays to write for the 5 schools she is applying to, one school has 5 essays. (she may add a couple of safety schools to her list though they will either be ones that don't have supplements or additional essays). She has 2 essays done, 2 almost done, and then she will start the next batch. She is applying EC to 2 of the 5 schools. She has one audition in October and one DVD audition due by Nov. 1. Luckily the rest of the auditions are in January and Feb. All her apps are due by December 1. She is taking the ACT in September for the second time and I think this will be her last time, she took it once before last year. She is also very social so one night a weekend is devoted to social activities. The time is really flying.

 

[Bluestars]

Where in NY will you be looking? We are on Long Island near NYC if I can answer any questions!

We are going to tour Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY. We fly into Albany. We've never been to New York, so this will be a very exciting trip for us.

 

[Bluestars]

Where did he look in DC, and what did he think of the school? I went to GW undergrad and AU grad school. Of course that was back in the day...DC was a great place to go to school and live. We now live out west so DD is not inclined to go that far east though, she is considering U of Maryland where DH went. Also, where in NYC are you looking? DD is somewhat considering NYU and Pace but again she wants to be in Cali so they are just backup thoughts at this time. I wish we had more time to look at more schools, there are so many great choices out there.

He went to a Central Intelligence Conference at American University a few months ago. Although it wasn't an official tour, he saw a good portion of the campus. His cousin went there for the past two years. It's not his top choice, but it's on his list.

He is very excited about touring Rensselaer in Troy, NY. He wants to major in engineering and heard they have a great program. Then we are touring Texas A&M in early October. He's already been to Vanderbilt. I am not sure where else he will apply.

I know what you mean about needing more time to look at schools. I feel like we are behind, but I guess he doesn't need to visit 10 different schools. If he finds a few he likes, and has a decent fall back school, he should be fine.

 

[IDoDis]

I'm just getting caught up on all of the posts. It's been so busy since I've been back at work (teaching). DD has been a senior for almost a month now. She's regretting taking her AP Psych class and is going to see if she can drop the class on Monday if it's not too late. The teacher is a jerk and is the type that brags about how straight A students don't make A's in his class. Sure enough, DD got a D on the first test. The class average was a 53. That's the first D she's ever gotten. It's mainly because there was no direction on what to study and his lectures go off on a tangent and didn't cover lots of the things they were tested on.

I told DD that many college classes would be like that, too, but since she doesn't need the class and was only taking it to satisfy her own need to feel "busy" she is going to try and drop it. No need having this mess up her GPA. She heard that most of the kids don't pass the AP Psych test from his classes either, because he doesn't prepare them very well. If she can drop, she'll take a college dual-enrollment math class in January instead.

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.

Congrats to your DD! That first acceptance must be a big relief. Kind of like seeing that first ultrasound.

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.

That's so exciting! Congrats to your DD! I think the parents use the log-ins and go on the college online forums more than the kids do! I remember I found out DD's ACT scores before her every time she took the test. I'd go on the day the scores were available. This last time it was summer and I was off from work all summer, so I kept late hours. I went on at 12:01am to see her scores!

We are going to tour Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY. We fly into Albany. We've never been to New York, so this will be a very exciting trip for us.

I hope you have a wonderful trip! We are going to NY as a senior trip for DD after she graduates in May.

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

DS has been going wide open since school started.
The guidance counselor took it upon himself to sign DS17 up for Trig and Functions. It irked me more than it probably should have, but I actually participated in helping DS build his schedule. I feel like the counselor was over stepping his bounds a bit.
DS was in the class for 2 days and dropped it. He also dropped Italian because the Restaurant Management teacher begged DS to come to her class. She really needs his help in running the on campus restaurant. He felt good having her seek him out for that.
He's also taking Public Speaking, the last of the career pathways courses. He will be giving 10 speeches this year. He's sweating that one a bit.
Kinesiology is going to be "fun" says DS. His Cross Country/Track coach is the teacher so he's thrilled with this class.
Ancient Western Civilization is the history class. He's also loving this one but will have a 10-15 page report to do by the end of the year. I hope he can do it, he's not a strong writer.
And to round out he's taking Physics. He hasn't said much about this class yet.

And the most important part is B channel study hall so he can go to senior lounge with Coach or go in late/leave early if it's first or last channel.

On the money front:
Our dentist has a scholarship program and she told DS to apply. Her parents and sister are in charge of choosing the winner.

College:
He has decided to go to Community college for at least a year and crank out some of the core classes. After that we are trying to find a school with nutrition and kinesiology. That has been a bit of a challenge.

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Oh and he was voted one of the 3 team captains for the Cross Country team. He is so excited about that!
That also means he's in the running to get captain for the Distance group in indoor and outdoor track.

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

what the what?

And that was my response about the Parent Brag sheet. Turns out it's a list of questions for the Parents to Brag about their child's accomplishments.

It has questions like: What is your son/daughter interested in? , What do they like to do in their spare time? What volunteer work have they done? And so on.

I answered as best I could but totally forgot about 2 volunteer things he did twice in High School and a few other things too.

I was just so frustrated and rushed, I didn't have time to think it all through. I asked him about it and he told me he had to fill out a Brag Sheet on himself in one class period and he forgot about stuff too.

We all really need explanations and more time so we can be more thorough with that type of paperwork. I guess the school thought everyone knew about it and was ready for it. Um no.

I sure know what to do now though when my DD hits High School - keep a list of everything she's involved with and any volunteer stuff on my computer so it will be handy when this form comes around again!

 

[Mom21]

I'm just getting caught up on all of the posts. It's been so busy since I've been back at work (teaching). DD has been a senior for almost a month now. She's regretting taking her AP Psych class and is going to see if she can drop the class on Monday if it's not too late. The teacher is a jerk and is the type that brags about how straight A students don't make A's in his class. Sure enough, DD got a D on the first test. The class average was a 53. That's the first D she's ever gotten. It's mainly because there was no direction on what to study and his lectures go off on a tangent and didn't cover lots of the things they were tested on.

That's too bad. My dd loved her Ap Psych last year and got a 5 on the exam. She is thinking of minoring in Psych if she can. Would be nice if she could get a double major but I doubt it.

My dd also had a teacher like that last year. I wondered what the teacher was trying to prove.....that they suck as a teacher?

Finally, got kid to submit first app today. Now all she has to do is Monday go and get transcripts sent to the 4 she is planning on applying for, and then get those other 3 done. I have to drag up some paperwork to prove residency and get it notarized.

 

[JeannieNM]

He went to a Central Intelligence Conference at American University a few months ago. Although it wasn't an official tour, he saw a good portion of the campus. His cousin went there for the past two years. It's not his top choice, but it's on his list.

He is very excited about touring Rensselaer in Troy, NY. He wants to major in engineering and heard they have a great program. Then we are touring Texas A&M in early October. He's already been to Vanderbilt. I am not sure where else he will apply.

I know what you mean about needing more time to look at schools. I feel like we are behind, but I guess he doesn't need to visit 10 different schools. If he finds a few he likes, and has a decent fall back school, he should be fine.

We only toured 5 schools, she went to 2 different summer intensives that were housed at 2 different college campuses but she did not care for either of those schools though she really liked the intensives. DD is applying to 4 of the schools we visited in Southern California, she did not like one we went to in Texas, so that one is out. She is applying to a 5th school in Arizoan which we have not seen but we will see it in October when she goes for her audition. We have about 5 other schools she is interested in but will have to decide if she is going to apply to any of them without seeing them, they are spread out all over the country and since she is in rehearsal for the fall play and back at dance there is no way she can get away. We will be in DC for Thanskgiving and if she has not heard from one of the two ECs by then she will look at American and UMD. UMD does not have an audition and DH is an active alum and with her grades, etc she should get in no problem. AU has an audition which means if she is interested we will have to add it to the January/Feb audition circuit which could be hard. I don't think she will like AU because it is not big school with a lot of school spirit and sports, but I've been wrong before and sure could be again. LOL

Still no apps in though. she is done with one, she is just having an English teacher proof her essay and I think she will submit the app by the end of the week. She then has to get everything ready that they require for the audition but that hopefully won't be too much. Her second EC school has 5 essays of which she has one done, a second one in rough draft form, and 3 not started. I know she will be relieved when that app is done.

OF the schools your kids are applying to how many of the schools take the common app? and do they have additional supplements? DD is applying to 5 schools so far and 2 take the common app and each of those two have an extensive supplement with multiple additional essays. ARGh

 

[Bluestars]

Jeanine, it sounds like your daughter will be very busy since she has to audition. I can't believe one of the schools requires five essays! Wow.

My son did comment that American University has a small campus. He has narrowed his schools down to seven. Those will be it. Writing is his strong point, so he is on his own with his essays. I would only make it worse by trying to help him.

He said that four out of his seven choices take the common app. He seems to have it all under control, so i am letting him run with it.

 

[JeannieNM]

Jeanine, it sounds like your daughter will be very busy since she has to audition. I can't believe one of the schools requires five essays! Wow.

My son did comment that American University has a small campus. He has narrowed his schools down to seven. Those will be it. Writing is his strong point, so he is on his own with his essays. I would only make it worse by trying to help him.

He said that four out of his seven choices take the common app. He seems to have it all under control, so i am letting him run with it.

I know what you mean about not helping with the essays,I would make a mess of them, DD is a much better writer then I will ever be, I do enjoy reading them but that is about it. I am in charge of plane tickets, car rentals and hotel reservations for the auditions. The auditions all add extra time, essays, forms, monologues, photos...and logistics. I do the logistics, dd does the rest. The GCs do want them to have their essays read by an English teacher before they submit them to make sure all is well with grammar and punctuation. Her English teacher was a GC for years and is very helpful. Poor guy though she will be bringing essays every time he turns around. Five essays is a killer, one of my friends whose daughter is a freshman in college this year wanted to apply to school my dd is applying to but could never get through one of the essays so she let it go. I think two of the 5 essays are optional but DD won't pass up a chance so she is doing all 5.. Yee gads I would probably find another school. LOL I probably pester my dd too much about getting things done but she will be crazy busy in another few weeks and she really needs to get a lot done while she only has rehearsal 1-2 times a week and dance 4 days a week. Soon it will be 5 day a week rehearsals and 5 day a week dance classes. Wouldn't be too bad except there is school and homework. At least the ACTs will be done with in the end of September.
Your son is correct about AU but it has more of a campus then a lot of urban schools like GW and NYU. Vanderbilt has a beautiful campus. Keep us posted on his thoughts after he sees the schools.

 

[Bluestars]

My gosh Jeanine, your daughter will be so busy! It must be much more difficult to apply to schools when you have to do auditions.

I also handle the hotels, airline tickets, car rentals, and stuff like that. He handles the rest.

I just asked him if any of his schools required five essays and he said American does for their honor program. He loves writing, so it's not a big deal. The only thing he doesn't like is that they give him particular topics to write about.

 

[JeannieNM]

Jeanine, it sounds like your daughter will be very busy since she has to audition. I can't believe one of the schools requires five essays! Wow.

My son did comment that American University has a small campus. He has narrowed his schools down to seven. Those will be it. Writing is his strong point, so he is on his own with his essays. I would only make it worse by trying to help him.

He said that four out of his seven choices take the common app. He seems to have it all under control, so i am letting him run with it.

My gosh Jeanine, your daughter will be so busy! It must be much more difficult to apply to schools when you have to do auditions.

I also handle the hotels, airline tickets, car rentals, and stuff like that. He handles the rest.

I just asked him if any of his schools required five essays and he said American does for their honor program. He loves writing, so it's not a big deal. The only thing he doesn't like is that they give him particular topics to write about.

The auditions just add a layer of things to keep track of. Most schools have specific audition dates which can be tricky if they are the same weekend in different parts of the country.

I'm surprised about AU. I don't remember any essays (though I would not rely on my memory for much these days) but then I was applying to grad school in computer science when I went there, if I had to write 5 essays I probably would not have my masters degree, it's a miracle I made it through my thesis. He and my DD sound like they would get along well.

 

[Bluestars]

The auditions just add a layer of things to keep track of. Most schools have specific audition dates which can be tricky if they are the same weekend in different parts of the country.

I'm surprised about AU. I don't remember any essays (though I would not rely on my memory for much these days) but then I was applying to grad school in computer science when I went there, if I had to write 5 essays I probably would not have my masters degree, it's a miracle I made it through my thesis. He and my DD sound like they would get along well.

Oh, that would make it even harder that they have specific dates for the auditions! Especially since they are in different parts of the country.

I think he said that AU required two, but five for their honors (or something like that).

They probably would get along well.

 

[mom2febgirls]

My daughter is doing concurrent enrollment at our local community college this year. She passed both of her AP exams and will most likely pass the AP English 12 exam, as well.

She is planning on getting her general studies certificate and taking advantage of the MTAP (transfer to University of MD is guaranteed) to enable her to graduate without any student loans (fingers crossed). We have 3 children and are trying to pay for 1/2 of college for each of them.

 

[mommykds]

My 17 year old DD submitted one application last weekend. She is sending in 3 more. She picked 2 schools she's a pretty good match for academically, 1 that she might get in, & 1 "reach" school that is more of a hopeful than reality. I hope that is enough. Quite honestly we are overwhelmed by this whole process. 1 school takes the common Ap, the other 3 don't. One school asked for her to upload a current "unofficial" transcript with the application, the others ask for it electronically directly from the school. Too much for old brain.

 

[IDoDis]

DD was not able to drop the AP Psych class, so she's stuck with it the first semester. Her school had open house night earlier this week. Since we have a senior and a freshman, I went to DS's freshman classes and DH went to DD's senior classes. DH just rolled his eyes when I asked him how the 10 minute psych class went. He said the guy is nuts... crazy! He talked the whole time about himself and said NOTHING about the class, except when he bragged about how his class was harder than the one at our university. He just went on and on about his history and how he came to be a teacher. He (talked about doing drugs in his younger years, etc...) He said every kid from a young age (like 8 years old), should read Einstein's Theory of Relativity."

Okay, on a funny note, DD sent off her first college app via snail mail. She sent a hard copy because the form had the fee waived on it for children of alumni. The envelope was pre-addressed & pre-stamped. However, her high school official transcript had to be sent to a different address in a different envelope. I had to tell DD how to address the envelope. She said she didn't know how! She addressed the envelope and put it in the mail. Two days later the transcript showed up back here at home because DD mailed it to herself!

I guess kids these days do not know how to send things snail mail since their communications are all sent electronically. She had no idea how to fill out a mailing envelope!

Please tell me I'm not the only one who had to show their senior how to address an envelope!

 

[Gina]

Okay, on a funny note, DD sent off her first college app via snail mail. She sent a hard copy because the form had the fee waived on it for children of alumni. The envelope was pre-addressed & pre-stamped. However, her high school official transcript had to be sent to a different address in a different envelope. I had to tell DD how to address the envelope. She said she didn't know how! She addressed the envelope and put it in the mail. Two days later the transcript showed up back here at home because DD mailed it to herself!

I guess kids these days do not know how to send things snail mail since their communications are all sent electronically. She had no idea how to fill out a mailing envelope!

Please tell me I'm not the only one who had to show their senior how to address an envelope!

That is too funny!! I mean, not ha ha funny, but honestly it sounds like something *I* would do, and I have addressed many letters before, lol.

Seriously, it really is the sort of thing that they probably have had little to no exposure to in their lives. I know I had to help my son when he was sending off a rebate form for a computer part. He almost stuck the stamp in the wrong corner!

But technology is taking over so quickly, even the stuff our generation was so used to doing, we have now pretty much forgotten. I adopted a new little chihuahua last weekend, and had to write a check out to the rescue group. I sat there staring at my open checkbook, trying to remember how to do that!! It had been a while, lol.

 

[elgerber]

I'm sure my kids would both need help to address an envelope too. Heck, I never even do it myself these days!

 

[madge]

attended the reunion of the summer program DS participated in yesterday ... cleverly scheduled on Parent's Weekend (well played, Murray State ) while it was mainly a chance for the kids to get together, they had one session for parents about financial aid & scholarships and one about the university's honors college ... pretty informative stuff, even if it was just one long cheerleading session for the school

tomorrow is a day off school, so DS will spend it downloading & applying to schools. I'm beginning to feel like we're behind, LOL ....