Parents of HS class of 2020

[Mika02]

So visited DD bestie last night to talk our upcoming Disney Trip and she got into the local university as well so they are both excited to go there. Still waiting on responses and financial aid information for some schools but it's looking more and more like DD will be a commuter come September...

 

[Mickeypooh99]

I’m just catching up. I haven’t been on this site in months.

Congratulations on all the acceptances! It feels so weird that we aren’t involved in applications and waiting for the responses this year. My DS has plans to live at home and attend community college for now. It’s much different than when my 2018 graduate was a senior. I think it’s the best choice for him at this time though. I’m also kind of happy I won’t be an empty nester just yet!

 

[kc10family]

Congratulations to all whose child chose the military, I am grateful for their service.
Congratulations to all whose child chose a trade, they are a value to us all.
Congratulations to all who got accepted to school of choice, may they enjoy it.
As for our house, DD has decided to try school. She picked a private school and we are not sure what we think of it. It was on probation for accreditation and now will be reviewed in five years to see if they truly corrected the reason for being on probation with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges. We live near WDW and would like her to work there, then check into the Aspire program and rethink her degree choice. Well, maybe choose a different major and have a minor in her current choice.

 

[Mika02]

So latest update my daughter applied Early action to all her schools. So far 4 of her reach schools deferred her to regular decision.

She was all set to attend the local university in our town and commute because they gave her pretty much all her tuition. And her best friend was accepted there as well.

But Thursday she recieved a Full scholarship to Ramapo College. Which @Vicki926 previously told me about. We are so excited for her and proud. She and her Best friend are both in a dilemma as they both recieved full scholarships to Ramapo and had planned to go to FDU and commute. But I'm glad she has some options and she won't have to worry about funds and just studying.

 

[rlk]

So latest update my daughter applied Early action to all her schools. So far 4 of her reach schools deferred her to regular decision.

She was all set to attend the local university in our town and commute because they gave her pretty much all her tuition. And her best friend was accepted there as well.

But Thursday she recieved a Full scholarship to Ramapo College. Which @Vicki926 previously told me about. We are so excited for her and proud. She and her Best friend are both in a dilemma as they both recieved full scholarships to Ramapo and had planned to go to FDU and commute. But I'm glad she has some options and she won't have to worry about funds and just studying.

What great news! Not a bad dilemma to be in

 

[Mika02]

What great news! Not a bad dilemma to be in

Not at all

 

[kc10family]

So latest update my daughter applied Early action to all her schools. So far 4 of her reach schools deferred her to regular decision.

She was all set to attend the local university in our town and commute because they gave her pretty much all her tuition. And her best friend was accepted there as well.

But Thursday she recieved a Full scholarship to Ramapo College. Which @Vicki926 previously told me about. We are so excited for her and proud. She and her Best friend are both in a dilemma as they both recieved full scholarships to Ramapo and had planned to go to FDU and commute. But I'm glad she has some options and she won't have to worry about funds and just studying.

Great news! Good dilemma to be in! Best wishes for your DD.

 

[Monykalyn]

So many fun choices here!
Kiddo got accepted in pretty much every school she applied for-going to visit her top choices soon. University of Minnesota in March, and we've got to fit in University of Arizona soon. Arizona actually offered her a big enough honors scholarship that she would only be paying the equivalent of in state tuition, so here is hoping there are more scholarships to follow!

 

[Donaldswife]

Sadly my daughter did not get into her top choice-UT Austin. They deferred her to regular then denied her. She is bummed, but now she has a tough choice. Loyola Chicago or DePaul Chicago. We are going back up to visit each school again. DePaul offered her the larger scholarship, but they work on a quarter system and there is some worry that 10 weeks for a class might be too intense. I'm excited to see which she picks!

 

[Minnie824]

Getting closer to a decision! DD applied to 12 schools - 5 of which were in FL (we are out of state). Going to visit UCF and Rollins next week (both she was accepted to), and waiting to hear from UF but I think right now she's leaning towards UCF. Already had to do the housing payment as well. Hopefully final decision will come in a couple of weeks.

 

[Mickeypooh99]

Sadly my daughter did not get into her top choice-UT Austin. They deferred her to regular then denied her. She is bummed, but now she has a tough choice. Loyola Chicago or DePaul Chicago. We are going back up to visit each school again. DePaul offered her the larger scholarship, but they work on a quarter system and there is some worry that 10 weeks for a class might be too intense. I'm excited to see which she picks!

My older son is at a school with the quarter system. The classes are very fast paced. He got used to it pretty quickly. One bad thing about his would be the academic calendar is much different than many other schools making internships or summer jobs more difficult. Many want students to start in May. My son gets out for summer in mid June, and goes back around September 20. He makes it work. After freshman year he ended up staying on his campus and working a research assistant job. I think he will do the same this summer. It kind of bums me out because his school is in California, and I had assumed he’d come home to Michigan for summers. We only see him for about 3 weeks at Christmas and 3 weeks in September. Although we did go out to visit him this past thanksgiving, the cost is too much to do that every year.

 

[JimMIA]

Getting closer to a decision! DD applied to 12 schools - 5 of which were in FL (we are out of state). Going to visit UCF and Rollins next week (both she was accepted to), and waiting to hear from UF but I think right now she's leaning towards UCF. Already had to do the housing payment as well. Hopefully final decision will come in a couple of weeks.

UCF is great. It was DD's 2nd choice (UF was first), but about halfway through the tour last Monday, she said, "I'm not waiting for UF. This is what I want!"

After the campus tour, you will have an optional dorm tour. Take it. You'll only visit a couple of dorms but that will give you a good idea.

Pay close attention to your dorm choices -- especially number of bedrooms and bathrooms. Some dorms are shared bedrooms, and a few only have one bathroom for 4-5 students!

The sooner you submit your housing application (sounds like you already have), the better. We are already approved for Towers. Some of the dorms require a commitment for two semesters; Towers and maybe one other require a full-year commitment (3 semesters - Fall, Spring, and Summer), however the summer dorm rental is much less than Fall and Spring.

GO KNIGHTS! CHARGE ON!

 

[JimMIA]

Getting closer to a decision! DD applied to 12 schools - 5 of which were in FL (we are out of state). Going to visit UCF and Rollins next week (both she was accepted to), and waiting to hear from UF but I think right now she's leaning towards UCF. Already had to do the housing payment as well. Hopefully final decision will come in a couple of weeks.

A couple of additional comments/questions:

• What other schools besides UCF and Rollins? We can possibly give you some thoughts on other schools as well. We have a close family friend whose son is in Rollins right now and he loves it.
• Parking at UCF - You have to go to the Parking and Transportation Center and buy a parking permit before your tour. The permit is $5 for all day, and the parking office is directly across the street from the Duke Energy Welcome Center where you start your tour. We just left our car parked there.
• Dining at UCF- Lots of decent dining right around the campus and the hotel area where you will probably be staying. We ate at the Metro Diner and it was quite good comfort food. We stayed at the Hampton Inn, so the Diner was right across the street. Lots of other choices. There are also numerous places to eat/snack on campus, but the tour moves pretty quickly.
• Wear good walking shoes! It's a lot of walking. If anybody has mobility issues, let me know because I found a great mobility scooter place that will deliver to hotels around UCF. DW has a foot injury, and that scooter saved her!

 

[nicole88s]

Hey everyone! I have a ds who will be a 2020 graduate. I can't believe it is almost here.

My ds applied to 2 colleges. One was our large state university that is about 30 minutes away. The other was a smaller university, still in state, but about 3 1/2 hours away. He has decided to go the the smaller university. I am happy with his decision because I believe it is good for everyone to get a chance to live on their own and college is a great chance to get that independence, but still have still have some safety nets in place. I will miss him terribly, but he is still close enough to come home fairly frequently.

Ds was lucky enough to receive a full academic scholarship based on his gpa and act score. He carries a high gpa, but I would almost be embarrassed to tell you what classes he takes. He is extremely bright, but pretty lazy. The only "real" classes he took this year were Language Arts and 1/2 year of history. I don't remember the last time I've seen him do homework, so college should be interesting! I don't have any doubt he can snap into action when he has to, though. He's just really enjoying high school while he can. He has to maintain a 3.5 gpa to keep his scholarship, so I imagine some homework is in his future!

He wants to major in computer information systems. This boy was born loving computers and everything about them. His other passion is doing sound for theatre. He has been a drama club officer for the past two years in tech. Doing sound for concerts/theatre/events can be a very lucrative career as well, so between that and computer stuff he will find a great career I'm sure. He's very lucky to know what he likes to do at such a young age.

 

[JimMIA]

FAFSA
I'm sure this is old news to most of us, but be sure you file your FAFSA with the school your child is attending.

A lot of people think their income rules out financial aid; I've seen that comment several times on other forums. But that is a MYTH. There is no such thing as not being eligible.

If you have high income or substantial assets, your child may be offered less aid -- but you are not excluded.

Every university has its own set of deadlines and criteria, and you submit a FAFSA every year.

The application is free, quick, and easy. What do you have to lose?

 

[JimMIA]

Getting closer to a decision! DD applied to 12 schools - 5 of which were in FL (we are out of state). Going to visit UCF and Rollins next week (both she was accepted to), and waiting to hear from UF but I think right now she's leaning towards UCF. Already had to do the housing payment as well. Hopefully final decision will come in a couple of weeks.

I believe UF announces acceptances after March 1.

 

[princesspiglet]

We are patiently waiting to hear back from my daughters remaining 4 applications. All were Regular Decision. She's heard from one so far- accepted- but it's the lowest one on her list, 5 out of 5, but at least we know she has someplace to go! She received a very good merit scholarship from that school also. This waiting part is the hardest thing ever! I just want this to be done with.

 

[JimMIA]

@Minnie824 - I read on another forum that UF starts sending acceptances THIS Friday. Good luck!

 

[Vicki926]

So latest update my daughter applied Early action to all her schools. So far 4 of her reach schools deferred her to regular decision.

She was all set to attend the local university in our town and commute because they gave her pretty much all her tuition. And her best friend was accepted there as well.

But Thursday she recieved a Full scholarship to Ramapo College. Which @Vicki926 previously told me about. We are so excited for her and proud. She and her Best friend are both in a dilemma as they both recieved full scholarships to Ramapo and had planned to go to FDU and commute. But I'm glad she has some options and she won't have to worry about funds and just studying.

Congrats! That’s fantastic!
My son has pretty much decided to attend Ramapo, so my kids will be at the same school. I’m secretly thrilled. Lol. He was always planning to follow the money, and Ramapo gave him a nice scholarship, so while not a definite, it’s about 95% sure he’s going there.

 

[Monykalyn]

@Minnie824 - I read on another forum that UF starts sending acceptances THIS Friday. Good luck!

My DD finally heard from UCF-but I think she has narrowed it down to Arizona (State, thought it was University of Arizona but it is Arizona state), and University of Minnesota-visiting both in March. Both gave merit scholarships.
Trying to plan for Thanksgiving-want to head to Disney/Orlando but if both my girls are in far corners or USA we may not see them until Christmas break.