Parents of the High School Class of 2017/College 2021

[Mrs. Ciz]

is anyone applying to colleges through Questbridge? So many things to get done and fill out for it! Its an awesome deal if they get picked through questbridge though so worth a shot!

No, not applying through Questbridge. Our income is too high, and our EFC is nowhere near $0. The QB partner schools are all top notch. It is a wonderful program! Best of luck to your daughter!

Luckily, we have a 529 Prepaid tuition account with 4 years of tuition and fees paid for both our kids. We still have to come up with the room/board/books money. It's been doable with just one in college. It will get a lot harder next year when we have 2 enrolled. We are socking away any extra income and tax refund money now to prepare for it.

 

[Poohforyou]

is anyone applying to colleges through Questbridge? So many things to get done and fill out for it! Its an awesome deal if they get picked through questbridge though so worth a shot!

I never heard of this. I looked up the requirements. Dd wouldn't have a problem with the academic qualifications but we're wouldn't come close to qualifying financially. We aren't wealthy by any stretch but living in a high COL area means high salaries, property values, etc.

 

[aprilgail]

I never heard of this. I looked up the requirements. Dd wouldn't have a problem with the academic qualifications but we're wouldn't come close to qualifying financially. We aren't wealthy by any stretch but living in a high COL area means high salaries, property values, etc.

I had never heard of it either but we got a letter from ACT after she took it saying she may qualify for that so we are giving it a shot- my income for that year is actually over the limit due to retirement buy outs etc but I called and they said to put down what I normally make and explain about the income difference and they take it into consideration. I did that this summer at Brown to- at first it was no aid but then when I sent them my pension papers they covered the entire class, I just had to do room and board! If FAFSA had stayed how it was instead of changing this year it would have been much better for us- I made twice as much in 2015 as I did this year so it sucks to have to use 2015's income! I know each college said that after we apply to send a letter explaining the income difference ad copies of my pension papers and they would take it into consideration.

 

[yeahdisney]

DD took ACT for last time Saturday. Sent first choice college application In Friday. This week she is to work on second and third choice school applications.

I picked up her senior pictures two weeks ago, she finally got her braces off the week before her pictures. She just wanted the required picture the yearbook wanted, she did not any extra pictures.

We shopped for homecoming dresses one time, we walked into one store and she saw one on the wall and said I want that one. I said get it, DONE She got shoes yesterday for the dance.

 

[aprilgail]

We shopped for homecoming dresses one time, we walked into one store and she saw one on the wall and said I want that one. I said get it, DONE She got shoes yesterday for the dance.

SO happy- my daughter said she was not going to go to homecoming this year, she went last year and it was "boring as heck" LOL- one less thing I have to do!

 

[IDoDis]

I never heard of this. I looked up the requirements. Dd wouldn't have a problem with the academic qualifications but we're wouldn't come close to qualifying financially. We aren't wealthy by any stretch but living in a high COL area means high salaries, property values, etc.

My DD knew someone who received a Questbridge scholarship. She was accepted to an Ivy but decided to stay here and attend our state flagship. She had already been accepted to a BS/MD program here which guaranteed her med school acceptance from the state school after she graduated. She was the valedictorian at DD's school and had a strong backstory of immigrating to the US at a young age to escape a dictator-run country.

 

[aprilgail]

My DD knew someone who received a Questbridge scholarship. She was accepted to an Ivy but decided to stay here and attend our state flagship. She had already been accepted to a BS/MD program here which guaranteed her med school acceptance from the state school after she graduated. She was the valedictorian at DD's school and had a strong backstory of immigrating to the US at a young age to escape a dictator-run country.

If you get a scholarship it is binding, you must attend that school other than I believe 2 or 3 schools which are not binding. So I told my daughter to choose which ones she wants to put down there carefully because she must attend if she is chose.

 

[IDoDis]

If you get a scholarship it is binding, you must attend that school other than I believe 2 or 3 schools which are not binding. So I told my daughter to choose which ones she wants to put down there carefully because she must attend if she is chose.

The girl turned down the Questbridge scholarship and stayed at our state school, also with a full ride merit scholarship. Maybe she had other reasons like family ties?? Her sister who is a physician's assistant at my doctor's office told me.

 

[robinb]

My DD's swim coach wants her to come up with 20 possible schools where she might want to swim. She's supposed to select them based on her time and academics and she's to include the coach's contract information. Twenty schools seems like a lot, especially when she only has THREE on her radar now. Her coach is a former Big Ten swim coach so she has a lot of experience in recruiting and and knows what she's doing and what coaches are looking for. Still, it's a lot of work on top of everything else. Luckily, I paid for a website that helps with searching for schools based on swim times so that'll help. She'll still have to make sure that the school offers kinesiology, exercise science or pre-physical therapy which are her preferred undergraduate degrees. This is something I have been trying to get her to sit down and do but I think the whole process has been pretty overwhelming for her, especially when sometimes she says she doesn't want to swim.

 

[aprilgail]

The girl turned down the Questbridge scholarship and stayed at our state school, also with a full ride merit scholarship. Maybe she had other reasons like family ties?? Her sister who is a physician's assistant at my doctor's office told me.

Maybe she just ranked MIT, Princeton, Stanford, and Yale- because all the others are binding if you apply and get accepted- you can't turn them down.

• You may rank up to 12 colleges in order of preference that you want to apply to through the National College Match, with Rank 1 going to your first choice college. You may rank fewer than 12 colleges.
• Colleges will not know what ranking you assigned their school, only that you ranked their school. Colleges will also not know which other schools you ranked.
• Only rank schools that you would definitely attend because these rankings are binding*. This means that if you are matched to a college you rank, you must enroll at that college and withdraw all other applications.

*With the exception of MIT, Princeton, Stanford, and Yale, which are not binding.

 

[mamacatnv]

Has your daughter looked into the University of Colorado in Boulder? It is cold, very outdoor sports oriented, and has a fabulous physics department with a couple of Nobel prizes in Physics. Our friend's daughter is in the Women in Physics program there and we have been so impressed with the education she is getting. We visited her when we were out there skiing a couple of times and our children loved it so much that it is now their #1 choice. Bad thing is their out of state tuition is pretty high.

We've not looked at UC Boulder but I just pulled it up - out of state is more than double that of Minnesota. If I knew DD only needed to get a BS I would be concerned but not paranoid about costs however, she wants to go into astrophysics, if she has any hope of supporting herself she is looking at an advanced degree thus we are looking for programs that won't break the bank but offer a decent science program. Thank you for the tip, I will tell her about it

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Thanks for that. I am worrying myself into a tizzy these days. I need to breathe and just let it happen, whatever it may be.

NP. Mine ended up at an out of state private school with about 5,000 students and above all. He decided the cattle call giant sized public schools with 30,000-50,000 students just weren't right for him. And none of our in state ones even had the major he wanted. By the time all was said and done with scholarships and financial aid, his price was about the same as the local 2nd tier in state school with NO loans. They even matched what he would have gotten from our state's lottery. Just keep applying and visiting and your child will find one that is right for them that also wants them.

 

[Poohforyou]

I had never heard of it either but we got a letter from ACT after she took it saying she may qualify for that so we are giving it a shot- my income for that year is actually over the limit due to retirement buy outs etc but I called and they said to put down what I normally make and explain about the income difference and they take it into consideration. I did that this summer at Brown to- at first it was no aid but then when I sent them my pension papers they covered the entire class, I just had to do room and board! If FAFSA had stayed how it was instead of changing this year it would have been much better for us- I made twice as much in 2015 as I did this year so it sucks to have to use 2015's income! I know each college said that after we apply to send a letter explaining the income difference ad copies of my pension papers and they would take it into consideration.

Interesting, we're the exact opposite. My income this year will be almost twice the norm. I'm getting significant severance from my old job and working almost the full year at my new job. We'd be real nailed if fafsa hadn't changed.

 

[v.t.]

How often do students get "special status" for their applications? Does this imply the student would have a better chance at a merit scholarship? We have received a few and I was wondering if this was a common practice. I am glad they are able to apply for free, but I don't want to waste a lot of time filling out applications for OOS schools we can't afford. The main school in consideration is Colorado School of Mines.

 

[bjscheel]

How often do students get "special status" for their applications? Does this imply the student would have a better chance at a merit scholarship? We have received a few and I was wondering if this was a common practice. I am glad they are able to apply for free, but I don't want to waste a lot of time filling out applications for OOS schools we can't afford. The main school in consideration is Colorado School of Mines.

I'm not sure, but DD17 is getting tons of mail and email saying she can apply for free. Her ACT score was good, but not super high, so I don't know what the qualifications are to apply for free. We did one for practice, one of my alma maters, so it would be nice if she could go. We won't apply to any that aren't ones she would truly consider.

We'll apply to more after she gets her 9/10 ACT score.

 

[cords]

We've not looked at UC Boulder but I just pulled it up - out of state is more than double that of Minnesota. If I knew DD only needed to get a BS I would be concerned but not paranoid about costs however, she wants to go into astrophysics, if she has any hope of supporting herself she is looking at an advanced degree thus we are looking for programs that won't break the bank but offer a decent science program. Thank you for the tip, I will tell her about it

I will second CU Boulder for astrophysics. They have one of the highest rates of astronaut alumni of any university.

Their guaranteed merit scholarships are decent and range from $10,000 to $25,000 depending on your ACT/SAT scores. They also started a new program this semester where the tuition you start with as a freshman is your tuition for the next 4 years. It will never go up.

I have a sophomore in Aerospce Engineering there so PM me if you have questions.

 

[mommykds]

My son will graduate in 2017. My question is how many colleges is the average for a student to apply to? His scores/gpa are excellent and he has lots of choices ahead of him. I wasn't sure how many is too many? Thank you.

 

[Poohforyou]

My son will graduate in 2017. My question is how many colleges is the average for a student to apply to? His scores/gpa are excellent and he has lots of choices ahead of him. I wasn't sure how many is too many? Thank you.

My daughter has 4 on her short list. We're focusing on getting those applications done and out by 11/1. After that she'll likely select a few more. I don't think she'll go beyond 7. Her top 4 are schools we visited and she'd be very happy at.

 

[Sanchez]

I'm not sure, but DD17 is getting tons of mail and email saying she can apply for free. Her ACT score was good, but not super high, so I don't know what the qualifications are to apply for free. We did one for practice, one of my alma maters, so it would be nice if she could go. We won't apply to any that aren't ones she would truly consider.

We'll apply to more after she gets her 9/10 ACT score.

I don't think there is always a numerical requirement or qualification standard. Many schools simply want to increase the application pool in order to appear more competitive and are willing to sacrifice the application fee.

You would think this is only true for lesser schools, however our older son received a fee waiver for the University of Chicago four years ago. An internet search revealed that the University had a planned mailing campaign to increase applications so they could appear to be on par with the Ivies, Stanford, Duke etc. Low acceptance rates means more exclusive and boasting a sub 10% rate puts the school at or around the top 15-20.

 

[sksjasams]

I don't think there is always a numerical requirement or qualification standard. Many schools simply want to increase the application pool in order to appear more competitive and are willing to sacrifice the application fee.

You would think this is only true for lesser schools, however our older son received a fee waiver for the University of Chicago four years ago. An internet search revealed that the University had a planned mailing campaign to increase applications so they could appear to be on par with the Ivies, Stanford, Duke etc. Low acceptance rates means more exclusive and boasting a sub 10% rate puts the school at or around the top 15-20.

You are absolutely right. I "liked" your post because you are right, but I don't like the school's strategies, or the way rank is determined.