BS Class of 2021 Thread

So…for those of you who had your visits canceled or canceled your trip, DSs CC sent us an email with two sites that have information videos/virtual tours of many schools! Campus Reel and YouVisit.com/collegesearch—we found some of them to be very helpful, others not so much-it depended more on what the school submitted.
Also, several of the schools that canceled sent DS emails to sign up for virtual information sessions…I’m sure many of the schools will start offering these, but for now, he’s already registered for Vanderbilt, WashU and Villanova’s sessions. So, you might check out websites of your schools of interest and see if they’ve opened these up yet.
It isn’t perfect, but as I told DS…if the information session doesn’t make him interested enough to go see campus when it’s safe to do so…we will have saved travel money!

We just had a Zoom meeting with the CC last night. He’s going to send an email today, but it appears AP tests will be administered online to be taken at home and will cover material that should’ve been covered through March.
SAT subject tests are still Up in the air, but he said most colleges that required them have made them optional, I think he said only 14 schools are requiring them at this point.
It is going to be a novel year for applications for our class, but everyone knows it. It’ll be interesting to see how the truly holistic approach pans out.
Meanwhile, on the other side, I can’t get over how much scrambling is going on to get online tutors, online prep, etc for these tests that we aren’t even sure will happen or count.
Anyway, I thought I’d share that information with y’all! I hope everyone is doing well!

Thanks @buuzn03! I think I read last night about the AP tests — I guess that’s good news, although I’m not sure how DS will do being in his bedroom rather than a more test-like setting, but at this point I am not sweating any of this stuff too much. Most schools on his list were already test optional, and the one that he probably likes the most, which was not test optional, now is, so we may just call it a day with standardized tests. He had planned on doing some subject tests to hopefully supplement his mediocre ACT score, but I don’t think it’s worth the effort. Honestly I am having a hard time focusing on these things with everything changing so fast and so much uncertainty.

Pretty sure only 2 colleges actually require SAT Subject Tests at this point.

More and more schools are going test optional. Tufts is the latest. They are trying it for the next three years to start.

^That’s going to be interesting. They have always seemed more stats sensitive than many others.

DS’s prolonged break is over and he starts remote learning today. This past week, we attended 5 virtual info sessions, all chosen and scheduled by buuznkid. A few were abysmal - they indicated it was their first time doing virtual meetings and it showed. Despite this, DS kept these schools on his list to physically visit when he could.

He was able to take a few schools off of his list to visit. And there were a few surprises. All in all, he has 5 schools on his definitely apply final list (2 are reaches, one a target but still very selective) and 5 on his still interested but will have to see in person list.

All in all, I really like the virtual weed-out process.

Hope all are well!!!

I was relieved we managed to visit 8 schools the week before everything shut down. We are hoping to visit 6 more schools this summer if they go back to doing tours, we definitely learned that being on campus really helps.

I’m looking forward to hearing more about your virtual visits. I often wonder if it reflects on the school or simply the presenter’s familiarity with the format. I notice at work that some people just enable audio, while others turn on their cameras, and others are pretty slick with putting content on their screens.

Of course, someone presenting from admissions should be coming up the curve pretty fast. It’ll be interesting to see how this evolved. Please share!!

I’m curious now to do some online sessions just out of curiosity about different schools that we probably would not have visited otherwise. We are doing our first one today, but it’s a school that DS and I have visited and that is DS’s favorite, but DH hasn’t seen it. I hope they do a good job!

I’m one of those people who tends to use audio only, but the kids seem perfectly comfortable being on the Zoom camera and Google Meet.

So, basically the formats have been the same. There’s one presenter and one person who is answering any questions that are typed in the chat. Most schools talk about their demographics and stats, what makes them unique, housing, financial aid and the application process. Then, the last few minutes are saved for Q&A. Some schools use power point, some video, some just a speaker…the best few used all of the above.

Things we’ve noticed :

  1. Online, people are more impatient and rude. If in person, one would sit through the entire presentation before asking questions. Most of these virtual presentations have people asking questions in the middle of the presentation that are not only specific to their own desires, but also about to be mentioned. It is disrupting and distracting, not to mention irritating. DS and I now have a flap (piece of folded paper) we put over the chat section to try and ignore these questions so we can pay attention to the talk.
  1. The questions are generally all about how can I get in and get money. No one is asking about particular features of the school that sets them apart. No one seems to be trying to get a sense of fit. It’s all about test scores, scholarships, etc. This made DS and I realize the benefits of being through this before with BS. He’s looking for very specific type programs and offerings of the school. He’s looking for a particular campus life vibe that is not as common. He says he feels pretty good at figuring some of this out by the presentation and not only what is said, but even more importantly, what isn’t. In some visits, if a certain aspect of the school that he’s looking for wasn’t mentioned...then he would ask. How his questions were answered (or politically evaded) determined his level of interest in the school.
  2. Even some of the most uncomfortable presenters gave good information. Some of the most polished gave the least. In our minds, it said more about the school than the format.

Surprisingly, one of the best presentations was from a school that his CC considers a “likely” for him and wasn’t high on his list (mainly for location). We now plan to visit that school when ‘Rona finally leaves the area. One of the worst presentations was from a very well-known school. They had a very polished format and speaker with no substance. That school got axed.

The feel for campus life, community, etc will definitely need to be ascertained and can only be done by being on campus, but I definitely think the virtual format helps narrow down the “must visit” list.

IMO being BS experienced changes our view of how to look at colleges. DS definitely feels prepared and confident in finding places that fit him and his needs versus just applying to popular schools. He’s doing a great job at adapting to the situation and making lemonade.

@buuzn03 Is that the “likely” school in CO?

@CaliMex ?

DS is looking at all small LACs in the ~2000-2500 student range, and he’s a social science/humanities kid. Every school we have visited or researched is very similar on paper in terms of offerings and a lot of features. He’s got a group of schools that range in selectivity, but all of which would check all boxes but differ in some academic details and things like location. He’s very tuned in to his surroundings and the vibe and the kids; I’d be very concerned if we were not able to visit with school in session.

The session we did yesterday was good. It was a very basic “101” overview of the school (for DH’s benefit; not much new info for DS); they also offer a more interactive format. It was an admissions rep who provided the kids nod and a student who provided color, and he presented well. Besides basic info, the presentation didn’t go too deep into programming but focused on what distinguishes the school from the 100s of other LACs, which is what I find helpful.

There are some schools that are relatively close where we could do drive-bys over the coming weeks and months if DS wanted, but unfortunately none that he’s interested in pursuing (until we exhaust all other weekend activities).

@CTMom21 I don’t know how we’d choose with such a large number of options!
My DS wants mechanical engineering. He wants a small school with several engineering majors (in case he finds he likes a different area better), less than 10,000 students, southern US (he’s tired of long winters) and a curriculum that will allow a double major in a completely different area of study (humanities/foreign language). We are having a harder time finding these options (most are very highly competitive) than having to choose. But I feel this is a better situation than having too many. options.
If DS could, he’d also opt for under 3000 students.
I’m interested to see what schools y’all Decide on and excited to be on this journey with all of y’all.
In less than a year it will be like a prolonged M10. ?

@buuzn03 I’m surprised that there are any options to double major with an engineering major. DS1 is a ChemE major and has very little room for non engineering classes. Of course he’s in a liberal arts college that has core requirements so fulfilling those as well as required classes for a double major is more difficult.

^we’ve actually found a few. Duke encourages “opposite” majors. They feature a MechE double majoring in visual arts and getting a certification in public policy on their info session.

A few other schools have the same. Those are the ones at the top of his list. He’s trying to find a few more because, well, Duke is a reach to put it mildly.

I know, @buuzn03 . It’s going to all happen so fast. Maybe faster since we’re in this suspended, surreal time.

I should add that DS’s other main limiting factor is playing his sport (D3), which narrows us down to about 270 schools, and quite a bit more based even on non-academic factors like size and location (there are some VERY small colleges out there). He also seems to have a built in limit on how much choice he can handle, and since he seems to know himself pretty well, I can respect that.

I know very little about engineering schools other than those up here — MIT, RIT, RPI, WPI, Olin — but of course it’s not warm…Are you looking at all in VA or NC, like Va Tech, Richmond, or Elon (I don’t know if the latter two have engineering, but a lot of kids up here go to Richmond and Elon to escape the cold). I’m always intrigued by the brochures from bigger schools with lots of schools and hundreds of majors — they all look so wonderful on paper! I sense your kiddo has a good head on his shoulders and will find his right place. I will be excited to see where!

Here’s a link to the article @ California UC suspends SAT for class of ‘21!

https://edsource.org/2020/uc-suspends-sat-act-requirements-for-2021-applicants/627670

There will be a lot of subject matter to study over the next few years on the affect of the pandemic on college apps, acceptances, matriculation, and marketing, as well as the effects of all these abrupt changes to test optional and use of merit aid as a tool!