<p>Hello out there in video land! I just took a short cat nap over the summer. My S drove with friends to look at colleges, then did a month long pre-college program. I need to gear-up for the nagging year ahead. Exactly what page is everybody on? Writing essay, retaking SAT, looking for loose change in the sock drawer for the college fund? I need help getting back up to speed.</p>
<p>Well, from a fellow parent with a kid attending high school in SF... d. is trying to catch up on her summer reading assignment, getting ready for the start of the school year in a week. (This process involves calling all her friends on the phone and discussing whether or not anyone else has done the reading, as opposed to actually opening a book). </p>
<p>In another thread (the "nag" thread???), a parent suggested putting nagging aside and just taking one long weekend in October and getting all the applications done at once. I suggested that to my daughter and she thought it was a great idea - but she wants to do 2 weekends, one for the EA apps, a followup (in November??) for the schools with later submission dates. But it looks like the plan around here might just be to calendar specific weekends for the task & otherwise forget about the whole stressing-out part.</p>
<p>Hi Becon; well, if you have any large state universities in mind the application must go out SOON. Son will be home next weekend from camping and then will be filling out the large college applications all next week. We have to give his H.S. 3 weeks to send out the transcripts. And yes, the essays. I think I 'll have to make some rules to have them done next week, too.</p>
<p>Well, having just finished an app yr. with one, & awaiting an app. yr. 2 yrs. from now with another, I'm glad I don't have to be on any specific page except the research & test-prep pages. But if my family <em>were,</em> I would be encouraging in this order, (1) first essay drafts, to allow time for review/rewrite, (2) safety & rolling-admission apps, (3) lining up teacher recs with all their accompanying paperwork a.s.a.p. after the term begins -- to allow those teachers plenty of time for that, (4) SAT practice tests if needed or helpful (they weren't really for my older D); (5) EA/ED app., if any. [Some public U's are due at about the same time private Early Apps are due.]</p>
<p>With this yr's even larger h.s. senior population, #(2) will be esp. imp. this yr.</p>
<p>I wish we could indulge the strategy of "a whole weekend" devoted to some aspect of that process, but that just never seems possible with either of mine. Significant amounts of homework invade every weekend of the school yr. With all those AP's & two languages & huge commitments to e.c.'s, time stops for no one in our house. I vote for beginning Senior yr. August 1. (Just Srs. show up at school, begin their "fall" term -- haha -- perhaps by starting 2 of their classes. The remainder of the academic load begins at the regular time, but work in those 2 classes diminishes or is halted from mid-September through Nov. 1st, to allow for more concentrated college app. time. (The srs. do seem to need a context in which to peer-edit, peer-advise, get GC help & feedback, teacher help & teachers' college suggestions, etc. Doing that "alone" during summer is not sufficient.)</p>
<p>Calmom, I loved your first paragraph. Ditto here (esp. that last sentence).</p>
<p>I never really paid much attention to it until now, but our high school has always given seniors the day after Columbus day off. Thus, they have a four day weekend right smack at the beginning of October to use for last minute college visits and/or applications. I've suggested to my daughter that she use the "applications in a weekend" strategy then and she liked the idea. </p>
<p>I also seem to recall someone here in past years talking about having an "application party" where several kids go to a house and do college admissions related stuff --- things like proofing each other's essays and applications, etc. Does this ring a bell with anyone? While I'm not sure how much would actually get done, it did seem like a good way to get the ball rolling....</p>
<p>carolyn, Our school does have an app party, at school, toward the end of the RD deadlines. My older D never availed herself of that because hers were done by then, but additionally the idea did not appeal to her. It has seemed to be targeted to those who have a problem with individual follow-through & need the group "energy" to complete the tasks. Also, my older D's class was so small & so tightly competitive, academically, that there was naturally a resistance to "too much" cooperation & sharing of info or mimicking of wording on the apps, even subconsciously -- at least among the top 10-15 students. (None of the top students ended up attending the party.)</p>
<p>As to my younger D, I would definitely worry about her making it mostly a social occasion, and getting therefore even <em>less</em> done than she would alone. (I can just about guarantee that outcome in fact.)</p>
<p>"a parent suggested putting nagging aside and just taking one long weekend in October and getting all the applications done at once."</p>
<p>If it were only that easy!!!</p>
<p>Let me remember the long nightmare from last Fall: researching, visiting, applications and more applications with supplements and essays and endless lists of activities and awards in different formats, submission of grades and SAT scores, recommendations, CSS anf Fafsa applications, special financial application requests, scholarship applications, interviews, incomplete files and paperwork lost in the process and numerous phone calls to followup. My D did double apps with music conservatories for joint degree programs so there was much, much more including 9 auditions in the month of February.</p>
<p>There is something to be said for limiting the applications to 4-6 schools. You just might be able to get the apps and supplements completed in a long weekend, provided you had a detailed resume and all the other pertinent information prepared and ready to use in the app process. Then again I can't imagine working with a teenager for a couple of stressful 12-hr days. That must be why the adcoms get paperwork and essays intended for other schools.</p>
<p>All good information, thanks. I think the apps party would be great if all students were on the same academic level and apps to like status universities. No one feels like an under achiever.
For the SAT we hired a Stanford student to tutor and kept the group on the same GPA level, serious focusing!
Another quick question - I did the Boston to NYC school tour with S, he did the UC's with friends and added Oregon. Anyone waiting to see what schools accept
then really getting serious? This means more investment in apps and sending out
10 to 12 for more choices.</p>
<p>I cannot relate to the "one long weekend" though I know it can be done. I was never so lucky. I spent more time on my high school apps than that way more.</p>
<p>"One long weekend" for apps sounds wonderful. I don't think that would work for my D. Takes some warming up for those creative juices to flow.
Sometimes a good essay evolves best over time.</p>
<p>Older D always said that her apps improved with age. She sent out 15 and said the latter ones were the best. Maybe she just became more comfortable and confident with her responses.</p>
<p>I agree that the "one long weekend" won't work for everyone -- I liked the idea because I know it fits with my daughter's basic style. She tends to get very deeply involved with something and work very intensively, very quickly - but also tends to lose interest over time. She's always coming up with some new project which is all consuming for 2 days. For school projects, she tends to either rush to do it immediately after it has been assigned, or else she procrastinates and magically pulls some amazing treatise out of a hat at the last minute. She is very organized about keeping track of schedules & deadlines -- so the one-weekend thing fits right in with her style.</p>
<p>My son was a procrastinator, so the only thing to do was to plan on being very busy for the 2 or 3 days before the apps were due -- some people aren't going to do anything until the very last moment, no matter what. </p>
<p>But whatever the style, it makes more sense to figure out what it is and GO WITH IT rather than nagging. Your kid isn't going to change just because you are stressed out. Nagging is a symptom, not a solution.</p>
<p>
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I need to gear-up for the nagging year ahead.
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<p>I respect your honesty! :)</p>
<p>Beacon - I sincerely believe that the BEST approach is to see what schools accept ahead of very "serious" visiting. That means I would prioritize my daughter visiting her SAFETY. If reaches are nearby, fine ... but put it this way:</p>
<p>My daughter likes Goucher and it is a clear safety, but we've never seen it. The more we read, the more we like.... but there still could be something "wrong" with Goucher -- so it is probably a good idea to visit early to see if Goucher passes the ok-ness test.</p>
<p>D. also really likes Brown. Investing the $70 application fee in lottery tickets would probably be a more realistic plan. If she can visit Brown, that would be nice -- but I think we can figure out without visiting that (a) she will apply, (b) she probably won't get in, (c) if she does get in, she'll go. I mean... Brown is going to be nicer than Goucher, and I don't have to fly to Baltimore or Providence to figure that out. </p>
<p>So I don't think that the kid really needs to apply to 10-12 schools as insurance if you haven't visited -- if the kid applies to 2 safeties where s/he is WILLING to go, then there will be choices in the spring. From the schools you have visited, your kid should have an idea of type of school that is appealing - certainly enough to draw up a good list.</p>
<p>Sometimes visiting begets MORE visiting. We toured this summer, but D wants to overnight at top two choices to determine if one will be ED. Visit is scheduled for 1st week in October, so she won't officially submit ED app until a week or so later. (And no, it's not ready yet).</p>
<p>D has already applied online to State U and completed the apps for 3 safety schools. </p>
<p>What has been an enormous help is that her AP Lang. Arts teacher is assigning college essays for homework. Bless her. I haven't nagged in a month...and no, I didn't go through withdrawl. Lucky for us here in the South that school started August 3rd!</p>
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D. also really likes Brown. Investing the $70 application fee in lottery tickets would probably be a more realistic plan
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<p>Thanks for my laugh of the night!</p>
<p>Anyone figuring out how to use a back door on the apps? I am concerned that S is majoring in a popular subject. Does it make sense to pick "basket weaving", (not meant to slam any furture fiber artists) as his major just to beat the numbers game?</p>
<p>The unpopular-major strategy can backfire if it's not credible. An obvious sciences student (judging from a h.s. transcript), declaring a basket-weaving major, will not look believable unless the student is analyzing the science of fiber/textiles. While I think it does make sense to include on a college list, those institutions which may be looking to increase enrollment in a particular major, "going against type" can also be self-defeating. So what if a student gains an acceptance into a college which is actually weak in his/her major but "needs" those students? (There may be a reason for the need!) The trick is to investigate low-profile colleges which are funding & featuring & publicizing certain departments or majors, hiring more profs in those, etc. Those would be good safeties or matches to add to a college list, while ensuring a better fit for the applicant than a "numbers" strategy per se.</p>
<p>Strong departments also want strongly qualified students to maintain the reputation & desirability of that department. Not all physics or arts wannabes are equal, regardless of how attractive a particular major may be.</p>
<p>I guess I am wondering if what you are looking for is the route to another school within an institution.....say entry to Penn SAS or SEAS and then Wharton. Or say into a college but not the engineering program you really wanted. Usually the dual/joint program opportunities are clearly detailed in the academic information. The rules/requirements for transferring from SAS to Wharton say are clearly stated. I think many students look at these ways of maximizing their chances of getting into the school they want but perhaps not the department of their final destination. Some schools require a dedicated application and if one feels they aren't a strong enough candidate then this is not the worst of all ideas.</p>
<p>I am thinking more in terms of the first year, just getting into the school. Then taking the basic course load and approaching the department of the desired major in his second year.</p>
<p>Beacon - I think that the only real chance that a student has at getting into a competitive, reach school is by making sure that their real, true self shines through their application, telegraphing the students interests and passions in an umistakable way. Above all, the application needs to be honest -- practically in a soul-baring way. </p>
<p>Faking it, in any aspect, won't do. </p>
<p>I doubt that any college will give any points or consideration whatsoever for selection of an unusual major UNLESS the application shows that there is also a very strong interest or talent in the specific major. </p>
<p>If you are concerned that your S. doesn't have anything that will stand out - that he fits the BWRK (bright, well-rounded kid) mold instead and that won't do -- adding an unusual major to the list won't do any better for him than a fake EC (i.e., starting his own club at school this year and designating himself president). Nobody's fooled. (In that case, better to do a reality check and look for schools that are more in the match, rather than reach, range)</p>
<p>That being said - if your son is applying to a very popular major, in an area in which he has no special ability or accomplishments, it might be better to say "undecided" ... but NOT if your son desires admission into a special program at the school that is limited or more selective than the main school. At least choosing "undecided" can't hurt.</p>