@akapiratequeen @sunnysar We have a spreadsheet with weights and scores assigned to 7 decision criteria. I stopped short of writing a separate memo with the algorithm to use for weights and scores 
It does help me though. Keeps some perspective on what’s more important prestige/value/vibe/faculty, etc. when it comes to the final decision.
@akapiratequeen A COA spreadsheet can be very scary! Let’s hope you fill those blanks with big numbers! The waiting is crazy! I had no idea it was going to be this difficult. D bombed one of her auditions and I saw someone post they had their acceptance from that school. Even though we know it’s going to be a rejection, my heart still sunk in my stomach waiting to see the rejection. Unfortunately they haven’t posted for her instrument so we still have to wait for the formal rejection:)
@dsinha Great idea! I used to make the pros and cons list for big decisions but there is more to it than weighing just the pros and cons for music school.
Eagerly awaiting a time when you all debut downloadable versions of your spreadsheets and/or some type of music school tours/auditions/decisions app! Maybe a way to help pay for school? ?
@Dsinha - very impressive with the weights and scores on your spreadsheet! I have a spreadsheet similar to what @akapiratequeen described. Very little information has been populated thus far. I cannot wait for this process to be over. Two of the schools that S is waiting to hear from are part of the admissions scandal. I am hoping that the admissions decisions at those schools are not delayed as a result.
I’m not sure if I should post my son’s acceptance here since it’s complicated. He applied to University of Washington as Direct Admit to Computer Science program and signed up for auditions on both violin and viola. He was basically accepted to the music school right after the auditions and they wanted him to be a violin performance major instead of viola. He was accepted to CS program as a direct admit 2 days ago. UW is my son’s top choice because of their strong CS program and he’s going to pursue a dual-degree, BS in Computer Science and BM in Violin Performance.
Congratulations to your son @pdxtigermom! What a great choice and so wonderful that you guys are done!
@pdxtigermom Congratulations!! Nothing complicated about hearing wonderful stories about our kids’ successes in this college acceptance process I’m pretty sure he’ll do great in both CS and BM, though… boy that’s a workload! Be kind to him over the years as he works through it
@pdxtigermom Congratulations on your son’s major achievement. CS + Violin performance. He must be a force of nature!
Congrats @pdxtigermom S!! What great news!
I was hoping he would be accepted to USC Thornton and then try to add CS once he gets there. He insists from the very beginning that he only wants to go to UW. I guess CS is more important to him than music. We heard the terrible news about Thornton student yesterday and now USC is out of his picture.
https://theviolinchannel.com/victor-mcelhaney-thornton-school-of-music-student-killed-shot-robbery-los-angeles-obituary/?utm_source=March+12&utm_campaign=NEWS+MAR+12&utm_medium=email
That is terrible news. I am very sad for the young man and his family. What a tragedy.
I think the other part of this college scandal is the role that “rankings” play in these cheating scandals. What I have enjoyed about music applications is that there is an element of you either can do it or you can’ there is much more of a meritocratic attitude. I know that between my daughter (class of 2021) and my son (class of 2023) score ranges went up at top universities from 30-34 as the ACT range to 32-35. That is crazy. Colleges must be pressured to accept higher test scores so people are cheating. It’s a vicious circle. And the ACT/SAT. Does not correlate to academic success. It has made this whole college experience feel like a game.I guarantee that this scandal is the tip of a very large iceberg. A daughter’s friend at a prestigious university said none of her friends wrote their own essay. They are wealthy, connected and from feeder schools.
@DVmom18 It is just sad. But one thing we can be proud of is our kids did this on their own merit. Sure we supported but at the end of the day it was their work and talent that put them in the position they are in. The parents that have bribed and committed fraud to get their kids in school are flat out horrible parents. In fact I don’t even know if they understand what being a parent is at all.
@pdxtigermom I read about the USC student - a tragic loss. Congratulations to your son! My oldest daughter attended University of Washington and loved every minute of it - she did a math and Spanish double major. It was a perfect fit for her and that really means everything to young people. I bet your son could be very successful doing a double degree at UW and a direct admit is awesome for CS. That said, he may change his mind a number of times before 5/1. It’s still early.
My youngest, our classical vocalist, got into USC Thornton but never got super excited about it. It was very different than her midwest home and I don’t think she could see herself attending there as an undergrad.
The murder of the USC student is absolutely awful. The fact that he was a jazz studies major at Thornton also hit very close to home. I have to say that the news has had an impact on my thoughts about the school. I visited with S in September and was so taken with the beauty of the campus that I didn’t really think about the surrounding areas. We were back in February for his audition and I started to feel uneasy about the location, especially since the music practice rooms were on the outer edges of the campus and, as I now know, only a few blocks from where the student was killed. That, coupled with the admissions scandal (although I fully recognize that there were many other schools involved), has caused me great concern about sending my son there, if he were to be admitted.
When we were at LA for the auditions at USC and UCLA, all the Uber and Lyft drivers reminded us not to go outside of USC campus.
That is tragic about the death of that student.
Question re: telling other schools: S has one admit that is absolutely not possible without significant scholarship awards, which he did not get. The school has a reputation for not budging on awards. Now that he’s gotten a couple of other, affordable and desirable, acceptances, should he tell this school he’s declining? Or wait until all the offers come in?
So so sad. Agonizing for the family.