@pdxtigermom - Wow! Congrats to your S. A direct admit to UW’s CS program is no easy feat (I think only a few of my S’ friends have gotten them…and they are double major musicians!). Kudos.
The tragic news of the USC student is so sad. I grew up in S.Cal and we always knew the USC area to be ‘sketchy’ at best. But with all the gentrification downtown I thought it had improved. I guess not as much.
@Lendlees Thanks! I hope his direct admit to CS is not related to music.
Ooops. Typo @pdxtigermom… I meant that they AREN’T double major musicians… 
@akapiratequeen My son has been declining places where he’s certain he wont go, given they were ranked lower than Berklee. His logic was that the school might use the space to offer someone else sooner, instead of waiting till the end.
I’m so sorry to read about the USC student. His parents and family must be heart-broken…
@akapiratequeen, my son has begun turning down schools. He just emails them and lets them know that after consideration, because he has some more affordable options in-state, he won’t be enrolling in x, y or z school. And then he thanks them for their time and help. Just simple is fine.
Hi everyone! I’ve been MIA while I was visiting my older daughter studying abroad in Spain. It was a nice distraction from this crazy waiting game! I’ve been following along and so many congratulations are in order!!! Wow!
@pdxtigermom my daughter was also admitted to UW for psychology and music! She’s also heard from UCSC but is still holding her breath for her top 3 for music. I’m hoping this is a good sign if they are considering her academics at all.
The scandal is hitting our area quite hard with 6 parents just from our school district alone. I can’t even imagine how hard that must be for their kids. I wanted to add that we think this doesn’t effect our music students because they have to show talent in auditions but for the popular world of music we know kids who paid 1000s to help write their original songs and many could afford to upload professional MTV style music videos to their websites and social media accounts. I feel we are right in the middle being able to send our D to summer camps, music lessons etc but no where near being able to do anything more.
We also heard about the USC boy killed, he’s a local Bay area kid. We know many who knew him. I’m not sure how much it would effect my Ds decision if she were to be admitted. That seems like a long shot for us all around.
Congratulations to everyone!
Our mailman seemed to know that I was stalking him. He drove by my mailbox really fast without stopping and my informed delivery email showed that “I have a piece of mail that we do not have an image for is included in today’s mail”.
Those are usually the promotional junk mail the mailman drop. Sorry
Congrats, @pdxtigermom on your S’s dual degree admit. Impressive on so many levels. Older S is a UW junior CS major and was just telling us last night how CS is even harder to get into now. He loves it there and is impressed at the caliber of his peers and the opportunities available just from being a UW CS major. It IS a lot of work on its own. And with your son being a music major as well… just WOW!
The news about the Thornton student is absolutely tragic, and was particularly pointed in our family given that the victim was a jazz drummer (like my son). FWIW, I did my graduate work at USC Marshall, so the loss of any Trojan is always hard for me. In the end, It’s just horrible no matter who you are.
That said, the USC campus (and area surrounding it) is no less safe since the tragedy than before it. Only people’s perception has changed, and mainly because the victim was a student and not one of the locals living in the neighborhood, thereby the increased press coverage. I guess it’s natural to allow a tragedy like this to affect your perception of a school, but IMHO it shouldn’t. It’s one data point, albeit an incredibly sad one. And remember, the good things that happen and the improvements that get made are harder to get attention for.
I think if your kid attends an urban school, they (and you) should understand the inherent benefits and risks, and where/when those risks increase. This is true for any university in the, ahem, “non-fancy” parts of their respective big city – Peabody, Columbia, NYU, New School, Penn, DePaul, Fordham, just to name a few.
As for our family, I’ll say that if my son gets accepted to Thornton, I’d have no worries sending him there. In fact, I’d be definitely less worried than I would if he attended the other urban campuses at the top of his list (Peabody, NYU, and New School). He knows the area around USC in ways he doesn’t know Baltimore or Manhattan, and yet I’d still have confidence that his street smarts are honed given the time he’s spent roaming DTLA with me (as I did with my parents in my youth) and also on in his own to navigate any big city smartly.
And a final note about where the USC student lost his life: saying it is “blocks from campus” is technically true, but the tragedy didn’t occur in the areas typically trafficked by USC students and it is definitely NOT part of the downtown area that is experiencing a boom. It happened 1.5 miles from Thornton on the other side of the 110 Freeway (and not close to the lone USC parking structure on that side). In contrast, the area directly north of campus is where much of the student activity is in the neighborhood (e.g. that’s where the row of Greek houses are)
@Busy_Momma Thanks! My son is more natural in CS than in music I guess. Even though he’s not musically inclined, he does play well because of the long hours of practice.
WestofPCH - thanks for clarifying about the areas in LA. It’s funny how the safety factor can change within a mile or two in LA. Sadly, our daughter met the drummer a month ago. He played with some of her friends and she went to listen to them. I’m proud that she went up to him after the performance and told him how much she enjoyed his playing. She said he was very talented. So very sad. I loved reading the tributes that his teachers wrote about him on the USC Thornton website (I can’t find them now). How he wanted to change the world with music.
I was glad to see that my daughter’s friend at her Arts School did not participate in the SAT scam. She just took the SAT a few days ago on her own. So - that’s one good thing. If you are looking for a distraction from waiting for results, you can read the transcripts of the scam at https://www.justice.gov/file/1142876/download Turns out that our kids went to pre-school with the McGlashen boy who got into USC as a football player (even though his school didn’t have a football team - you have to admit, that’s a bit funny. And Felicity and Bill Macy called my daughter’s friend “their smart one” that they thought could do well on her own. (I’d hate to be their older daughter who needed the help).
Although this level of blatant cheating doesn’t seem to occur in the Arts World - there is definitely some influence that $$ brings. There was a female bassist at Berklee last summer that got a full ride for the 4 years. My daughter (and her friend) did not think that she was that good. When our daughter looked at her social media page - there were all sorts of famous musicians on there - and her father looked like a very well connected musician. So - there you go. He may have contributed to the school - or pulled some strings. It does happen in the music world…just in less dramatic and unethical ways.
@pdxtigermom - Congrats on the admit!! Hats off to your son who can do a double major. Amazing! The best of both worlds.
I finally had a chance to read through all of today’s posts. I agree with @akapiratequeen and others that the college admission scandal goes way beyond the Hollywood elites. There were bankers, accountants, lawyers, CEO’s, and many other weathy and connected professionals implicated in this scandal. No surprise the famous Hollywood actresses were the spotlight of the headlines. Have to admit seeing a story about Aunt Becky from Full House being arrested certainly drew me in! If politicians were involved, I’m sure they’d be a big part of the media focus too. I see the point about them being hypocrites, but I’m guessing every parent involved was guilty in that regard, but most on a less-public scale. Part of me has some empathy for the families who were lured into this scandal and who may be otherwise good people who will now have their lives turned upside down. We have members here who will see the devastation, shame, and humiliation the families deal with first hand. There is little doubt there will be real consequences in terms of families breaking apart, financial burdens (at a level even some wealthy families will feel the pinch of) and prison time. But I mainly feel disgust and anger at the sick mastermind of this scam, the broken system that let this happen, and the parents who clearly knew better but broke the law anyway! Think of all the students who did things the right way, but who lost out on a fair shot at their dream college due to the greed and sense of entitlement of these parents. This is not a victimless crime so they must face the penalties as anyone else who breaks the law, rich or poor, should.
There is definitely a trend in which parents are afraid to say no to their children or they find it easier to “buy” their child’s happiness rather than show moral leadership and prepare their kids to be independent and productive without mommy and daddy helping (which requires taking the time to teach the value of hard work, that not everything will come easy and that you can learn from falling down and rejection.) My daughter wanted to apply to USC after learning about their top-rated pop music program. We reviewed the average SAT/ACT scores and (thanks to @SpartanDrew pointing this out) read the fine print that stated they give NO talent scholarships for pop. Although I didn’t limit where she applied in general, we discussed how “realistic” getting into a school like USC would be as well as affordability. Had a similar talk about NYU and she took them both off the list early on with no regrets. We felt being straight with her throughout the process was better than getting her hopes up and setting her up for disappointment or unrealistic expectations.
My heart breaks for the young USC man who lost his life so senselessly! His poor family must be beyond devastated. I do feel there are all kinds of dangers we (and our kids) must be aware of when they go off to college, whether they are situated in a rough part of town or the safest city in America. This goes beyond outside crime on the streets. Think about all the hazing incidents we hear about, some deadly. The statistics on campus rape are jaw-dropping. Sexual harassment can be a common occurrence. Even schools like Berklee tried to sweep things under the rug until protests and public outrage finally led to change.
We know that “normal” partying can turn deadly when kids are exposed to excessive alcohol and drugs. Bullying doesn’t disappear in college. Depression and anxiety can intensify when kids are homesick and even lead to suicidal thoughts. Sadly, the potential for crime, violence, and the exposure of danger are on every campus. It’s our job to help our kids educate themselves and be proactive. Some of our girls might think it’s weird to have security walk them to their dorm at night, but if that service is available, why not encourage it? I’ve been drawn to schools that seem to take those extra protective steps. One school even has a college shuttle from the airport, offers self-defense classes, free counseling year round, and offers drug/alcohol education as part of the orientation. I don’t mean to scare or upset anyone. I know it’s hard enough thinking of letting our “babies” go without the reminders of danger-but I think it’s important to be aware of these things and just be realistic about them. It sounds like you have all trained your children well and I’m sure they know they have a great support system to turn to, which is a huge bridge to success!
Congrats to @pdxtigermom and all those getting closer to decisions. I wish I could give advice to @akapiratequeen but my daughter has yet to cross any off her list. You are lucky your son is beginning to narrow the list. And I think it’s very commendable for him to notify the schools he is no longer interested in as that helps them open the door to others.
Sorry for my long post, but clearly I’ve decided that writing novels on CC is one way to pass the time as we await 5 more admission decisions! Lol.
Thank you for all the parents who write long posts. It’s double bonuses for me-passing the time and learning English.
March has always been a long month with waiting for spring but this one, ugh!
S has heard from 3 schools with 6 more to come. Of the three, one gave verbal scholarship (Prof called two weeks ago and said letter would follow) and then emailed this week to say, oops, we’re out of money and there is no scholarship. But maybe there will be money later.
So that was disappointing but luckily it was last on the list of the three he’s been admitted to so far. I was trying to remain upbeat about it with him but it really upsets me. Said it was no reflection on my son’s abilities, just not enough money to go around - which I get, but why did he get us excited only to yank the rug out!? Sorry, can you tell I’ve been internalizing this?
@leejay22 - Seems to happen every year that an early promise of admission or scholarship doesn’t materialize. I’m sorry for the disappointment, but I hope good news will be coming soon for your musician. I’m sure the prof felt just awful having to write that email. Keep your chin up.
leejay22——— It was unprofessional to mention a scholarship $$ verbally, then “Sorry, we are out of money”. Well, most of those professors (professional musicians) are employed by schools so if schools or departments decide on money, they may not have much to say to keep their paychecks. More options are coming to you!
@leejay22 - oh no!!! That’s not good - but at least it’s last on the list.
Regarding the college scandal thing - I’m so proud of my daughter’s friend and classmate. She came to school today! My daughter said she looked very shaken - but to be brave and go to school must have been difficult. I wonder if she will ever speak to her mother again? (even if she did it with good intentions). My daughter asked me if I think that she would be able to go to USC or Stanford (where she apparently wants to go to study film) and I said I seriously doubt it. I would imagine that most colleges wouldn’t want to admit her based on bogus SAT scores. Poor girl will likely have to take a gap year, I would assume, re-take the SAT and reapply next year. My heart does go out to the girl who is apparently fairly straight laced and a lovely, kind hearted girl (according to my daughter). My daughter did say that one of their friends got a 1320 on the SAT and the girl involved in the scandal said “oh - I could never get a score that high” - so, I wonder how she felt when she found out that she got a 1400? Or if she was suspicious at all. Her mother did get her permission to take the SAT over 2 days (given a supposed learning disability). Anyway - just speculating and pondering - in an effort to avoid checking email and the mailman.
Wow, I’ve never heard of someone promising a scholarship and then saying, “Whoops, we’re out of money.” That seems really off to me. I’m glad it wasn’t a top choice, @leejay22. I’m guessing maybe that was a big school?
@leejay22 That sounds like a political thing or a mismanagement behind the scenes that has nothing to do with your kid. I would take it as a red flag about how the place operates and be glad it wasn’t a first choice!