I’m new to the boards and the college applying process in general–my eldest 2 daughters will be applying to UW Madison this fall.
I am wondering about Early Action–Is it best to apply right away when Early Action application process opens Aug 1st? I understand they start processing Sept 1st? My feeling is to get it in right away–anyone have any thoughts and experience with this?
An issue we have is, one of my daughters will not be able to get a recommendation letter until a few weeks after school begins this fall which I’m stressing about now. (Daughter asked teacher a week ago, teacher said she would be able to get it to her by end of year, now teacher is saying not until beginning of senior year).
This is their first choice school and they would like to show their high level of interest by applying early and getting application in between Aug 1-Sept 1.
Any thoughts? Thank you in advance!!
I love these boards! very helpful.
If there is a thread that covers this, I apologize, I could not find it.
Early is usually better, you hear back sooner. But a few weeks into the school year is no problem. She can still put her app in early if it is ready and the teacher rec can follow it; they don’t all need to be submitted at the same time. But the app won’t be considered until all the components are received.
Are there any other advantages applying EA aside from hearing earlier wether they have been accepted? Is EA “judged” or “viewed” differently since the students applying EA consider Madison their first choice?
Are there any reasons not to apply EA?
(I will have many questions in the coming weeks and some may be obvious to everyone else so I apologize in advance!)
I never heard the early action meant it was a student’s first choice at all although many who do apply want UW there will be others with a couple of schools they want more or less equally. It just means getting a decision sooner than applying after that first deadline. Some would do it to be over and done with the UW application sooner. This is not the same as applying to a school where you agree to go if accepted in the early round. Of course there will be students who apply after being rejected for early decision from another school or who finally get around to their UW application in January (like my son years ago, sigh).
Sounds like you have twins with two going through the process at the same time (or not…). It will be a hectic next year for you. Good luck.
One of the results of the early action could be deferred- meaning UW waits to see if there is room after the rest of the applications come in. But, getting an application in sooner may mean knowing you are in/out sooner.
I presume you are treating each girl separately. By now they have their own separate personalities and records.
If they are competitive for UW-Madison then U-Minnesota Twin Cities should also be looked at with tuition reciprocity making costs more comparable than other OOS (out of state) choices. Some students get into one and not the other. UW does housing selection by a lottery system in May regardless of when the application/acceptance occurred. I believe U of M does things first come first served so the likelihood of getting one’s first dorm choice is better with an earlier application.
Financing college is a huge concern. You will need to consider family finances. There are other kids you have to plan for. Do NOT raid any retirement plans to pay for college. That is money you will never replace and needed. There are resources for finding scholarships your D’s may be eligible for. Others would know where to look. There are cost calculators as well. Explore other sections of the CC website.
If you haven’t been looking at any college campuses by now you need to this summer. This means looking at both UW and U of M campuses and various others informally. Some people like large places, others prefer small. But you also need to consider the caliber of the schools. Definitely check out UW-La Crosse as an alternative where many top Wisconsin students who do not get into UW-Madison go. The academic peer groups differ at every school.
Each D should be making lists of where they would like to apply. They also need to have potential majors in mind. It is easy to change majors once in college but a focus is needed. They will be exposed to so much more in college than is available in HS.
Answers to post # 8 will help us steer you in good directions. It is useful to you to look at admissions pages of various colleges. See the stats compared to each of your D’s. Take note of the credits in various HS subjects required and those had by successful applicants- minimums do not mean being competitive for UW.
And remember it is each of your D’s job, not yours, to do this as well. Parents can be useful but the child needs to own the process. You can offer suggestions they will not have heard of with your research. They need to be checking out school websites on their own. Early in the summer is a good time for them to make expansive lists. Then research and narrow down choices to several to be serious about and apply to.
Do not count on scholarships from UW. However, there can be good OOS or private schools that meet a D’s needs that could be more affordable due to scholarships.
Thank you for the information. Yes we have been talking about schools in state and will be exploring colleges in MN as well as LaCrosse.
To give you all a complete and accurate pic I will post complete stats soon.
However----
We are in state.
Both daughters have GPA, 3.7 and 3.8. Have taken ADV Eng, Sci, Math all three years. Adv Econ Freshman year and AP European HX (both got A’s) Soph year.
Many extracurriculars (Varsity tennis since Freshman, volunteer teaching tennis, mentoring/tutoring disadvantaged or struggling children since freshman ,<—(both girls very good at this as well), student council, key club (many different volunteering things thru key club), math club, meditation club, Eco club, help with the foreign exchange students <—(really valued and enjoyed this), volunteer many hours with children and for school events, like prom or blood drives, concessions etc, NHS, and they started their own club this year ---- (we have to total up hours but it is easily 200 hours+ I believe)…Summer job for past two years teaching tennis as well as helping work in the family business since they were able to …this is off the top of my head and not complete.
ACT: one has a 26 and one has a 27. They know this is a weaker score. They are retesting this June.
One wants to study foreign language and another is mostly undecided but is interested in a career in health care. Twin that likes healthcare is part of the health careers academy at our HS. She has taken health care shadowing classes and volunteers at the local hospital as well as gained admittance to a summer medical mentoring program.
**One twin (interested in healthcare, 27 ACT and 3.8 GPA) is having an issue in her AP Lit class this year and she may end up with a C+ this semester. the lowest grade she has ever gotten in High school. Long story short–this semesters teacher has not liked anything she has written. Gave her an almost failing grade on her first paper. It has been and uphill battle ever since then and devastating for her not to be able to improve. She does not slack and goes in for extra help from the teacher as well as gets many peer reviews to no avail. She looks to be able to finish this semester with all A’s in other classes (Pre-calc, Spanish 4, and Adv Chem and HX–all considered ADV except HX). This AP Lit class is notorious in our school for breaking GPAs and many high achieving students avoid it and take APUSH instead. There is NO Adv English option for our juniors–only Standard or AP. My D does not enjoy HX and thought it would be more valuable to learn to write better so took AP LIT instead of APUSH.
She rec’d a grade of B last semester from a different teacher who was more supportive and talked thru her writing a bit more with her. Any thoughts about a C+ in a an otherwise almost all A’s transcript? She is very stressed about this and feeling somewhat defeated. Should she end up with a C+ should she explain this on application?
Other twin is a bit more eclectic candidate but has lower GPA at 3.7 and ACT at 26. GPA is expected to stay at 3.7 for end of junior year. She is more creative and enjoys writing and foreign language. Hoping to teach english, possibly abroad. Interested in Asian studies.
They are both definitely different candidates and will illustrate the differences better once the year is over. I know this isn’t the clearest but can give you all an idea.
Spend the summer doing ACT prep in addition to campus visits. If they could get to 30 they would have much better chances. Some girls on our high school (in state) have excellent grades (3.8 + unweighted) but low ACT scores and they were deferred EA - and possibly RD - but eventually got in. However they had minor hooks in performing arts.
Applying EA is nice if accepted because ti takes some pressure off the RD process.
The advice on applying to U of Minnesota is good and it would be worth visiting the campus this summer.
Encourage them to have several choices of math/safety schools (like UW-LaCrosse) that they would be happy to attend so they don’t set themselves up for disappointment. Are the prepared to go to different schools than each other?
I am not very politically correct - but hooks are characteristics given preference beyond what might be considered earned. Others might say that a college is “crafting” its class. One common example would be athletes. In this case the students want to major in a small department and their performing arts skills might exceed their academic profile. Just my take.
@wis75 happy to report you are completely WRONG! They are in. To any future applicants reading this–trust yourself and your stats; be careful sharing stats on CC as some people are pretentious and condescending and just will make you feel worse about yourself and your chances. They don’t know your full story. Sell yourself and do your research on UW. Show them your passions and who you are–don’t listen to the haters with nothing else to do but cut you down. Good luck to all.
Huh above post??? No guarantees- students should have backup schools. Looking at stats so many have been deferred with similar numbers, many will eventually get in. A big dose of doubt instead of cockiness about any school is a good reality check. Some students overrate their HS et al. I do not understand the vehemence with the negatives in post # 16. There are many students who can handle UW who won’t get in simply because there are more people who want UW than can be accommodated. Times changed (for the better) when many were admitted but dropped out after a semester or year. Enough on this.
