<p>Here's the situation...
At D's high school - if you are over the credits that you need - you can opt for a late arrival to school every day (junior and senior years). My daughter wants to volunteer in the mornings and have a late arrival (junior year). On your transcript it just lists your first block (1.5 hours) of the day as "Late Arrival". BUT - here's the problem - colleges may think that you slept in and were lazy. I don't think this is a good idea (especially junior year) but D wants to do it so she can continue her activities/sports after school and get her volunteer hours done in the a.m. What do you think??</p>
<p>I think that you should get a covering letter which states what the “late arrival” actually means from the school and send it with the transcript. It will clear any and all discrepancies.</p>
<p>or she could take another class during that time to show that shes taking the most rigorous courseload that she can. I didnt take any free or open periods until senior year</p>
<p>^^^^^^^^That is EXACTLY what I thought! I told her to take this late arrival second semester of senior year. I think that this will negatively affect her “course rigor”. Arriving late as opposed to learning?? I don’t think this looks good.</p>
<p>though if she explains it properly, she could use it to her advantage. no one else gets to work on ECs in the mornings. if she talks about it in her essays, it doesnt have to hurt her at all. haha I guess im not really being much help</p>
<p>Most colleges apart from the very best don’t even really care too much about extracurriculars. Even in the list of top colleges’ priorities, course rigor almost always comes before extracurriculars.</p>
<p>I would let your daughter organize her life the way she wants to. Part of what kids are supposed to be doing now is learning how to become independent adults, so this sounds like a great idea. </p>
<p>I guess it depends on how big a priority it is for you – and your daughter – to base all your decisions on how to live your life on how it will look for college. </p>
<p>I think that she is showing good organizational skills wanting to do things this way. It doesn’t sound to me like loading up on courses just for the sake of college apps is what she wants to do.</p>
<p>I have early leave senior year. I’d kill for late start, but instead I have to be there by 7:30 every morning and leave at 12:40 every day. I take 4 AP classes senior year second semester, so it’s not an easy load…</p>
<p>idk. Up to you, I guess.</p>
<p>When I suggested to my d that colleges wouldn’t like it if she did (or didn’t do) X in high school (like not take honors math, for example), her response was: “If a school won’t take me because of that, then it’s not the right school for me anyway.”</p>
<p>Your daughter may feel the same way.</p>
<p>(Despite not taking my well-reasoned advice, my d is in a well-respected, rigorous college that she loves. Sometimes our kids know better than we do.)</p>
<p>Putting “Late Arrival” on the transcript with not explanation of its meaning sounds like a horrible idea by the school, not a teenager.</p>
<p>It seems like your daughter has a great, responsible idea. Our kids learn a lot from the messages we give them. She could take away two different messages here:</p>
<p>1) My parents respect my choice and are proud of me for wanting to volunteer;</p>
<p>or</p>
<p>2) Nothing is more important than accruing points in the college game.</p>
<p>I’d go for #1 – and be proud of my daughter. The game isn’t about getting into college; it’s about how she conducts her life now, before college; later, in college; and afterwards, for the rest of her life. Also – the college that looks at her transcript and appreciates her as a child who chose to volunteer instead of rack up credits may be a much better place for her, than the one that would rather see another academic course.</p>
<p>
.</p>
<p>Yeah. Without an explanation, it looks like “chronic tardiness” or “this student comes to school whenever she has time after she’s done dealing drugs and running guns for her local Colombian cartel”. Luckily, most colleges have a Secondary School Report that is intended to allow counselors to explain relevant issues like that.</p>
<p>Jahaba~
LOL! That’s what I think! It looks like laziness or chronic tardiness at best! :/</p>
<p>I doubt that your school will suggest in the official transcript that your D is skipping a time when she take another course. You should talk to your guidance counselor if you think that’s the case. Ask for a sample transcript that would in fact be sent to colleges.</p>
<p>I’m familiar with high schools (locally) where students can build in free periods at the start of the day, or at the end. They may come in late, or leave early. They can be using the time to prepare for class, volunteer, or whatever. Their transcript doesn’t indicate the fine details of their schedule.</p>
<p>Selective colleges, like to see passionate students. So the question I think you’re asking is: does it make a significant difference in your application to take “one” more course during the junior year, or to use that time constructively, and differently? It would depend on the course. If there’s an important core course (in math, science, english) that other students normally take in your Ds school, and one that she’ll not take, then maybe. If it’s non-core (say visual or performing art, etc.) then it’s doubtful.</p>
<p>My sense is that it is quite likely that your D’s volunteering and athletics activities would help her build a stronger application than that of purely academically focused students.</p>