<p>Pocket folders (file sleeves) work best. Little cards and such don’t fall out and they expand to an inch so that viewbooks and everything can fit in them.</p>
<p>I got my D a five subject spiral note book for working on individual school’s essays. The questions go in the folder divider panels and she uses the ruled pages to take notes for the essays for each school. </p>
<p>The view books are all sorts of sizes, so they all go in a separate file box (the kind with a lid and handle). There is a clear folder in the same box with all the cards/correspondence, and hanging folder with the SSAT stuff. I also use a clear folder for school visits…to keep directions/maps/appointment confirmations for each trip (we’ve done as many as two schools in one day) in one place.</p>
<p>I have been handling the management of passwords so far…FYI, if you forget, you can generally call and get the password as long as you provide enough supporting info…</p>
<p>The more we get into the meat of things, the more I think we’ll keep our final “apply to list” at 3 to 5 schools.</p>
<p>Oh, another thing I had an epiphany about over the weekend after completing the Gateway info section: We will wait until late December to submit ANYTHING. Who knows, maybe some interesting things will happen on the sporting, service, or academic fronts in the next 3 months…IMO better to wait than to send forms in just for the sake of getting things done.</p>
<p>SevenDad - I like the idea of the 5 subject notebook with divider panels for the essays. Will pass that suggestion along to my D. She hasn’t even downloaded the essays yet - still supplying personal data to 3 different websites!</p>
<p>We are also re-visiting our number of schools - my D is beginning to see what is involved here. We were at 4 and think we will take it down to 3 after a visit next week. If my D agrees that 3 schools is the way to go, then I think the process should be totally manageable over the next 3 months. Also agree with holding off until December to push that “submit” button on the final application. In fact, this was advice given to us by an adcom at the one interview we have completed. There is no upside to getting the actual app in early - no one looks at them until February.</p>
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<p>Papers can, and do, get misfiled, and letters get lost in the mail. If you wait until late December to send anything in, you may find yourself calling the admissions offices repeatedly to check up on the status of your file. It takes quite a while for the schools to open all the envelopes. You can always send updates to the schools, should good things happen during this term. I’d rather be ahead of the process, at least with the pieces which come from our house. You will probably need to keep a close eye on the status of recommendations, over which you have no control.</p>
<p>In theory, submitting applications online will cut down on errant forms. Keep copies of everything, and if you mail anything to schools, check the postage!</p>
<p>My D told me last evening that everything will be submitted on line with the exception of teacher recommendations, which she must hand deliver and will be subsequently forwarded to the school by the teacher. What makes me nervous is my D infomed me that Choate’s recommendations are on line via e-mail to the teacher. Now, can you imagine trying to flag one particular e-mail in a teacher’s in-box. I fear it will get buried and forgotten. Thank God my daughter has a placid and positive disposition - just hearing these things make me a wreck!</p>
<p>@Periwinkle: I think that’s appropriate for the recommendations and transcripts, but stuff like the information forms (most of which are online)…lets say she does exceptionally well in some fencing tournament in late Nov or gets over 700 across the board on out-of-level SATs or has an amazing service experience or logs substantlal service hours in November…then we’d have to send an addendum to the info sheets if we had already submitted those.</p>
<p>As with so many things, the answer is to strike the right balance. We’re off to NE for Columbus Day, btw…second visits to two schools from over the summer, mostly to get a feeling for what it’s like when kids are on campus…</p>
<p>@madaket: Your daughter can download the recommendations from the gochoate website and hand them to the teacher. They allow you to do it via e-mail as another option. I am pretty sure they accept the common recommendation forms anyways. </p>
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<p>My choate admission office last year recommended sending my application in as early as possible, but warned not to rush on the recommendations. They start looking at your application when its complete. It said it somewhere on the website but I couldn’t find it. </p>
<p>I haven’t heard of any other schools doing this but its possible. I would recommend not to wait until the last minute.</p>
<p>2010 hopeful: thank you for that piece of info on the choate recs - could you possibly tell me where the link might be to actually download them??? I think it would be so much more straight forward for my daughter to hand the teachers the recs. They can attend to them at their leisure. E-mail seems to put pressure on them to complete them right away.</p>
<p>You have to log into your go choate account. Then click on the application link beneath the video. Then you will have to log in to the new window that pops up. After you log in, you will be directed to the application site. On the left there is a sidebar when you can click on downloadables or downloadable forms. You can click on the links for the forms you want to download then you print.</p>
<p>Thanks 2010 - helpful people like you are what makes CC such a wonderful resource!</p>
<p>At many schools, there is an online list you can check that shows what is still missing. You’ll know exactly what needs follow~up. If a form is missing, the AO’s are very good about following up on it. They won’t hold it against the applicant if, let’s say, a recommendation is missing by the deadline since that’s not entirely in the applicant’s control.</p>