<p>Since this is a relatively small subforum, I think it's OK to start discussing admissions for this year without the thread getting too long. I'm opening up the floor to anyone who wants to talk about where they're applying, admissions results, school selection, etc.</p>
<p>Good luck everybody!</p>
<p>I’ll start. It looks like D2 has her list, 8 colleges total:</p>
<p>Safety: IS public
Matches: 2 OOS publics & 1 private, all w/possible merit aid
Reaches: 4 need-only privates</p>
<p>The 3 publics have rolling applications and she’ll apply to 1 private in the EA round, she’s shooting at Nov 1 for this first set of applications. The final 4 will likely be completed over winter break.</p>
<p>As you can see, within the schools she likes, financial considerations will also be important. She’ll apply for a couple of higher percentage outside scholarships but institutional merit aid will be key.</p>
<p>D2 skyped last night with a friend who’s a new fr in college. She could see her dorm room and said hi to her roommate, she said it got her excited about college. One can only hope that the enthusiasm carries over to the mound of essays that need to be written :).</p>
<p>S still working on final list of where he will apply. Has 2 in-state public, two private matches, a private reach. I’m trying to help by suggesting different options: large public honors program, small liberal arts college, but not sure any of this is getting through. He does not seem in a rush to make the final cut or get going on apps. I wonder if he’s reluctant because it’s scary to go off to college – or maybe he just wants to do it at his own pace.</p>
<p>Copterguy…does S have any ideas about what he wants to study? Even if he is unsure, it can help to check to see if the schools offer a good program in that potential area. It gives you something to look for on the web page, etc. My S was very focused on his interests but by drilling down to the department or program of interest my S also discovered other things about schools that he wouldn’t if he had just stayed on the home page…</p>
<p>Copterguy, sounds like you’re doing all that’s possible. I spent the summer trying to get my D2 to start at least thinking about essays, to no avail. It ended up only stressing her out prematurely and aggravating me. While I still would have liked her to start earlier, and they are far from being finished, I must admit that now that school is in session, she’s plugging away them and making some progress. </p>
<p>Hard to tell if he’s concerned about going off to college or just not that concerned about it yet. D2 told me last night that she’s ready to leave right now…looks like it’s going to be a long year :rolleyes:.</p>
<p>Has he talked to his teachers about LORs yet? This the one thing that I think is urgent if kids are applying to any rolling/EA/ED schools. Some teachers get inundated with requests and if you wait too long, those early deadlines can be problematic.</p>
<p>fineartsmajormom, that is a good suggestion as to what he wants to study. In addition to a main major, he is increasingly into theater (acting and writing). It’s an EC that has taken over a lot of his time – improv and plays. I suspect it may be an EC that is turning into a more academic interest, but this isn’t firm yet.</p>
<p>entomom, that’s a good point about LORs. Also the question of rolling deadlines…I keep reminding him that no, all deadlines are not in January. A couple of weeks ago we got a postcard from a university that said in big letters 11-1-10 (their deadline for merit aid). I had the same experience with the essays this summer but finally got a first draft of a common app essay that looked like a good start. </p>
<p>It seems like some of the publics with merit aid want early apps. One place sent a note saying the app fee would be waived if it is filed by early Oct. I have some suspicions, but what are your thoughts on why they push for early apps?</p>
<p>I’m not sure why the do it, could be an incentive to lure top students (kind of like the EA schools) and give them more time to woo them and perhaps get them to commit early. It also could help in their admissions process as everything doesn’t come all at once in the spring. D2 only has one school that might give her an early answer about merit aid, sure wish the rest of the schools did this, it’s so difficult to rely on schools with merit scholarships when you don’t find out until after application deadlines are over, it means applying to more schools than you’d like because you have to hedge your bets.</p>
<p>D2 has already dropped a school, she decided that she is unlikely to be happy there. Fair enough, but she’s not too pleased with the replacement school I recommended. Luckily it has a Jan 15 deadline, so it can sit on the backburner and be used if it looks necessary based on the early returns.</p>
<p>Entomom, you have done and are doing a wonderful job with resources for Hispanic students. It is not a suprise to me that guidance counselors are not aware of these opportunities. That has been my experience with my son, who is now a sophomore at Rice and my daughter, now a senior in high school. The counselors at my children’s high school are mostly state oriented in their familiarity with colleges. My daughter is applying to 8 schools, all regular decision but by the scholarship deadline, which is usually December 1.</p>
<p>Safety-OOS Public, OOS Private
Fit-5 OOS Private
Reach-OOS Ivy (no merit)</p>
<p>I started the process of trying to unsnarl the college process when my S was a freshman and there are resources, scholarships available if you know where to look. Again, Entomom, you have summed up the programs and opportunities so well.</p>
<p>Good luck students and parents.</p>
<p>Thanks swm! We had the same experience with D1, which is what sent me to the internet to find information, and eventually here to CC. We really have a great group of members who have contributed their time and experience to help others find out about the opportunities available for Hispanic students. Someone should write a book!</p>
<p>Entomom, too bad we don’t have you over on the African-Americans thread. Not too many useful resources being shared over there. Hope you don’t mind my popping over here every now and then to peek at some of your valuable information. The “Venture Scholars” website look quite interesting. Thanks!</p>
<p>Thanks dignified, I must admit that I did take a peek over there once and noticed that the AA subforum didn’t seem as ‘organized’ as this one. I think a few instructive sticky threads really help head new posters in the right direction without having to dig through old threads too much. I’m pretty busy with college applications right now, but I’ll take a look and see what I can do, or maybe enlist one of the other Mods who might be more active on that forum.</p>
<p>Best of luck to you, and do take a look here as many scholarships and diversity open houses are for all URMs.</p>
<p>well im joining the thread! im applying to 10 schools for sure with 3 that i might add. im done with 3 apps and plan on finishing all by the middle of november (im working with a college counselor on my essays so i have strict deadlines).</p>
<p>Safeties - 3 privates, and 2 out of country publics (im a citizen of the country)
Matches- 4 (and 2 of my maybes fall here)
Reaches- 1 (and 1 of my maybes)</p>
<p>Welcome sandrasccr, it sounds like you are right on track with your essays and applications!</p>
<p>Hi. D2 has apps underway, common app essay done. 9 schools, mostly privates and she might be having second thoughts about one of those. Hard to tell exactly how to classify the matches, reaches etc but here is a guess:
3 private safeties
4 matches–3 private, 1 public
2 super reaches–private</p>
<p>Her grades and test scores are decent but will probably not qualify her for scholarships or other merit aid. She’s not applying ED to any schools but has been approached by one private offering a free application and surprisingly, a recruitment letter from a UC. She’s set up one interview so far and is nervous about it!</p>
<p>JRNMom,</p>
<p>Best of luck to your D on her interview! Sounds like she has a solid list, I agree that trying to determine safety/match/reach is difficult, but even if you’ve over or under shoot a little, it looks like she’s covered.</p>
<p>D2 hit the submit button last night! </p>
<p>The other essays are coming along, so hopefully there will be a few more submittals this weekend and next week. After that D2 gets a short respite before working on some scholarship essays in Nov. She has replaced her dropped match with possible merit aid school with another need only reach college :(. Oh well, hopefully the early returns will either provide her with rock solid safeties or provoke her to tweek her list in Dec.</p>
<p>Hope everybody else is making good progress!</p>
<p>Wow, this process has me (Mom) so stressed out! Daughter is calm, and too much of a procrastinator! Needs to get that Common App essay done before Nov 1 and has not even started! Be she always does a really good job.
Starting to narrow in on the list. All are pretty much matches or safeties, maybe 1 reach (Reed). But where she ends up is pretty much going to be determined by finances. He favorites are small LACs, preferably on the West Coast (we are in CA). But may have to go to a large public because of the great National Hispanic Scholarships.
List:
Favorites: Reed, Knox, UOP.
Possibility because of pretty good National Hispanic Scholarship: Willamette.
Financial Safeties: University of Arizona, University of Nebraska, Ohio State.
Maybe: Cal State Monterey Bay (because it is relatively cheap) in case somehow nothing else works out.
Has her first two admission interviews on Sunday - Reed and Knox.
Got the official certificate from counselor this week for National Hispanic Scholar! Waiting for those unsolicited offer letters, anyone get them yet?
Good luck to all thru this crazy process! I’m sure it will all work out fine for all.
And thank you so much to entomom and Itsv for all of the valuable advice on National Hispanic Scholarships!!!</p>
<p>Stressed out here too. My S finally came up with his list of 10 and started to get his LOR materials together, but this morning my DW tells me she thinks the list does not have enough safeties. I agree it’s kind of reachy, both academically and financially – and the problem is that our state universities are not really safeties (at least not the ones to which he has decided to apply). I don’t want to add anymore schools because I have no idea how this child is going to finish so many apps.</p>
<p>BVMomof2, I hear you on what looks like the procrastination front – but then my S seems to get it done when it counts. </p>
<p>Part of the problem in our household is that there are a bunch of schools on the list that kind of look alike – private, large universities in large metropolitan areas. Mostly academic matches, but my S has put them all on because he is (as of now) interested in all but also hoping to get some merit or other aid from one or more. And as others have said earlier on this thread, the financial thing can be unpredictable. </p>
<p>entomom, looks like you’re in good shape. </p>
<p>OK, one more thing…my S is applying to a school where I really do not want him to go. I told him the other day that I would not contribute significantly to this private u. So he’s applying hoping that merit aid comes through. I would prefer to shut it down now, but I don’t want to be too heavy handed. So my hope is that it doesn’t work out and that one of the other schools becomes the place. Better to tread lightly here, right?</p>
<p>Copterguy- Don’t worry about your son applying to school you don’t like. My son did the same thing and I think it is both a control thing as well as them thinking they can get into x school. Basically you are spending an application fee for this little mental thing on their part. Make sure your son submits his recommendations soon because teachers take forever and some just simply stop taking the requests. We found many teachers took forever to do it and some h.s. have cut-offs when you can make the request.</p>
<p>BVMomof2-thanks for the compliment. Glad to help. For what it is worth try giving her favorites a call telling them that she is an NHS and say many school are giving money for that award would the school do the same thing. Some schools like Vanderbilt give some money for it but it is not published any where. Letter should start arriving soon and continue until March. I am cleaning my son’s room and found a bunch. Try to creat a folder with them since my son applied to additional schools as finanical safeties once he got the letters. Good luck to your DD.</p>
<p>BVMom2</p>
<p>I wanted to make sure you know Knox gives a scholarship for NHS. [National</a> Hispanic Scholarships | Knox College](<a href=“http://www.knox.edu/nationalhispanicscholarships.xml]National”>http://www.knox.edu/nationalhispanicscholarships.xml)</p>