<p>Pretty much what mathmom said.</p>
<p>Preparation begins w-a-a-ayy before these nerve-wracking waiting days.</p>
<ol>
<li>Apply to one or more schools that you would love to attend, which are highly likely or sure to accept you.</li>
<li>Preferably have one or more of those schools be non-binding EA or rolling admissions, so you have positive news in hand early in the process.</li>
<li>Never EVER get yourself in the mindset that there is one “dream” school. There isn’t, unless you create that self-destructive fantasy in your own head. There still isn’t even if you do that… you just think there is.</li>
<li>As parents, our job is to act excited (hopefully be excited) about all of the possible schools; never focusing on one as better than the other.</li>
</ol>
<p>It still hurts to be rejected somewhere. But if you follow the above, that hurt will be short-lived. My S moped for, literally, about 15 minutes over his 1 rejection. He already had such good options in hand.</p>