I do get it. After older S went through the process, I was glad that younger S had 3 years before it was his turn. That being said, studying for standardized tests doesn’t happen in my area. I don’t think tutoring exists. I think mine prepped more than most. I bought them a Barron’s book and they said they leafed through it a bit before taking the tests. So, we didn’t have that to worry about.
Both kids were in a combo of AP/DE classes. Older S took several of the AP exams. He wasn’t one to study much and is the kind of kid who did well anyway. What was stressful was all of the applications essays and scholarships. He applied to dozens of national scholarships. What a waste of time and such a disappointment. He fared much better with the local ones. Edit - the race for valedictorian/class rank was VERY stressful for his grade. Oh the stories I could tell about what went on behind the scenes.
As a parent, it was stressful watching the results come in. He was waitlisted to the Ivies. HIs GF (who was more like a D at the time) was a combo of rejection/waitlist. So hard to watch the disappointment - not to mention the rejection of all those scholarships. Ugh. Ultimately, they wound up at schools that I believe were perfect for them. All’s well that ends well, but what a rollercoaster. Not for me! I like boring stability.
Watching his brother/GF go through the process was beneficial to younger S. He saw how hard it was for them and he buckled down and became much more serious about school. Ultimately though, the process was much easier for him. Whereas older S was striving for the best school for the best price, younger S was targeting large public schools. And mostly likely in-state ones, as his DE classes would automatically transfer. He said he didn’t want to take any AP tests and I said fine. It saved me $$$, saved him stress, and he really didn’t need the credit anyway. He had 50+ from the DE classes. And we didn’t waste any time on national scholarships. He concentrated on the local ones and did VERY well.
Best of luck to you all. We are now in the job/internship hunt cycle. I’m not sure if that’s better or worse.