<p>Marite, I am hoping for a good result for your son on his EA app to Yale. I know that you know (that we have all come to know) that he is wonderfully qualified for a host of fine institutions, regardless of Yale's decision. I still hope, though, for a positive outcome for your family, as you have generously devoted so much of your energies to sharing what you know with those seeking guidance on CC.</p>
<p>Andi--</p>
<p>My daughter survived last year's EA massacre, and I'm afraid it wasn't pretty: The day she was deferred was probably the worst day of her life and a reasonable contender for the worst day of mine. But she wasn't nearly as prepared for this possibility as it sounds as if your son will be. Remember--no one really knew how brutal the competition was going to be until the time came; it hadn't been nearly that tough in previous years. She had her heart set on Yale (or maybe Brown), and though she gave lip-service to the idea that she might not be accepted, people kept telling her that she would be and she secretly believed it.</p>
<p>The only thing that really helped her that night was going on CC and seeing how many terrific other candidates had been deferred or outright rejected. What *didn't * help was having to churn out other applications when she was upset and discouraged. Marite definitely has the right idea: Just in case, try to get your son to finish his other applications now, rather than waiting for December 15.</p>
<p>Like other posters here, the biggest comfort I can offer is that these dramas do seem to have happy endings for nearly everyone. In my daughter's case, she got into Yale RD (rejected at Brown, though), and is loving her freshman year in New Haven. Other EA applicants we knew last year ended up at Harvard, Wesleyan, and the University of Chicago, and they too are happy and thriving. </p>
<p>The best of luck to you and your son.</p>
<p>Casey:</p>
<p>Many thanks for your good wishes. S is applying to Yale, but not EA. There was a bit of a hiccup in the process today (see the thread started by Wish It Was April), but we're hoping for a good result.</p>
<p>Marite -- how did that change your son from early to regular?</p>
<p>Does someone have a link to the "massacre" thread?</p>
<p>Jb13:</p>
<p>My S is applying EA to H, not Y. They are both SCEA now, so he had to make a choice, but he will apply to Y RD.
The problem (an inaccurately reported grade) has been fixed, an amended transcript is on the way (we hope).
While I'm tending the turkey, S is writing essays. He knows he might not have the heart to write them if he gets bad news on Dec. 15, and he might not have the motivation to write good ones if he gets good news. :)</p>
<p>destinypath, here is the massacre thread:</p>
<p>Gosh, reading through that brings back many memories.</p>
<p>Incidentally, if any of you Yale EA applicants are out there reading this thread, I have no regrets turning down Yale and have so many opportunities at Vanderbilt and am happy here like you wouldn't believe.</p>
<p>Evil Robot:</p>
<p>You have been in my thoughts. It was hard turning down Yale, but I was sure that once you were at Vandy, you would be happy. And it must be wonderful not worrying about the financial burden attending Yale would have meant. Thanks for letting us know.</p>
<p>Hi Marite, has your son done his other apps yet? At our house this seems to be easier said than done. Schoolwork and ec's seem to get in the way. It's adding to my worries.</p>
<p>I'm glad that someone has mentioned this because I thought it might only be US with problems finishing the other apps.! My son has a full school schedule, a 3xwk college Calc. II course (5 credit hours), debate, Scholar's Bowl, and just finished Cross Country. He also had a rather extensive senior project that involved a LONG paper and a presentation. WHY does everything have to come down at the same time!?!? ~berurah</p>
<p>Hi, Andi. My D was another victim of the EA massacre, another outright rejection that frankly left us a bit taken aback. She was very quiet for about a day--out of character if you know her--and then soldiered on. She had a couple of other high profile rejections (H&S) but Y was the only one that really stung in that it seemed to be a good fit for her. If you've seen my current posts around the board, she's delirously happy at Smith.</p>
<p>She did rework her essays, which in retrospect may have been the weakest part of her EA application, being the first crack at such. In terms of getting them done, I don't think any other issue caused more household friction in the 17+ years of her life. She spent six weeks in stasis, mostly because she was dithering over a couple of fundamental questions and too proud to ask questions or ask for feedback. When the logjam broke after 10 minutes discussion, she was off and running.</p>
<p>Given the quality of the experience that she's having, I can't second guess the process or the results. Do post-mortems, sure...second guess, no. ;)</p>
<p>Andi:</p>
<p>The new development is that S is now feeling that if he gets into H, that's it for him. He still thinks he would be happy at the other schools on his list, but H is his #1 choice. He has finished a couple of apps and is half done on a couple of others. There is only one on which he has as yet done no work, not even filled out basic info. If he does not fall into a blue funk on Dec. 15, he is on track to get everything out in good time.
He heard yesterday that 19 other kids in his school are applying early to H! This is definitely not a school where the GCs try to micromanage who applies where.</p>
<p>Hi Marite, That's great! That would be my dream, to have s get in early and scrap the other apps. Phew--relief. My s is doing the opposite of what your's was-- EA to Y and RD to H. That is a LOT of EAs to H from your school! I think we may have about that many with EA and RD combined but geeez, you would think that the GCs could do some damage control... Perhaps they are not in a position to suggest otherwise to anyone. These days it seems that school people have to be as careful about liability as just about anyone else. I can imagine that they may fear the wrath of a disgruntled parent if they were to discourage anyone. But then perhaps they are all qualified?? Anyway, I'm glad that your s has done his work. I'll have to get mine to finish up at least a few before the 15th to avert disaster.</p>
<p>Hi Andi. I was really taken aback by the number of EAs to H. It's not as though our school is super competitive by a long shot. In fact, there are fewer NMSF than EAs to H. I think, however, that last year at least five students got into H, possibly 9.<br>
What is your S interested in?</p>
<p>Marite, I wonder what influenced so many of them to apply. Maybe some that would have applied early to Y were nudged over to H because of the stories of last year's debacle. I know that at our HS the H numbers have had blips from year to year. About 4 or 5 years ago there were 12 kids who went and then for the past few years it's been more in the range of 4-7 or so. Academically my s is undecided. He has the blessing or the curse as it may be of being pretty equal in both math and language skills and I think that's making it more difficult to lean one way or the other. Up until his junior year he was bent more toward science but then his interest in the humanities perked up. The only thing he is certain of is that he wants to continue his studies in classical music/piano. It's what he lives and breathes for. What about your s?</p>
<p>My S lives and breathes math/science, although he is also good at writing. The school sends some students to Yale every year, though in fewer numbers. </p>
<p>"Undecided" is reported to be the most popular major at many colleges, including HYP, so your S is in very good company. I believe H has just launched a 5 year degree program with the New England Conservatory. Would that suit your S? There are certainly plenty of opportunities to perform at H and Y, but I am not familiar with the possibilities for studying as opposed to performing.</p>
<p>Evilrobot- It's nice to see you posting (using your free laptop?) along with some of the other CC '04 alums. Your admissions saga was one of the more compelling ones on CC last year and it's good to hear about the favorable outcome.</p>
<p>Andy:
Evilrobot's post reminds me that Vandy has the Peabody Conservatory that would be great for someone interested in continuing with piano.</p>
<p>Not one we had considered. Will check it out. Thanks. A girl from his last year's singing group goes there now, so we'll have a source of information.</p>