@sunnyschool yes, she had to interview for that scholarship before M10, but only kids who’re accepted are invited to interview. After that call, we didn’t stress anymore because we knew she is in at least one school, scholarship or not.
I COULD NOT have done this again. I truly admire the kids and their families who reapply. BTW, that was something else which kept us occupied during the M10 wait–we had to pay a deposit at the local school, sign up for classes and attend events for new students and families! Talk about awkward. But we were upfront with the school that the kid had applied elsewhere and was still waiting for decisions.
@CAClover you aren’t the only parent to help more than a little. I was starting to feel like the only one who pushed a bit with reminders of deadlines etc. DH and I did proofread DD’s essays etc. We mostly provided feedback like to reread each sentence for structure, or offered that a better lead sentence would grab the reader more effectively - that kind of thing. In all honesty though, we have told DD that I am only doing that once, if she decides to apply a second round it’s all on her.
I would not want to do this again either. Too much drama, too much traveling and so draining. Travelling thousand miles for 2 hours interview and visits were tiring but worthwhile. But have to repeat the same process for next kid in line in 2-3 years time.
Having said that, we got a good news last week one of the school DD applied to accepted her with very generous FA. WOW!! They really want her I guess. Lets hope more good news to come by M10 to all the readers.
@MA2012 I have no idea what was wrong with me when I first looked for revisit dates. Tonight I looked again and I found them all except for Kent. Well, now I can do a little planning. That will keep me sane for a week or so. Maybe.
Many years ago, we got a call on March 9th. Our son reacted with a loud whoop of “I did it”. Not a very dignified response- but a heartfelt one from a typical teenage boy.
I think most schools send them out first thing in the morning. Keep him home for an extra hour until all the emails come in. That’s what I am going to do.
^Many of them come during the day, in the early or late afternoon. My kid wanted me to open them immediately and text her the decision as soon as we received it; she didn’t want to wait until after school to find out.
Some do; many come out in the afternoon and evening.
TLDR: I have largely avoided any iteration of these “freakout” threads…mostly because we’ve gone into the BS admission process (and one college admission process) with the though that “whatever will be will be”/“things generally work out the way they were supposed to”.
The process involves so much busy-ness that the void that’s left when everything has been submitted is really glaring. And easily filled with worry, regret, speculation and all else that is “freaking out”. But @SevenDad is right – it almost always works out the way the it should. With 20/20 hindsight, it’s easy to see that, but when you’re in it, hard to believe.
So to all you planners-extraordinaire, I am waiting to see the fabulous vacation itineraries that you’re going to come up with!
@CAClover - It took some digging, but this thread should make you feel better…
One more:
Everyone who has interviewed and toured Deerfield knows the lousy and unforgiving acoustics in their reception room. I was there with one kid waiting for the interview after our tour and one parent ( off in a corner talking to an AO ) was getting louder and louder… repeating over and over how Deerfield was her son’s first choice. It was so uncomfortable for everyone in the room ( including her son… who looked completely mortified ), that my son turned to me ( wide-eyed ) and actually said, Do something, Mother.
Like, what did you have in mind?
Oddly, I think about that mom often. She actually told the AO that Deerfield was the only school they were applying to. I remember feeling completely helpless and the falling -off -the- cliff voice inside my head screaming, Noooooooooo.
My DD knew about all her decisions except one before leaving for school that day. She was a tad late to school that day but most were out by 8:00 am. They were all released in the am except for Andover who had major system troubles. I want to say decisions were filtered through the Gateway portal and I bet they plan to do something different this year as it was a mess. By the afternoon though we knew she was a denial or wait list as we received nothing in the mail and other here had reported receiving packages.
My DS only found out one decision before going to school that morning (2016). Several came out around 10am. He’d text during the day for me to let him know about the other school decisions. Two of the schools we applied to sent decisions thru the mail. Since we used an EC I knew decisions before we arrived home, one acceptance and one one waitlist.
I know just having that one acceptance before he left for school on M10 took so much pressure off. He knew he had at least one school that loved him enough to say YES.
Yes, I planned a sunny vacation over February break (next week)! When we get back we’ll be down to 2 weeks. We’re doing pretty well, but I figured it would be good to get everyone’s mind off M10 for 5 days, not to mention a break from the weather. We’ve been doing pretty well, other than my dread of “what if he doesn’t get accepted anywhere.” But, even my no-anxiety son is getting a little antsy and talking about how much he wants to go to one of the schools in particular. We’re trying to focus on keeping open minds and how unpredictable the process is.
My son and I aren’t going anywhere this summer, and he’s not attending any camps. We’re going to save our money, and enjoy some of the local things to do.
For all the parents who are clueless, awkward, probably did everything wrong, and also need financial aid: think of me and breathe more easily.
It’s a day we will never forget! Our D was so sure that she wasn’t going to get in anywhere she made the decision not to open any emails that morning. She even left her phone at home when she went to school! My husband couldn’t take it and decided to work from home. After we received 2 congratulatory phone calls from AO’s that morning and and a FA email from another school, I emailed my daughter’s best friend with a “tell her to breathe- it’s going to be a very good day!” My husband and I then made the 45 minute drive to her school to MAKE HER open the gateway portals! She had to wait for 2 via snail mail that night. I liked getting the packages in the mail. It’s much more exciting than a portal acceptance- but I’m old school! Like the swag. Best of luck everyone on M10! And yes, there can be some phone calls M9 or M10- and even afterwards while kids decide. Thacher called more than once while I was in the car. We would compare commutes- cars vs horses!
Once that last send button is finally clicked: (to paraphrase) The time for medicine is over; now is the time of prayer.
Mine was at a math competition on decision day which was a Saturday (and told me and DH not to look either (we got emails before and during the competition and that was hard!). He didn’t want to be distracted either way. We started opening emails in the car and there was a FedEx package at the door when we got home. The weather in NE was bad that week so mail/package delivery was delayed in some places. It was only a few years ago but fewer released via portal then. We are waiting for college decisions now (April 1 for some!).