Parents of the HS Class of 2014

Parents of Class of 20xx
4721

<p>Welcome GoldenWest!</p>

<p>You’re right, the optimal time to visit is during the school year, but that’s not always practical. My DS’ school only allows one excused college visit day per semester! So we will do most of our visits when his school is out. We did two last summer, one on MLK day in January and three over spring break (schools visited were in session). </p>

<p>The summer visits were good - they had information sessions and tours as usual. There were students on campus, just not as many as during the regular school year. The most beneficial thing for us has been to set up an appointment with the department he plans to major in - that has provided the most insight to us as to whether the school would be a fit or not. I’m not as worried about the social aspect because he is very easy going/laid back and will bloom where planted. :slight_smile: I just want to make sure the programs are what he’s looking for. Other students may be undecided in their major and the social scene may be the major thing they are looking for in a school. Or the dorm situation may be high on the list of preferences - although I’ve decided you can have several different configurations on a single campus! We’ve been shown the typical old freshman dorm or the top of the line brand new dorm.</p>

4722

<p>Golden - welcome! While it is more ideal to see colleges while the students are there, sometimes it’s the only choice you have. One thing that was important to my kids was if the kids seem happy and the kinds of people they could see themselves hanging out with them. </p>

<p>You can always see the campus and decide if they like what they see, and go back again after they’re accepted and see it in full swing.</p>

4723

<p>Welcome GoldenWest!
Fall and spring terms are certainly more ideal, but as others have pointed out it’s not always possible. Like beadymom we’ve taken advantage of MLK Day, teacher work days, etc., to make day trips. I’ve never run across a school that didn’t offer info sessions and tours in the summer. A quick call to the admissions office will confirm this. There are some schools that clear out in the summer and there are schools where there is quite a lot going on. You may be able to get an idea for this from other parents who have visited in summer months or students/families who attend. I’d ask in their forums. I know S2’s school stays fairly active with students taking summer courses, doing research, etc. It’s going to be a different vibe then the regular academic year, but it isn’t ‘dead’.</p>

4724

<p>Some schools start back pretty early in August, so depending on when your school starts in the fall, you could sneak in some visits before senior year starts in August.</p>

4725

<p>Thanks for the good points and the warm welcome!</p>

4726

<p>Novamom - consider U Rochester for E with an LAC feel.</p>

<p>Beady - interesting about liking the larger schools… Of course, I loved Va Tech, so I’m not saying he’s wrong…</p>

<p>We’ve decided we’re doing college visits in the fall vs the summer. Since youngest wants small schools, I’d simply rather he see them with students and talk with the students. Since our school is on block scheduling and he’s a senior, he’ll only be missing 3 classes/day (he’s going to be a student aid for the 4th class). It won’t be ideal for high school, but… We’re going to try to keep the trip south to a week or less (depends upon how many schools we visit).</p>

4727

<p>Thanks for the suggestion, Creekland. </p>

<p>We are going to have to do most of the rest of our visits in the summer after this weekend. DS plays both a spring and fall sport so can’t really miss any school days. </p>

<p>Plus as we all are experiencing, this spring is so packed with testing, etc. Subject tests early may, then AP tests mid-May. He has a job that requires him to work Memorial Day.</p>

<p>He visits Case Western June 1 for a workout, then ACT on June 8, followed by a second visit to Wash U June 9-10. Finals are the week of the 10th and he is hoping timing works out so he can accept an invitation to a recruiting event later that week in Chicago. </p>

<p>Pass me the wine! </p>

<p>Sent from my SCH-I510 using CC</p>

4728

<p>Blueiguana–it sounds as though you have more info than I do on Lehigh, but thought I would jot down what I heard at this morning’s info session. Most of their aid is need-based, to the tune of $63 million awarded annually. Merit aid does not require a FA app, but is awarded to the top 5-6% of admitted student population. They offer three merit scholarship options: $12K/year, half tuition, and full tuition. Admission process is need-blind. </p>

<p>Ad Com stated that middle 50th % SAT scores were 1300-1430. I am guessing that he communicated the stats of the accepted population b/c the middle 50th % of the enrolled population on the 2012 CDS is 1200-1300. Or, it could just be the different reporting period, but that is a significant increase so I am guessing accepted vs enrolled stats. (I thought to ask that question at Lafayette when I noticed the differential and Ad Com confirmed that he had communicated the accepted stats, not the enrolled stats.)</p>

<p>Going off on a tangent here, but my point in mentioning the accepted stats was to give you at least the current 75th % for accepted students. It sounds as though you know the number he needs to hit. I didn’t bother to ask what stats represent the top 5%.</p>

<p>It was interesting hearing the variety of approaches to merit vs need-based aid, need-blind vs need-aware decision making, percentage of class filled by binding admits, the prevalence of ED 1 & now ED 2. Head is still spinning after touring six colleges in three days and now trying to gear up for three more.</p>

4729

<p>CT1417 - please give us reports on all 9 visits! I’d also be interested to see your schedule. I can’t seem to fit more than one in a day!</p>

4730

<p>Haven’t been on here in a while. I’m wrapped up with a senior AND a junior, so I jump from one thread to another. It’s so interesting the difference a year makes! the 13ers are all making final decisions, waiting on final aid numbers, choosing roommates and courses, still making final admitted student visits, etc. I am thinking all those same things for my 13er (going to Duke’s Blue Devil Days this weekend), but while also stressing about which colleges to visit for my 14er and especially WHEN to do it. We are totally running out of time at the end of this school year! I’m thinking we’ll have to do a lot over the summer, and your advice has been great! Cornell actually recommends the summer as the best time to visit. Right now is just not a great time to take days off from school with SAT’s (trying to decide the best time to go for the third test to bring up the score just a bit - May? June? October? Switch subject tests to May?) and AP’s coming up. Those APs can be so important, especially when going into a “credit intense” major like engineering, where it would be of great benefit to not have to take the extra math or computer science class, or even chem or bio. My 13er is going into engineering and I never in a million years thought his AP Art History would get him anywhere, but if he gets a 5, it will get him out of a Civilizations required humanity course! That’s IF he gets a 5… </p>

<p>Someone mentioned Lafayette this weekend. Details please! We plan to go to the open house on the 27th. I feel a little hesitant that they don’t have grad school… I like the schools with the 4+1 option and then they have a Masters in 5 years… But we have to visit there anyway to see a small school. We’ve seen UMD and UVA and he will see UConn in June at their Exploring Engineering program. So that’s big AND small. Also seen RPI, which is medium and tech school. WPI smallish also. Went to a robotics camp there last summer. </p>

<p>Opinions on the “party school” aspect of Lehigh? I’m sure there are a million CC posts about it! On our visit with our 13er, they de-emphasized it, but they HAVE to, right? Anyone seen Bucknell? (again, no grad school) Does everyone visit Lehigh, Lafayette, and Bucknell in the same trip? :slight_smile: And how about Hopkins? How much is the “city feel”? Anyone seen Carnegie Mellon? </p>

<p>Lastly, how does distance from home play into your decisions? A drive away? A looonng drive away? Flights OK? Anyone willing to travel cross country? Eight hours is about our max, and I’m not thrilled with it… personally, I like 4 or less. Lafayette is only one hour! It’s 2:30 am and I’m overwhelmed with thoughts… I read as I go to bed, but as I see big vocab words, I write them down to help DS 14 with his vocab… I’m a nut case. :D</p>

4731

<p>P.S. - Have the new essays for the Common App been discussed on here? They seem harder than last year’s, although I kinda like the 650 word MAX limit. It bugged me that last year it was 500, but you could still go over as much as you wanted. I felt that gave some kids an advantage, but perhaps it detracted, too, because they didn’t have to use excellent editing skills to pare down to the essentials. </p>

<p>My 13er wrote his essay in one day with barely any changes (In late September for ED!) My 14er WILL write his over the summer!!! :D</p>

4732

<p>Lafayette - we toured and S went to a camp there when he was younger. Small, pretty campus with a strong focus on sports. The admissions lady talked for sooooo long we ended up leaving before it was over. The tour was really good. I can tell you from the camp, the dorms are larger than average and if I remember most students lived in one huge dorm. Not just a tech school so the student body was a mix of interests.</p>

<p>Lehigh - huge party school apparently, but from people I know on the board they are working VERY hard at increasing the applicant selectivity and tone down on the party scene. But it’s a beautiful campus, great reputation, lots of kids from the same privileged north east families. </p>

<p>One thing most schools do is tell you the accepted stats, not the enrolled stats. It’s because accepted is always higher as students apply to schools as safeties.</p>

4733

<p>We had good luck with summer visits but they were large public universities. Some kids were on campus.
I would not do a spring break visit again. We didn’t go in a dorm, library, union, rec center. This is a larger school.<br>
I had a lac tour scheduled the day before thanksgiving. I thought if they were scheduling tours it would be ok. I ended up canceling because I read on the website that all dorms are closed and students have to leave. That didn’t sound good so we didn’t go. </p>

<p>We are done with general visits. Covered all the basics…flagship public, small tech school, small top 20, safety, and then some. Also, did some drive- bys. </p>

<p>We will revisit a couple for specific majors and possible honors programs. Also, if s speaks up with a request, we would explore the option.</p>

4734

<p>We also will be doing the less-than-ideal summer visits due to scheduling issues.</p>

<p>A note of caution: some colleges host unrelated programs in summer. Students you see on campus in summer may not be the same students who attend year-round. At Mt. Holyoke a few years ago, the campus was full of men.</p>

<p>sent from my smartphone with my fat fingers</p>

4735

<p>my3gr8boys–I do think you could visit Cornell during the summer. Given the less than ideal weather, a decent number of students elect to stay at Cornell one summer during their undergrad years. Also, back in my day, there was less housing available so many students were in twelve month leases with landlords, given them a ‘free’ place to live during the summer. (There are many more new dorms and sophomores living on campus now than there were in the 80s.) Cornell runs those “Cornell Summer” classes for high school students, bringing more people to campus. Engineering students participating in co-op are required to attend classes the summer between soph & jr years, so again, more students on campus. I lived up there the summer between my jr & sr years and the campus was not empty. If your son does not play a fall sport and his HS starts late August, you could visit Cornell immediately before HS resumes. The freshmen moved in last year on August 17th, so the campus would be full that next week.</p>

<p>Lafayette & Lehigh–just visited them yesterday. I need to conduct more research. Lafayette has a beautiful campus, but unfortunately, it may be off my son’s list as he is interested in studying business and they really only offer Econ. Very friendly students, with that typical LAC feel, although he was put off by the ‘Lax Bro’ tour guide, who wasn’t a lacrosse player but seems to have the cadence down pat. </p>

<p>I did not know about Lehigh’s party reputation, so will need to inquire a bit. I would not have thought that, based on the tour. A couple of students from our HS enroll at Laf & Lehigh each year but I confess that I do not have the inside scoop. We have far too many enroll at Bucknell ED and not all recruited athletes. That was another pretty campus. </p>

<p>You mentioned 4 + 1 options. Lehigh tour guide mentioned that he will be staying on for a free fifth year b/c he maintained a GPA over 3.7. (I think that was the cut-off.) He was a business major and will obtain a masters in Accounting. I do not think that fifth year free offer was restricted to business students. Obviously Cornell offers many options for grad studies. I knew an engineer who plowed straight through and obtained BS Eng, M Eng and MBA. </p>

<p>Yes, we visited the three you mentioned plus Villanova, F&M and Dickinson, so it was a long tour of PA.</p>

<p>Eyemamom—thanks for clarification of accepted vs enrolled. It is just misleading as the schools are not always consistent. Both data points are useful though as really the accepted stats are the ones we should be concerning ourselves with.</p>

<p>Must get my act together for tomorrow morning’s Boston tour.</p>

4736

<p>Well, we had today and tomorrow down as potential visit days. It’s snowing. Again. Predictions range from 4-8 inches with high winds, lowering visibilities and creating black ice on the roadways. D and the weather gods seem to be buds.</p>

4737

<p>Where are you ordinarylives? Snow in mid-April? Spring is in full swing here in the Northwest. </p>

<p>We just had a family sitdown with the master calendar to plan our summer. We’ll take two weeks in late August to do a road trip through California to see schools. We’re looking primarily for safeties at this point, but planning to fit in USC if DD’s PSAT score was good enough for NMF. I wish we had had more time on the East Coast – but spring break was only a week and we still managed to fit in six schools. At this point, it is what it is. She will just have to apply and visit if she gets accepted.</p>

<p>DD has been preparing for Mock Trial Nationals in Indianapolis on a daily basis so she’s been up until the wee hours doing homework. Last weekend was brutal with the ACT and two volunteer commitments on Saturday. I don’t know how she does it! </p>

<p>I’m wondering if any parent has experience witht he Literature SAT Subject test? I’m planning on signing her up for Math 2, Chemistry and wondering how tough the Literature test is, since they don’t take AP Lit until senior year. Is there a reading list they should have under their belts? DD has been moving through many of the classics and has a strong undertanding but I’m just wondering if there’s something I’m missing.</p>

4738

<p>DS and I leave in about an hour to visit 'Bama tomorrow. Tried to convince him to look at Rhodes while we were down that way, and he wouldn’t consider it…because he will not consider any school that HE has not heard of! Grrr… Still don’t have the promised itinerary for our visit tomorrow (lunch with student, meeting with prof, etc), but crossing my fingers that it comes through this afternoon and that DS will fall in love with this safety! :wink: Super sad that after a week of beautiful weather, the weather in Tuscaloosa tomorrow is cloudy with a high of 61*. :(</p>

<p>I have no idea how I convinced DS to take tomorrow off. He told me yesterday that he has an AP Bio test when he returns on Monday, and I’m completely shocked that he has not refused to go because of that…</p>

4739

<p>I live with God’s Frozen Chosen, the area that used to be covered with prarie - the Dakotas, Nebraska, MN, Iowa. I think we’re all getting slushed today. And yeah, snow this late, though not typical, doesn’t qualify as a “freak storm.”</p>

4740

<p>go2Mom - my older D took the Lit subject test and did well. She had taken AP Lang (not Lit) and felt prepared. Your D can do the practice test on the SAT site and see what she thinks (although I’ve read that the actual test is harder). I don’t think there was any expectation of having read from a reading list, although she will need to be familiar with literary terms.</p>

<p>A veteran parent on the HS class of 2012 recommended not to take 3 subject tests on the same day. She also recommended not to take Math II without studying (even for a strong math student). My older D did 2 tests on the same day and said 3 would have been too much especially in the middle of studying for AP exams.</p>

<p>Today D is taking a mock AP Chem exam. Can’t believe it is that time already. </p>

<p>Collegefortwins - hope you enjoy your Bama visit. I went with D1 to visit a year ago and was very impressed with the campus and especially the honors dorms!! D1 considered going there.</p>

<p>We also did the master summer plan (very complicated this summer!!). D2 finally discussed college visits - she is very stressed out whenever the word “college” is mentioned (or ACT/SAT). We will visit Duke, UNC, Furman, and Emory. She hasn’t been to that part of the country since she was very young, so she is looking forward to traveling.</p>