<p>For us, DD13 was not ready for college visits until midway through Junior year. In fact, her sophomore year we happened to be near a campus for a University that I thought was a real possibility due to a skating competition and she refused to even set foot on campus. At that point, she had no interest (and was down right hostile to the idea) – I think she didn’t want to rush through HS and the prospect of going away from home was scary. </p>
<p>We dragged my DS16 on D’s big trip Junior spring so he has already seen a few campuses and I think for him, if we happen to be near a campus for vacation or whatever, I will encourage him to visit but won’t push it yet. </p>
<p>It all worked out for D - she was pretty clear on what type of school she wanted after her initial trip (we visited mostly LACs but also a bigger city school to get a sense), she spent the summer before senior year at a University program which solidified her thoughts and she was pretty well set with her list by September of senior year. We ended up seeing about a dozen schools, she applied to 8 (one of which was a late addition that she hadn’t visited), was rejected from 1 reach, waitlisted at 2 and was accepted at 5. We agonized between the final 2, made a decision and then everything changed when she decided this past June to take a gap year. LOL.</p>
<p>My S16 got dragged along on all the college visits with D13. The funny thing is he is rather intent on going to the very first college we went to which happens to be my alma mater. After dropping D13 off at college last weekend, he has decided it wouldn’t be a bad place either. I’m not sure if he will bother with any others!</p>
<p>Take him to another college for the heck of it and see if he likes that one too. :p</p>
<p>How many colleges did he visit and how long ago?</p>
<p>We took the older D’12 to colleges and all of went as family to about 12colleges in 2009 and 2010. Took D’16 to couple of presentations and she had to raise her hand when some of them ask if anyone visited their college. There were 5 colleges last night and she raised the hand 3 times. Not sure how much she remembers or paid attention to. :D</p>
<p>He visited 7 colleges the summer before he started high school. While he liked some of the other ones, he says he’s pretty much made up his mind where he’s going. Of course as the time gets closer, we will encourage him to consider some other schools too, but this one would be a great choice for him.</p>
<p>We only took DD’13 to one college visit. She went with her middle school to see JMU & UVA in 7th and 8th grades. We went back to see UVA in her senior year and she was able to see Dartmouth on a Fly-in Opportunity that fall. She was applying to some reach schools and didn’t want to visit unless/ until she got it. </p>
<p>We are taking DD’13 to college today. We we go back up to visit her for parents weekend, we will bring DS’16 (and DD’19). They will get to see her school and we plan to visit UPenn on the same trip.</p>
<p>Haystack - that would be one more reason to like ISU over Iowa. Haha. </p>
<p>I hope your son is enjoying it there and hopefully mine will be joining him in 3 years. He’s interested in computers so it would be a good choice.</p>
<p>S went with us on pretty much all the college visits with D (class of 2011). He has a fair idea from those visits on what he likes and what he doesn’t. He might have been really young, but he’s the one who paid the most attention to everything on those visits - he has an amazing recall of the campuses. The biggest problem though right now for us is figuring out how/when to schedule campus visits for him. With him in boarding school, time is incredibly difficult to find.</p>
<p>Interestingly, on the prep school parents forum, they have a thread where they are discussing if prep school kids will overwhelming prefer universities when compared to LACs - just to get away from the whole small school experience. We talked to S (whose prep school is in the middle of nowhere!) and he did say he wanted a bigger, easier access to city/town kind of environment for college. But he still wants a nice looking campus :)</p>
<p>We never saw a single LAC. so D2016 does not understand the concept at all. I was explaining about the small size etc and her reaction was, but that is smaller than my (3500 size) public school.</p>
<p>my S’16 has no clue what he wants----he says he may want to do film or be a history teacher…I suggested making documentary’s…that kind-of hits both…but, how do you even go about finding schools that would help him do that??? any thoughts? (keeping in mind…he may change his mind next week…!)—but, if I could find a school or two that would get him motivated…that might be good…</p>
<p>Oh goody, something I know something about (…sort of).</p>
<p>My DS '12 is majoring in film, so I’ve read a lot about film programs. The most famous for documentary film is Stanford, but that’s only a master’s program. However, most of the major film schools will have some documentary film classes. And, you can always do a film minor with a history major (I think that might make a lot of sense undergrad for a documentary person). So, then I’d look for a strong History department foremost.</p>
<p>If your son is still interested in a few months, you could look at summer camps/programs for high school students that are for documentary film making. Interlochen and Digital Media Academy are two that come to mind. I know CSSSA (in California) has as a component of it’s program a documentary short. </p>
<p>Anyway, PM me if you want more info on the film making angle.</p>
<p>So D2016 wants to go to Europe with her school this year. I want her to go, but it worries me letting her go this far without us. But I will most likely let her because it’s an experience I want her to have; I just want everything to go well (of course). </p>
<p>She is going to start taking classes at a local museum; if she likes it then she might pursue working with a mentor at the museum.</p>
<p>In regards to college visits, we plan on taking daughter on visits next semester. First, more local visits and then we will be visiting DC area schools. </p>
<p>Hope everything is going smoothly for everyone.</p>
<p>semiLucky - sounds like a great experience for her if you can manage it.</p>
<p>So far so good with S. Don’t hear from him too often, but when he last called, he said things were going well. He’s very involved in several different ECs and has a good group of friends - so is sometimes too busy to call mom :)</p>
<p>@semilucky - my S16 went on a school trip to Turkey last spring (as a 14 year old freshman). Talk about far away. He had an amazing time. He talked about it for weeks (and not just about hanging out with his friends LOL) and even now will bring up things he saw/ate/learned. The thing I have found with these school trips is that typically they are extremely well organized and supervised so if you can swing it, I would highly recommend it (and I was skeptical about how valuable an 8-day trip could be and the value for the $). S is already talking about saving up $ so that he can go again as a senior.</p>
<p>My older D13 has been away 3 weeks on her gap year (skating in Disney on Ice). I believe her couple of experiences in semi-independent travel (a school trip junior year and a pre-college summer program at a University where she flew home by herself) have contributed to a pretty smooth transition for her. She has been working very hard and has made it through the opening of the show last weekend. So far, so good. She is in pretty regular touch with us but sounds happy and is managing to feed herself.</p>
<p>Very quiet out here for the past week or so. We are headed to parents’ weekend at S’s school this weekend. Excited to be seeing him again. He’s been busy - hasn’t called for a couple of weeks. But he has been texting/sending some emails, so I kind of know what’s going on. Meeting his teachers while we are there and attending a few of his concerts. Should be a fun time.</p>
<p>I need to figure out how to schedule his tests while he is at boarding school. I am sure they offer the ACT/SATs right there at school - just have to figure out what dates will work best. I think he’s really going to like NOT being home while he has to take these tests - H drove D crazy asking her about her preparation for these tests :)</p>
<p>Thanks for the input arisamp and momofzag. Out of the two of us, I think its me who needs to start preparing for the separation. </p>
<p>@momofzag- You daughter’s gap year sounds fantastic. I always wondered what it would be like to travel with a show. </p>
<p>@arisamp- Have fun this weekend. Your H sounds like me with my D. She always knows when I am about to bring it up. I always start my sentence with the word “So,…”</p>
<p>okay…so, I think my DS’16 is growing up…he came home today saying “I will need coffee in the morning because I forgot to do a lab that was due…and everyone says each section will take at least half and hour…I will be up till one o’clock…it’s my fault…I totally forgot about it this weekend…”…
so, do I praise him for acknowledging his forgetfulness, the fact that he plans to stay up late to do it…do I actually make him coffee!!!<br>
i’ll be lucky if he gets straight B’s this marking period…but, if he actually learns to take responsibility for his work/lack of work…we are heading in the right direction!! :)</p>
<p>did he get it finished? Kids at my son’s school stay up late doing projects all the time. My son can’t go past 10 pm, or he’ll be asleep on his books. Younger brother, now he’s a night owl. He’s the one who won’t be able to take 8 am classes at college (or maybe 9 am too).</p>
<p>yup! and he went to bed around 12:30am (which is earlier than he thought, but later than he ever stays up “for school”)…—I hope he remembered he has a history quiz first period… :(</p>