QOTD 1: Either H or I (or both) have sat in on the individual non-interview sessions. We let S do all the talking, but we’re curious too. And we were at earlier stages of the process–clearly still exploring options, not finalizing any choices. So far, most of the folks have actively included us in the conversation and even brought up more “parental” concerns that I’m sure would not have been mentioned if we weren’t in the room. No one has looked askance at us or anything. Now that we’re in the final stages, we’ll have to think about whether we should stay out of it. Interested to see other responses.
@MotherOfDragons Sorry that you are dealing with UMD problems. We had similar problems but luckily it was early and I was able to get involved and get them fixed. But it was no easy feat. They had all his info, but weren’t connecting it to his app. Lots of phone calls. Very discouraging. Hoping it all works out for your D.
@STEM2017 I think you should wait until you are accepted. The only caveat is if you aren’t accepted anywhere you might want to talk to a likely school just to see what supporting paperwork you’ll need so you can get it all together.
As a true Libertarian I am a staunch proponent of drug decriminalization because to me it just adds additional problems to something that is a social problem. If 1/10th of what is spent dealing with the criminal issues was spent on helping with the social issues then we’d be better off as a society.
D had an overnight weekend a month ago and it went well. I encourage her to do all the overnights she can to see what the school is like and to get an idea of what it’ll be like next year away from home.
Urban crime - panhandling isn’t restricted to just urban campuses. There were lots of panhandlers in Chapel Hill when I was there in the 80’s. I saw the same types of characters in Northampton when visiting there. I think some college towns are liberal enclaves and must be alluring places for those types.
No. We did the tour together at UA, but when she went and talked to the student and the professor I wandered off and amused myself. H did the same for the other tours, although he and Grandpa actually didn’t even walk with her and hung out at the back of the pack while she was more towards the front.
Generally if she’s in a situation where she’s talking, we’re not there.
@STEM2017 - Check the financial aid websites for each school. Some have additional forms. Notre Dame, for one, has a form called “Change in Circumstances”. You complete it to show 2016/17 changes. Other schools may have a similar form. I personally would NOT wait. The schools will be processing way more applications in the Spring. I think you’ll get more attention now. If the websites don’t have additional forms posted, then call and ask. Good luck!
@MotherOfDragons I hope the UMD people are nicer to you than when I went to the UMD information session several years ago for my older son. Someone asked if the November 1 was a hard deadline for getting EVERYTHING in. She responded, “if tens of thousands of people can get their application in by November 1, so can you.”
At that point, I told my son that his new deadline was October 1 so we would have a month to deal with any mistakes. Good luck.
QOTD1: S17 and I went to CMU and Pitt just this past weekend for a long weekend. At CMU it’s the weekend overnight event and the Admissions Director had open office hours or you could schedule with an AO. Parents were welcomed to attend. They also set up information sessions with each department as panel discussions, meetings with the Honors Scholar program director and then then one-one-one discussions with the head of each major within a college. S17 had alot of questions but I also had many questions so I let S17 have control of the discussion and when all of his questions were answered, I asked a few of my own. S17 had follow up questions/ clarification of answers received to my questions and it was a very good discussion. I think if it’s clearly not an interview, it’s fair game for the parents to go. It’s a continuation of our research.
@Engineering713 yeah, I’m really hoping that this isn’t systemic behavior for UMD-the wonky website, the “we don’t know where the CS building is” tour guide (H and D17 found it on their own), and now your story. H’s assertion that he felt like it was a “nobody will know or care if you slip through the cracks” kind of school is not diminished by the latest events.
QOTD: We’ve only done one on-site interview (tied to an individualized campus tour)–D met with the AO first 1:1 while I waited outside, then I was invited to join to ask any questions I might have. Other interviews were conducted locally, and D met with AOs by herself.
With S14 we visited Rice on a Friday; he was interested in Engineering and while they offered a tour specifically for engineering, it didn’t happen on Fridays. Their website however encouraged to just ask at Admissions and that something could be arranged. I was proactive (it was a long way from home) and contacted the department in advance to make arrangements. When we went over to engineering, a kindly gentleman called my son forward and I came along (expecting a brief “show around” of the department). Well, it was really awkward, it seemed more like a full-on interview of son (with me watching!). I felt really bad since my son had no idea that this was going to happen. So wish that the fellow would have just said he wanted to talk with my son alone for a bit…expectation and boundaries would have been clearer for everyone.
Just got portal information from UMass (application submitted 10/31). Regular Decision notification will happen “through April”. Sure doesn’t leave a lot of time to make a decision by May 1!
@klinska A few of my S’s apps have April decision dates. Seriously? I’m hoping to be done with this whole process by February. Those April decisions/packages will have to be VERY enticing.
@MotherOfDragons Please keep in mind that my older son who is now a sophomore at UMD absolutely loves it. You just have to get past these admissions issues and then you never deal with them again for the four years. I just wonder if they know how many people are turned off by their clunky website and just go elsewhere.
@vandyeyes Oh, no! That story made me think of our visit to Oklahoma. S was meeting with the director of an academic department, and after shaking hands all around, he ushered S toward a meeting room. H and I kind of hung back in the hallway, but the director specifically asked us to come in too. It is nice when people make their expectations clear.
@showmetheMAC, ;))
My kids said “no red states,” so we aren’t having that issue. I think it matters a ton where the college is located and how politically-minded you kid is. First off, no offense to people living in red states – I lived in the south from birth to age 24 and most of the people there are good folks, though often with different politics and religion from me. Some can be pushy and some can be downright offensive, creepy, and/or really awful. I mostly lived in small towns and definitely felt “different.”
When H and I lived on a small army base in Georgia, lots of soldiers had bumber stickers with “Clinton: Not My President.” This majorly pissed off H because Clinton was, as everyone knew, commander-in-chief. How long would those soldiers have gotten away with “General Soandso: Not My Commander.” Yeah, for as long as it took them to back out of the driveway and be reported by a neighbor. I encountered the most racism I ever saw when living on a large Army base in NC (not within the military).
My brother-in-law was a teacher in SC and said the few liberals in town gathered together and forgot about any intra-party differences in order to be a supportive minority. (Side-note: BIL taught the children of “Mr. Hiking-the-Appalachian Trail,” whose real name I can’t even remember but I think he was governor).
But it will be different in a big, progressive city. Georgia Tech was more conservative than Atlanta (in the eighties!) Austin is going to be a far cry from Dallas. I would look up the political demographics for your D’s schools. And I have to say I’d be even more careful with a minority child (like my atheist LGBT D).