@Mom2aphysicsgeek With your ability to analyze, I don’t think there’s anything about MSU I can tell you that would be something you don’t already know. I only know that the 4 people in my family who went there for undergrad are all successful, and more importantly, really happy individuals who still have a ton of school spirit and fondness for the school. Not very helpful for someone looking to go to grad school :). Was it the Avis commercial: “We Try Harder!”, which seems to be their motto, since they are (perceived to be) in the shadow of UofM. Very student-friendly.
@MotherOfDragons Ha! I did not look at inflation, but I believe she paid about $500 per semester for tuition, so I think I can safely stick with my assessment. We, too, are getting mail later and later. 7pm last night.
@phoenixmomof2 Sorry for the deferral. @thshadow Congrats on RH! D17 liked the M-F ration there, as well as the academics.
OK, I’ll chime in with finals: I have no idea, except for AP classes, for which no final is necessary. Not sure how they do that, but it means 1 final for D17 this year. If the kids don’t take the AP test, their grade bump is only .5 instead of 1.0.
Good luck top @ohmyiamtired’s S! It’s great you’ve delurked before your decision! Lots of vibes sent your way.
@phoenixmomof2 hugs for the deferral but you still have hope!
@stencils the volunteer hours are a requirement for NHS. She only needs 10 per quarter so it’s not much. Florida has bright futures which gives partial scholarship money if you have a certain gpa, sat/act and at least 100 volunteer hours but she has over 100 so she S set if she chooses to stay in state.
@ohmyiamtired lots of positive good thoughts sending your way. Glad you shared.
Good luck everyone still waiting on EA/ED (I am waiting too…Thursday can’t come soon enough)
Congrats on all the new acceptances and scholarships! Good thoughts going out to those waiting on acceptance info and scholarship processes! Hugs to all the deferrals and/or rejections - These DC will get through this and end up where they should be!
@RightCoaster S17 has not officially visited any of the 3 he has been accepted to. We have a visit scheduled to Mines, he has been on UML’s campus multiple times for S12. We are planning a trip to visit the NY/NJ schools he has been accepted or applied to - probably in February.
@Ynotgo To add to the finals thing - when D was a Junior - if they got a 4 or 5 on the AP exams, they didn’t have to take the final. Kind of a nice perk.
@soxmom and @phoenixmomof2 Sorry about the deferrals, I hope for good news to come your way soon!
@RightCoaster We (well I am) anxiously waiting on Northeastern too though D is borderline (I think) so I’m half expecting a deferral. Our school does not rank. We are a bit more hopeful for an acceptance on another EA school as being a “safety” So fingers crossed for Thursday!!!
@phoenixmomof2 and @soxmom I’m sorry about the disappointment, but we are all rooting for good news a little later.
Volunteer hours I think I mentioned this before, but S’s HS has a requirement for a few volunteer hours to graduate. It’s not in the handbook or on the website, but fortunately S heard a rumor and asked his GC about it, so he knocked it out earlier this semester. I agree with @Mom2aphysicsgeek – A requirement for volunteering is not altruistic or teaching anything, especially considering the types of “volunteering” the kids (or in some cases, their parents) do. There’s also an annual goal for volunteer hours and if you meet that goal all four years of HS, you get a silver cord at graduation, and I believe those hours cannot also be counted for NHS required hours. S helps at a lot of things but has never had his hours officially recorded until he found out about the grad requirement.
@IABooks we were just having this conversation about Volunteering yesterday. D has some requirements as well and clearly stated how the “mandatory” volunteering is almost embarrassing because the kids have to get someone to “sign off” on it. She’s done plenty of other volunteering on her own that makes her feel good that she’s giving something without asking for something in return.
** Volunteer Hours ** Our school is the rare few that requires 100 service hours to graduate. DS has not kept track of them so needs 68 more hours by April to graduate. >:P Working at a thrifty store all day is what he will be doing during the break. >:)
Congratulations @thshadow! <:-P <:-P But, what about Purdue? =))
Congratulations to others with acceptances! <:-P <:-P
HUGS to dererrals =((
GOOD LUCKS to ones waiting :-bd :-bd
How do schools use AP exam results to determine grades/whether kids need to take finals? Don’t AP results come out in July?
For my kids, for an AP class having a final was up to the teacher for the class. Some gave them (or a class project) but most do not. For other classes, seniors take finals.
Thanks everyone for the good thoughts about Notre Dame. S17 was bummed for maybe a half hour. Wife was bummed all night! I had come to accept that while my son is exceptional, the tippy top tier colleges are a serious reach for him and that is OK with me (and him). He does have 5 acceptances at great schools and he has 5 more applications out there with one more reach school (Vandy). I am really excited for his future!
QOTD: Have your kids received any unique responses in their acceptances?
Dd received an acceptance package yesterday that had her grinning from ear to ear. It included a hand-written note from her AO with congratulations written in Russian. She had interviewed with this AO, so she knows she doesn’t know Russian. She thought it was neat that she made an effort to write it.
@Mom2aphysicsgeek Nothing unusual in acceptances yet. I don’t see that happening, but I think it’s pretty cool. Congrats to your D, I hope she’s interested in attending too!
@MACncheez It’s Trinity, so it is only feasible if she gets their Tower Scholarship. So, yes, she is very interested in the school. The AO definitely made a serious impression on her when they Skyped, and it is the school that she has connected with the most during the process bc of the AO. That note was just an affirmation of her impression.
Thanks for the positive vibes! @carachel2, he was nominated last August and has gone through 2 group and one individual interview. This last one is a group with the admissions staff and is scheduled to last from 3-7pm tonight.
@Mom2aphysicsgeek That is awesome! Some AOs really get it. That extra effort really makes a lasting impression. (Interestingly, there is discussion on another thread that AOs don’t want to be bothered by students…I couldn’t disagree more with that one). Anyway, D hasnt received anything nearly as unusual as that. But she has received many handwritten notes from AOs and deans. She is loving the special attention. She received a nice note from UKy yesterday. The schools that have reached out to her the most are currently at the top of the list.
@Mom2aphysicsgeek How fun! Sometimes we don’t realize how the smallest effort can have a major impact. That must have been a great thing for your daughter to see on her letter.
Not much chatter on here about University of Houston, but S got his scholarship letter last night. $5,000/yr AES scholarship plus in-state tuition waiver. He was accepted to their Honors College a few weeks ago as well. This makes UH cheaper than our in-state option and would put him very close to his beloved grandfather. MIL passed away earlier this year leaving grandpa alone in Houston. S being there would be very helpful, but would be a sacrifice. It would certainly entice us to visit Houston alot more than we already do. Not sure how this will shake out.
@STEM2017 Congrats to your S. I got my PhD from UH! DH and I met there. Houston was fun at that time of our lives, but we’re Northerners and didn’t really like the hot/humid weather…
