Well, D is waiting on one more school, a super duper reach but has heard back from all the others. 3 deferrals ( including her personal favorite), and 10 acceptances of which she has declined 3 so far. Fingers crossed. I really hate deferrals. Good luck to everyone on this journey and congratulations to all.
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Temple says they will have admitted student visits coming soon. He’s doing a virtual thing for admitted students there next weekend. No plans to drive across PA or even half way across PA. I don’t think he’d get to see much more than the outside of buildings now. And no plans to fly again to MN…overnights definitely would make it easier and he’s super resistant to the virtual and social media options. Any of these truly would be great, or potentially great for him so I’m trying to mature as a mother and let it go.
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Dang deferrals! Fingers crossed for your D!
D has one, too. But her midterm report shows her grades on her final exams. And she did horribly on one. She ended up with a B- in the class, but that final exam will make the deferral school a no-go!
Lol; so hard sometimes, right?
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Sorry about the financial woes at JMU, they are not known for their largesse. Have heard great things about Miami of Ohio so fingers crossed it is a hit. Good luck.
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SO hard sometimes! 
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Yes, I am trying to encourage her to really get excited about 2 or 3 places where she has been accepted because I don’t want her to pin her hopes on the deferrals turning into acceptances. Who knows this year?
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Yes, we knew JMU was a longshot for money, but getting into honors college got her hopes up!
She is in everywhere so far, and waiting on UGA, Syracuse and UConn - the last 2 are her favorites but we need money to make them work. Not gonna lie - I’m worried!!! Hoping she loves Miami!
The only schools she’s turned down is Susquehanna because it’s too small. Rowan is still hanging in as her affordable safety, but she’s not excited about it. We shall see!
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Our update is pretty much a holding pattern.
S21 has heard from 8 of his 10 schools, and the one he chooses will likely come from one of these 8 acceptances. Still waiting to hear from 2 RD in March, but they are reaches (and we’re not clear they’d be the best choices for him, so we’re not waiting impatiently nor anxious about the wait). But S21 doesn’t feel ready to make a choice yet without trying to see a few more of his schools. He’s seen 2 of the 10 and only 1 of his current favorite 3 schools.
He declined one offer officially and has said Wooster, Wheaton, and Clark are the ones he’s most focused on. He also feels there is a lot he likes about Knox and Beloit but is prioritizing the other three for now. We’ve already seen Wooster so we’re hoping we can see both Wheaton and Clark in March - it’s helpful that these 2 are so close together. It remains to be seen, though, whether we’ll be able to get to MA from GA. We have tours booked at both as well as flights and hotels reserved, and we know we need to do a COVID test before going, but we’re still unsure as to whether it will really happen.
I think if the trip happens, he’ll probably choose among those top three (unless he hates both Clark and Wheaton for some reason and decides he wants to go see Knox and/or Beloit). I don’t really think that will happen, but we’re not declining any of his other acceptances until after that visit. Wooster and Wheaton are about the same cost for us. Clark is more, so we’ll have to see if he loves it enough to make the cost difference worth it.
@lisabees what is your thinking on how to time your request to Knox…after RD decisions go out? Have you negotiated merit with any of your other kids? I don’t think we’ll be doing so - I don’t think Clark would give more without him getting their application-only scholarship which he wouldn’t get.
Mostly S21 isn’t trying to decide right now since he’s hoping the trip will be helpful (without being able to go inside buildings, eat on campus, sit in on classes, etc., I don’t know how helpful it will be, but at least it’s something)! He has some virtual events coming up at all of his top 5, so maybe that will help. I don’t know. I think he could probably be happy at any of them in terms of the vibe/culture, and it’s going to come down more to location and the academic programs (which we’ve dug into quite a bit). Hopefully we’ll have a decision by early April?
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Your daughter has had great success with lots of good choices so far. Hope it works out for her. Money a big consideration here too.
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@nichols51 Crossing fingers that your trip happens! Your S has plenty of wonderful choices. 
D basically has one choice other than being a commuter and that’s Kalamazoo. She’s connected with a student there and that has made all the difference. I highly recommend that everyone do that, especially since visits are rare these days.
As far as timing, D will write a letter to Knox with Kalamazoo’s package for comparison in a month or month and a half - when Knox may be a little more worried about their yield numbers. Knox is always on the NACAC list so they may be receptive.
Regarding my older kids…We have only asked for more merit from one school and we did receive it. It was only a few thousand dollars but it was enough to make it possible. I knew beforehand they were a school that would likely do that. It was Oberlin, btw, and 10 years ago. They were also a school that was super, super generous with f/a when our family situation changed.
But I’m not sure about visits for D. That will also make a difference. And what should the timing be for that? I just don’t know yet.
D hasn’t joined any FB groups. Have any of your kids?
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I’m glad that connecting with a student has been helpful for your D and that Kalamazoo has come through with an affordable package.
Your thought on the NACAC list and yield impacting Knox’s willingness to negotiate makes sense.
Our thought on timing of our trip was mainly focused on S21’s spring break and on the weather maybe warming up a tiny bit so that we might be more likely to see some students outside more on campus than we would now for northern schools. Later is better weather-wise, but we also wanted to do it early enough that there would be time to rethink and maybe visit Knox or Beloit still if the MA visits don’t leave him happy with his options. But of course we’re also trying to time things in regards to COVID spikes and variants, and it’s hard to know…also, in our case, one school just added guided tours starting March 15th, so that works out for us…I mean, if it ends up working out for us…who knows?! 
S21 has not wanted to join any facebook groups for students. I’ve joined them for parents, though, and I’ve found it helpful. Has Kalamazoo offered one like that for parents? I was hoping S21 would join a few and at least lurk, but he hasn’t. Maybe once he chooses a school?
@NJWrestlingmom Wow. I am really surprised and disappointed to hear about lack of merit, despite being accepted into the Honors College - especially as an out of state student! What does she want to study?
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Congratulations to everyone and good luck on appeals!
I can’t get my daughter to join any groups and she’s not super interested in virtual admitted student events, although we’ve done a few. I don’t know how she’s going to decide, or if it really matters that much really. I’m tired of nagging, you know?
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She applied as psychology, which I think might be the problem with merit at JMU. They seem to be by department and most look like business majors. Ironically, she’s debating switching to business or trying to double major.
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So hard to know how things are going to look re: COVID. Grrrr. Wise move on your timing. I know firsthand how the weather can affect a visit in a good way and bad way. I recall taking my SD to Beloit. It was freezing, icy, snowy. Downright dangerous to drive. We get to campus and she knew. The campus and the weather. All of it gave her a “this is it” feeling. And it had the opposite effect on me. So you just never know lol!
You KNOW I’m itching to find out where your son lands. Keep us updated!
As far as I know, Kalamazoo doesn’t have a parents’ FB group. If anyone has insight or is considering Kalamazoo, let’s connect! Message me and I’ll organize a way we can all chat.
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Hi there! Kalamazoo does seem to have a small private parents group on FB. It looks like it is for families whose kids are enrolled and/or definitely planning to attend — you have to show proof or be invited— so I haven’t attempted to join yet but there is something … I’m interested if you are putting together a group of potential K parents.
We are still in a holding pattern here. D21 is taking part in some of the virtual events for Kalamazoo this week. I think she just wants to get a sense of whether she could see herself fitting in there. She’s rather shy and not a huge fan of Zoom/online gatherings so we’ll see how it goes. D21 likes the open curriculum at K and wants to be closer to home — but not too close 
— so I think if she has a positive experience, it will likely finalize her decision. If not, I’m guessing she will give Beloit and some of her other accepted schools another look. (Earlham recently came back with an unsolicited extra 8k per year of merit aid which basically puts them in line with K and Beloit’s offers but it is not at the top of her list because of the location.)
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@auroranights We’ll be attending some Kzoo events this week, too. D is currently in a virtual Lawrence class. She’s ever hopeful despite the D+ on her AP Comp Gov final exam that shows up on her midyear progress report (and, yes, she asked her counselor if they can just show the final grade in the class and get rid of the final exam grade; no luck).
Later today, Knox also has their virtual admitted event. And I’ll be doing the Kzoo “President’s Welcome” today. Busy day!
What a delightful surprise from Earlham! Congrats, even if she isn’t considering it. I visited in 2018 (with my SD) and didn’t even suggest it to D.
I’m glad your D has an option that’s fairly close to home. I wish mine did - I’m fine with a 7-8 hour drive, but two plane rides and then a drive seem like a little too much. The trimester system at least decreases travel during the year.
Sending your daughter lots of good vibes for Lawrence. I hope that she gets in if it is her first choice! You would think that colleges could extend some grace this year, out of all years, especially if the area of concern is one exam … I understand your transportation worries. My husband is originally from the Philly area and we have made that trip from Michigan many times. It is a hike.
D21 attended the president’s address and took part in a virtual psych class at Kalamazoo today. She liked the class. We’ll see how the rest of the week goes.
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@auroranights Hmmm…how did she sign up for a class? Glad your D liked it. I’m not surprised! I was impressed with the President’s address. Not surprisingly, we did the Knox visit afterward and, while not as eloquent or as heartfelt, the President there said almost the same exact things.
How is a girl from Philly supposed to choose when they all say the same things?
Big shout out to your husband!
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