Not that it matters for your particular situation but, for those out there who have school profiles with little info, maybe one can request that the GC recommendations speak to more details? Maybe a GC could flush out the picture of where a student fits with their GPA and rigor in more detail if the school profile is lacking. I think most colleges that would care about this stuff require a GC rec.
@evergreen5 Thank you ā that helps a lot, especially with the small LACs D is considering.
@AlwaysMoving Now that you mention it, this would explain a lot at our school!
I agree that Naviance can be a useful tool, but Dās GC works with 400-500 students and has provided no support or additional information. Naviance also says all Ivies are a match for D, which just isnāt right, and could really set kids/families who donāt know better up for huge disappointment. Still, it gives some sense of where D falls in the grand scheme of things. The best use of it so far has been when she said she didnāt think sheād get in anywhere, even the places weāre putting on her likely list. She still doesnāt think anything is guaranteed but felt much better when she looked at the graphs. I think she had believed all kids from her school had pretty much the same grades and scores, so it was helpful for her to see there is a range.
Her getting the test scores has everything to do with āprivilegeā - this is the definition of it. She has parents who are involved and know enough about the process to plan a testing schedule a year in advance and have a āplan for her college admission process.ā This might be a normal thing to you, but outside of the CC world, this is a huge privilege.
Our HS is very mixed demographically, and Iām sure that most of the class of 21 has not tested yet, including my D. Colorado uses the SAT for their standardized testing, so the entire class takes it in class in April. Obviously that did not happen this year. Most students donāt take it earlier because, they either have parents who donāt know much or anything about college admissions (a good chunk of them), or like me, their parents figure thereās no reason to pay $60 to take it when they will take it for free. My D is privileged to have parents who are involved and made sure she registered for the August SAT.
I do agree that your D should not be penalized for this and colleges should be TO and not test-blind.
Iām definitely not a 1%er or even close. But my kids are definitely privileged. They donāt work during the school year not because we couldnāt use the $$, but because I want them focusing on academics and ECās. S19 is an Ivy athlete, I saw the potential early, and I was talking to people and making sure I got him everywhere he needed to be to compete or get coaching since 6th grade, which is around the last time I took a really nice vacation that didnāt involve his sport. I donāt even want to think about the hours I have spent on CC that have mostly been to benefit him or D21. Even D25 set her 8th grade schedule for next year in a way to set her up for the right classes in HS. I seriously doubt any of her classmates have discussed with their dad what they need to do to make sure that they have good options post HS.
The privilege is different, but it is definitely there.
@MorseLewis I ordered the EGās book (didnāt read it all) and my son took his June bootcamp. Then I ordered Toorās book and read most of that. For what itās worth I much prefer Toorās more straightforward approach. EG I think might be good for kids who are really lost about what to write about. Much of the EG book/bookcamp did not apply to my sonās situation - no big challenges, knows what he wants to major in - so precious time was used to cover that. Iām also not sure he got much of value out of the EG exercises. However, EG has some good tips, most of which you can probably look over on his website. Both books have solid summaries of what not to do. We will look at EGās supplemental essays tips probably.
S18 is home for the weekend and has been lying on the couch in the basement all day. He got a phone call this afternoon that a guy he has been living with just tested positive. He said he was really tired today, and when I checked he has fever.
So thatās awesome. Was able to schedule a test tomorrow, but itās a 2 hour drive. Will try tomorrow morning to get into our regular doctor.
@dadof4kids Oh my. Thatās discouraging news for you and your son. Ugh. Iām sorry to hear this. And I can only imagine your anxiety as you wait for him to get tested tomorrow. I hope the results are available sooner than later.
@dadof4kids So sorry for this stressful situation. Hoping your son get results back quickly.
@dadof4kids I hope your soon feels better soon. Are test available at urgent care in your area? They are here and no appt needed.
Iām sorry too! Fingers crossed for a quick test and in the meantime I hope he stays in the basement! 
@dadof4kids ugh, sorry. I hope youāre able to find a closer place for a test, that you get results in a reasonable amount of time, and that the rest of the family stays healthy. Here (metro Atlanta) it is increasingly difficult to get a test and appointments seem to be required pretty much everywhere near me.
@dadof4kids Hope your kid is feeling better and back on his feet. Look for a zinc supplement as well as Emergen-C. Both help the immune system fight off infection.
@dadof4kids hope he feels better soon, keep us posted!
@dadof4kids hope he feels better soon! I wish there was a testing location closer for your son.
@dadof4kids more well wishes! Hope heās feeling better soon!
@dadof4kids Hoping your son feels better soon! And that you can find a closer test location after talking to your regular doctor tomorrow!
@dadof4kids Hope your son gets better soon!
@dadof4kids oh no. I hope you can find a test. And I hope he doesnāt feel too sick. 
Thanks for the support and well wishes. I just checked on him, heās about the same. Doesnāt feel great, although to be honest I think in a different era (i.e. 6 months ago) he is in the condition where he probably would have just popped a couple Advil and headed into work. Obviously now thatās not an option, and in hindsight we probably should be more careful with that behavior even after this situation passes.
He was out in the sun all day yesterday and had a few beers, so initially he thought he was just worn out from that. Apart from a low grade fever, heās just tired. If it werenāt for the fever and exposure I donāt think either of us whould have thought twice about it.
We were unlucky enough to have major flooding last summer. That meant some pretty substantial unplanned and unbudgeted renovations. The good news though is that we redid the basement in a way it is pretty comfortable for him to isolate in there behind a closed door, other than a few steps outside of his area to use the bathroomā¦ Otherwise he can hole up in there on a comfy couch in front of a big TV and just chill.
I think if he is feeling better tomorrow he will want to drive to the test himself, it is 2 hours from here but in the town where he goes to school and works. If he truly doesnāt seem sick tomorrow, then I will probably be able to be persuaded to let him just isolate there until he gets his negative test back. But if he has any hint of illness in the morning Iām going to really try to get him tested here. Iām not super thrilled to ride with him in a car for 4 hours tbh. There is a chance his work may be able to get him one of the 15 minute tests, he is probably considered an essential worker. If I canāt get him in here tomorrow morning I may have him call his boss and check into that.
Iām not super worried about him, I know there are exceptions but at his age he will probably be fine. Iām a bit more worried about people he may get sick or if he passes it through the house who the rest of us may get sick. He is fortunate enough to still have 4 grandparents, but I seriously doubt the 4 of them would all survive an infection.
@dadof4kids ā good decision making all around.
One of my closest friends is self isolating with whole family while waiting for test results b/c the day camp where her two college kids work had a camper test positive last week. (It was one of the relatively few camps in the area that opened this summer; now itās closed.).
The camperās dad sent his kid to camp for two days while waiting for his test results back! Said he thought he had the flu. . . Um, thereās like zero flu circulating these days?? Grrrrr.
Honestly, the camp stayed open longer this summer than I expected.