@burghdad a whirlwind trip, but a good call to go now while you can. I probably missed it up thread, but which school are you visiting in St. Louis? Save travels.
@havenoidea I love the independence, but it is coupled with a disinterest in the whole process. Maybe itās stress avoidance? And the schoolās timeline is very delayed. GC didnāt even want kids to request LORs until September.
We have visited none of the colleges on his list, except the local safety. We were planning on college visits for spring break last year, but he refused to do any research. I scheduled an early March vacation somewhere tropical instead. Best preCovid decision ever!
I know there are many places he could be happy. And hopefully December EA decisions will help him map out the rest of his approach. But I am envious of all of you. Iām a planner at heart. Weāll, thereās always D25ā¦
@Solstice155 just Saint Louis University
Funny story. I saw on Clemson thread that they released the first acceptances. So I went to my D21 room and tell her to look at her portal. She is lying in bed and said dad I canāt right now Iām in Gym classā¦Oh the times of Covidā¦
@burghdad That is so funny!
We are headed to Colorado tomorrow to take D21 to see University of Denver and Boulder. Hope she loves it out there!
oooh. Iād like a report on Denver please! Travel safe!
West coaster here. Thankful for rolling admissions! D received Univ of Oregon acceptance last week, just a week after submitting the app. She visited it pre-covid and liked it enough that she could see herself there if she doesnāt get into other choices so woohoo, the pressure is off . Eugene is a runnerās paradise and the campus impressed usā¦Phil Knight and Nike $ has transformed it. We call it UC Oregon:)ā¦a popular alternate to the big in-state school experience for many Californians. D turned in 8 apps, with one more due due 11/15 (UW). She did the UC app but not sure if sheāll even apply to any of them.
As for snacking, itās cruel fate that Election day is right after Halloween. Ongoing election stress + endless candy = 5 lbs.
@2ndthreekids I saw a funny meme āWith all the stress eating Iāll be at 270 before either candidateā! LOL
We did a whirlwind trip I posted about on the 3.0-3.4 thread - WVU, Appalachian State and JMU. She liked them in that reverse order!
@NJWrestlingmom That meme is great - I will have to continue its trajectory! Reeseās cups and chocolate peanut butter Dove (smaller version of same thing) are my downfall. At least there is protein in it and chocolate has antioxidants, right? (I know, dark chocolate, butā¦).
My friendās son (NJ resident, unlike me) attended WVU Honorās college. I will say it was very inexpensive and he graduated a semester early even with going abroad for a semester, so there is that. He also got a great job in geology right out of college. My other friendās son graduated from JMU, then went to Northeastern for his Masterās in psychology and is doing well with telehealth. I hear good things about App State too. So you canāt go wrong with any of them, Iām sure.
A lot of us are going to be making trips to colleges during COVID spikes because we have to physically visit the school before pulling the trigger.
@Zinnia203 My D also has not been able to visit any of the schools she applied to other than the local safety. We had 2 visits planned last Spring break but things shut down about a week before we planned to go.
@NJWrestlingmom I also know a number of kids (including from NJ) who have gone to WVU - for a medium to higher stats kid it can be a great value. You probably know this already, but there is (or was fairly recently) a merit aid for stats table on their web page which tells you exactly what the applicant can expect. For those kids not feeling the love for Rutgers-NB, it can be a nice alternative.
I will head over to your review now!
Regarding visits to colleges b4 making decisions, if I were queen for the season, I would make all colleges to push back decision day from May 1 to June 1 and then organize admitted students days after spring classes are done ā so mid-May for most colleges. (I realize this doesnāt line up for colleges on the quarter system so I guess theyāre exempted from my edict! 
The colleges could keep a few dozen students on campus to help ā be ambassadors, etc. Let kids do an overnight if they want, etc. Have some sessions with faculty, etc. I know itās not the same as being there mid-semester, but better than virtual admitted student days by a long shot!
Or, if they donāt want the worry of the overnight on campus, just make it a long day ā 9 to 6 kind of thing.
And the administration should feel better letting students come in from all over the country once classes are out. I think kids would need to sleep in singles and do a lot of programming outside, but that should be fine that time of year.
Weāre starting a stricter COVID level today and they think sometime next week we will go to lockdown. 
Still the weather is great right now!
If you want to hikeā¦
Mt Sanitas is always good. Itās 1.2 miles up and thatās tough with our lack of oxygen. The trail is well maintained and obvious. I recommend doing this one as an out and back. https://www.hikingproject.com/trail/138/mount-sanitas-trail
Green Mt is another fun one. There are a bunch of ways to get up there, but my favorite when flatlanders visit is to drive up Flagstaff and take the West Ridge Trail. Flagstaff has all the tight bends and drop offs, but it also has the views. Stop at one of the parking lots and relax. The trail is moderate until the very end when it gets steep. Take a few breaks and you will be fine. The views of the continental divide from the top are legend. https://www.hikingproject.com/trail/7004594/green-mountain-west-ridge There isnāt a parking lot for this trailhead. You just park on the side of the road.
D21 got 25000 a year merit scholarship from Saint Louis University. Makes the tour on Monday more interesting. With the higher private school tuition that brings it in line with our in state public universities.
@AlmostThere2018 that is a great suggestion for admitted student days! Queen for the season!
I expect a number of schools will extend their commitment date to Jun 1, like many did this past cycle. But some wonāt due to the risk of overenrollment (tends to be more selective schools).
A UCLA AO presenting to counselors this past April said potentially overenrolling was the reason they were going to keep the May 1 date.
Itās not very helpful to students/families when schools have different commit dates, which can lead to people potentially losing a deposit and/or double depositing.
senior moment. How do a start a new tread?
Go to the forum you want to post in and click on the āAsk your question nowā box in the upper right. Itās not obvious, at all!
We received our weekly college counselor update email today and there was a Q&A section about Spring college and/or acceptance day visits. The news is not good based on the college AOās they spoke with and the Covid trends. The AOās represented colleges across the US - but no one in the South. (we are west coast) I am sure it will vary by region just like how high school is looking for the class of 2021 - but here in our area on the West Coast - no in person school yet, no sports, no band etc.
They indicated that colleges are looking at very robust online offerings with the anticipation that campuses in most areas will either be closed or limiting the number of outsiders on campus and it is one reason they discouraged ED unless you were 100% sure of that decision - sight unseen in most cases. They highlighted the week online orientation by Yale last year that even included an online incoming freshman talent show. This was for students that committed to Yale - unsure about what was done for accepted/uncommitted students.
The overall message was that colleges will get creative and to expect most offerings to be online - be pleasantly surprised if you can visit campus - but donāt bet on it to make a decision. They said there may be exceptions for certain groups - ie: legacy tied with an event, recruited athletes or a specific major - but again, all projection.