I’ve been following this thread for weeks, and really enjoyed reading how everyone here and their kids have handled the highs and lows of this turbulent year. Lots of humor, camaraderie and perspective.
I’m a longtime lurker who first logged on here years ago. D21 spent much of her time holed up in her room working on her creative pastime, l wondered what became of kids like her who eschew traditional high school ECs. This forum, and so many of its wise posters, did so much for us. It showed her the path to sharing her work with the world. Her art gave her a voice and, eventually, helped her find a community of supportive, like-minded kids who shared her passion. She found validation of her work, and while she remains very unsure about trying to make it as an artist, she grew so much from her pursuit. When it came time to apply to college, this forum was far more knowledgeable than her college counselors as to what to shoot for.
In December, when my daughter was deferred from Harvard, and saw how much applications rose due to TO, she went into panic mode. She’s a fast writer and thinker, and over our objections ended up applying to something like 20 schools, far more than she needed to. Not all of the schools on the final list made sense to us from a fit perspective, but she insisted that the hard work calmed her nerves, so we let her at it. She has attended small privates her entire life, so LACs were a no for her. She did not seek aid.
She is an ORM, top of her class at a rigorous private. Here is a list of her results:
Accepted: St. Andrews, UCI, UCSD, UCSB, UCSC, UCD, UCLA, UC Berkeley, USC, Georgetown, Duke, Columbia (likely), U Penn, Brown, Yale, Princeton, Stanford
WL: Dartmouth
Rejected: Harvard (ha!)
Many of the acceptances have been released. We are vaccinated and on the road so she can see these places for the first time.
She is excited and grateful but almost overwhelmed by the options. She was lucky to have gotten so much validation for her art, but she also benefited from an admissions standpoint from being a very dedicated humanities major (a dying breed). The Berkeley admissions rep at our info session all but spelled that out to us!
We are sorry her deferral and resulting panic mode caused her to suck up so many spots. I’m also sorry college is way too expensive. This system is a mess, and does our country’s best students no favors.
I personally am thrilled by the Harvard rejection. It is an amazing place, but I did not see it as a fit for her. It seems they agreed with me!
Glad to see her commitment to her passion recognized!