Aside from the obvious benefit of being done early, if you are not chasing merit scholarships, is there any other benefit to applying as soon as those schools with rolling admission open their applications? S24 is interested in about 4-5 schools with rolling admission and a couple open late July/early August. The problem is his school does not start until September so won’t be sending in any transcripts, LORs, etc. until at least three weeks after school starts. We thought he would get those all done in August and school is saying they don’t send any of their required stuff over summer hours. I guess we are SOL right? He should just complete his parts of the apps and as soon as school starts request those items school needs to get in?
Rolling admissions schools will have fewer spots left to fill as time goes on, so if students wait to submit it becomes more competitive for admission. I’d suggested submitted what you can and staying on top of the school to send in LORs and formal transcripts.
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After getting the forms notarized, for the next step, what does the student need to do ( the HIPAA release form, FERPA form , healthcare directive, power of attorney etc). Are there designated departments within colleges that help receive and put them in their database? Thanks in advance for guidance
It’s official - we’re empty nesters. LostWife and I helped D22 move into her college today, probably the last parents in the HS Class of 2022 to send off their kid. D22 looked happy and LostWife seems fine as well (need a break from dealing with all of D22’s dramas, she says) while I am holding up…less well. 
Passed by Radcliffe Camera library on the way to D22’s college.
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Oh my! That picture brought me back to my years living in Cambridge. I didn’t attend the University there, but I did work for a bit at Gonville and Caius College and used to cycle everywhere. All the best to your kid in Oxford.
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Thanks. Both schools have quite beautiful campuses.
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Checking in - how’s everybody doing?? How is your frosh (that’s the term used at my kid’s school) adjusting to their new life?
I find my kid doesn’t respond very promptly to texts. lol
But they are very happy to be where they are, and are learning and growing, and are in good spirits when we do talk. No fall break visit for us; Thanksgiving is when we’ll fly out for a visit. I’m looking forward to that!
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I was hoping D22 would be challenged in college, learning how to face and overcome adversity in the school’s notoriously difficult Math/STEM courses, after breezing through HS.
So far - finished her first 2 week CS assignment in 30 minutes, turned it in for a 100, got a 62/60 (3 extra credit available, so she missed one!) on her Honors Multivariate Calculus Exam, and a 100 on her first CS exam. She got a campus job because she was bored. Hmmmm.
Not sure how I should feel about it. She seems happy. We leave for Parents Weekend at 6a tomorrow.
On the positive side, she did attend the job fair, which is a big step for her introverted self with no one there to push her, and applied for 7 summer internships.
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S22 seems to be adjusting ok. 1 of his classes is “AP Lang again” – so it’s review, but it’s only for 10 weeks (quarter system), so it’s both slower and faster at the same time. His other 2 classes seem much more interesting. So far he’s on top of the reading and classwork, but I suspect the “3 big papers at the end, 1 for each class” will catch him a bit by surprise. 
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Both of my girls D18 and D21 found Freshman year at Clemson and Miami of Ohio respectively easier then their AP classes at NA. And that was not retaking classes but taking sophomore level classes in Economics and math.
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I was going to say the same thing. My daughter is finding college very manageable. We are really happy that she is enjoying her classes while not feeling stressed. And also we think college is a great time to focus on other aspects of yourself - social, spiritual (if that’s your thing), finding purpose and identity.
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I was wicked worried that S22’s college would live up to the Pressure Cooker/Intense rumors.
But I think he’s doing ok.
He:
- is taking 5.5classes: 4 stem, 1 writing (only 15kids in the class), 1/2 gym (quarterly)
- regrets not skipping Physics 1, since it’s all a review.
- got a 98 on his 1st Differential Equations exam
(but grades don’t matter the 1st semester: only Pass/Fail)
He’s doing a club sport, which helps him stick to a schedule.
He applied for a part-time job; sounds like he has the time.
But he doesn’t seem to be partying much, even though his college is known for some killer parties…
We get a few texts here and there, but not much communication.
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My D22 seems to be doing fine. She had to choose between taking a foreign language or spending more time rowing - she chose the latter, which I think is the right choice for her. She said the intensity is real, although she probably takes things more seriously while some of her classmates are more willing to wing it.
The “freshers” had their matriculation ceremony this morning (pic below of them heading to the Sheldonian Theatre donning their sub fusc) so she’s now officially enrolled.
ETA: D22 also started tutoring a HS student once a week. Part-time jobs are discouraged at her school given the intense 8-week academic terms but a commitment of 2-3 hours/week should be manageable. (I am fully on board because I feel it is quite valuable to have a job, beyond earning money.)
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S22 is in Calc 1 because he didn’t place out. But, he was on the fence with repeating since so much was missed the past 2 years in his math class. He took the honors version and says he is learning some new things, but he has 100% in it. He has an engineering foundations class, and a graphics class and he’s above 100% in both. He had 2 hours for the first graphics test and took under 30 minutes to finish. But he’s happy it seems. Loves marching band and is glad for the time to adjust to college/band life and not have difficult classes. Next semester he should have more new things, so that will be good we think. I, too, would like to see some challenge come from the classes.
He also did the job fair and is working on a summer internship. I visited a few weeks ago, and was driving to the airport while he was texting me questions about the job fair. Longest trip to the airport ever, with pulling over to answer him. But, I was glad he was asking me questions and wanting feedback.
Where is your D22? I don’t remember where everyone ended up! Hope Parents Weekend was fun.
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The Sheldonian is quite the place. Degree ceremony will be here before you know it. Came across DS matriculation photo yesterday. Hard to believe it’s been five years already since that day.
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My D22 is an engineering major taking 15 credits. She’s definitely being challenged and has really had to step up to the plate in terms of time management.
Overall, she’s really happy with her college experience so far. She’s got a solid friend group, is involved in a couple of campus activities and is doing well.
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Hi - hope everyone is doing OK. Quick question. We got Mama Bear college forms for health care, financial , HIPAA release, FERPA etc notarized for D22. Do we need to upload HIPAA / FERPA forms to college portal? D22 is taking university health insurance ( UC Berkeley). Thanks in advance for pointers.
I think this question is much more “what does the college want” than “general parent of college student” – UW Tacoma didn’t need those things in general, much less notarized. So I don’t even know if there’s a place to upload them. Probably inquiring with UCB would get you better answers.
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Spent the afternoon with D22 today. Even though it’s been a bit intense and she’s lost in couple of classes*, she’s generally happy (a welcome change from how she felt about the last years of high school). She’s also enjoying her freedom and independence. I generally held back from saying anything that she could have construed as “judging” her.
The weather was also nice - here’s a pic of the River Thames with D22 (after we said goodbye) walking to her college’s boat club for a practice session.
[*] Apparently this is a common experience, and the students are expected to use their long vacations to figure things out!
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Looks beautiful! Glad she’s doing well!
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