Of course, outside of about 20 schools, most people only know much about what is in their area. My D18 goes to an amazing, but newer and tiny school, so we have to explain, too (Olin – no, not Oberlin, not Elon). We’re not looking for prestige, but employability would be great!
It’s funny to me that people don’t know St. Andrew’s. That seems like it has some decent visibility because of Prince William.
SAT done. Hard to know how it went. Her test prep tends to be half-hearted and there were three earthquakes in the three hours before she was supposed to wake up. The test itself did not seem very well attended, but I guess the November test is not normally very popular anyway, even in a non-Covid year.
She had an extra section on her test, which I presume is not going to count and was for testing the questions.
The proctor held them to give a well-intentioned, but politically-tinged speech at the end of the test which sounded inappropriate. My daughter was more annoyed by the fact that she could not leave immediately than by the content though.
@GoodGrief16 I am glad she got her test in. Is this her first?My guy did the Sat with listening exam, which is rarely available, so we were grateful that he got it in (of course he told me that he skipped a couple of questions – I should have reminded him that there there is no penalty for guessing. Oh, well.
DS is scheduled to do two more tests – both an ACT and an SAT in December. Cases are definitely up, though, so we will see what happens. I am hopeful he might hit his mark the first time and then be done.
Was the SAT with listening a subject test? Glad he got that in for sure. So much uncertainty, and, honestly, who knows if colleges will consider any of these at all. But wanted to get it in just in case.
Yes, this is her first (apart from two PSATs). I kind of doubt she will be willing to do it again, so hopefully it’s not a disaster.
@GoodGrief16 , yep – a subject test that we hope will prove his fluency in a language he has not taken in school. We are very glad it worked out. Hopefully he did well.
It will be interesting to see where this goes with the test optional stuff. My DS’s strength is his academic profile, so I think getting tests in where he can will be advantageous for him.
Glad your kiddo got in, too!
I think S22 has finished his college list. His high school just wrapped up virtual visits for the year (they had been scheduled each Monday) and with his “demonstrated interest” list from the CDS, he virtually visited the schools he needed to.
He took the SAT on November 7 and he has not used any of the free score reports. Is anyone sending scores without having seen them yet?
@OrangeFish – you are way ahead! Our school won’t even let the juniors attend the virtual visits. They are limited to seniors until January. I have a preliminary list for my guy and in a normal year, I suspect we would have done a couple of fall visits, but I think our first virtual visits will be over winter break.
We don’t send scores until we see them, which means we never get to take advantage of free sends.
@christinelin – I think the college and career advisor really reached out to juniors and seniors, just to be sure someone was participating! The seniors at our (very large public) high school tend to have their applications sent out early, so virtual visits in October and November are occurring after the apps have been submitted.
I’m leaning towards skipping the free score sends. Not sure when he would have the opportunity to take the SAT again. I know he is hoping for a one-and-done, as none of his schools are selective.
@OrangeFish Your son is on top of the game! That’s great to have a college list ready.
I would love to do the free sends but not sure it would be an advantage for this daughter. She’s not the most consistent test-taker. 
I AM really hoping this score will be adequate though.
D22 signed up for a couple of virtual visits/experiences that ended up falling through for various reasons. To be honest though, I think she needs a couple of live visits to really get her thinking. Unfortunately, we are geographically remote and…Covid. I’m hoping maybe spring would be doable to hit a few places but who knows.
Does everyone have a detailed 18 month timeline for your high school junior (what needs to be completed when in regards to the college search & application process)? Happy to send one over to anyone who would like!
@christinelin if it was a subject test, there is a penalty for incorrect answers, so guessing isn’t always the best way to go. I hope it went well!
Scoring subject tests:
No real progress on college excitement here. He’s just not interested in thinking about it yet, I guess.
We’ve not used the free score sending yet either. I’m debating it now for the Nov 7 test. I think he likely did well enough to use it for some of the schools with lower averages, but I’m not sure. Likely we won’t send it at all.
@Luanne : Good to know! He just walked in and took it without any prep, so I suppose it is good that his instincts may have worked in his favor!
I think it is hard to get excited by much right now. Such a tough time.
We don’t send scores until see them either (we are now on kid #2). Big news in our state this evening (MI) -with COVID cases on a huge uptick, all high schools are virtual for next 3 weeks (plus other restrictions for restaurants etc…). Teachers in our district are getting an extra prep day tomorrow, so another day off for the students. I agree with the decision, I just wish it wasn’t needed!
@Luanne @OrangeFish @GoodGrief16 I popped onto your thread by accident thinking I was on the 2021 thread! I would stay away from free sends and wait until you have scores you are sure you want to send. Also, your 22’s lists will likely change over the next year. It’s great you are getting tests done now. I’ll never understand why some (many!) GCs suggest waiting until the end of junior year!
Best wishes and buckle up!
Thanks, @Solstice155 ! We didn’t use any free score reports with D19 but her college application process was so different (theatre tech). S22 is following the more straightforward college application process. Good to know we can skip the free reports.
Thanks for popping over with advice!
I’m in MI too. Our district just decided Friday to be remote through Thanksgiving. Now we’ll be longer. I hope we are able to go back after 3 weeks. It worries me because while we’ve had cases, only 1 was in school transmission. I worry that now the kids will gather more and it will be worse really. The districts near us who never were face-to-face have more cases overall. I see pictures of groups doing school together in one person’s basement, etc. Hopefully it doesn’t backfire!
Agreed!
@Solstice155 Thanks! This is our third college applicant now, though it does seem like there is a new twist each time 
With the last one there was no risk to pre-sending, but with the current, it’s best to wait, I think.
@Luanne and (midwest mom9, can’t figure out how to get your name up!), our schools have been virtual since last March. There was talk about getting K-2 and SN in on Nov 16, but now numbers spiked. Side note, I was in Detroit last December, and have been thinking about this Christmas event we did at a historical village: sitting family style at a table, pakced in with strangers, singing Christmas carols loudly. Another world, and less than a year ago!
@GoodGrief16 , I am really sad for the kids who did not get any time back in school in person. How is your family doing with this? My sons attend two different high schools. One was hybrid (one week in person, one remote); the other was fully in person. They are now both totally remote as of today until at least early December. I suspect it may be much longer. I am super grateful they got some time in person – especially my freshman, who got to make friends at a brand new school.
My kid is doing great with online learning. Don’t be sad for us. I am so happy that she has not had to go into that germ factory and very anxious about a potential reopening in Jan. No one in our family has been sick at all since she started staying home (last March) and my husband started working from home. She still sees friends outdoors or Facetimes. I think she’s fine with online school. There are plenty of advantages like sleeping late, getting snacks and going to the bathroom when you want, doing school in your pajamas. She does miss some aspects of in-person school, but not having to raise your hand and get a hall pass to go to the bathroom, crowded hallways, etc. She just misses seeing friends and being part of big Theater productions, but the Theater teacher has come up with some pretty fun alternatives.