Parents of the HS Class of 2023 3.0-3.4

We are visiting Endicott and a bunch of other NE schools next week and I will write a full report! For my DD my biggest concern is that it might be too career prep oriented when she’s definitely more a nerdy academic type. Plus it’s diversity is lacking. I haven’t said anything about either and will be curious to see whether she notices and brings it up.

Meanwhile, University of Denver is high on our list and we haven’t managed a visit yet. At this point we will only visit if/when she hopefully gets in and with decent merit. Would love to hear what you think!

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Have him apply to several. Options are good. He can inquire with then about accommodations as well. Each school should be able to answer.

We filed the FAFSA anyway. Knew we wouldn’t qualify for anything and don’t want to take out loans but wanted to keep the door open, just in case. It was our first time and it took less than an hour. Do it with your kid though. You need their info and they need a login.

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Happy to see visits are happening! Also curious about Endicott, cannot wait to hear about the trip.

Hope you get good weather, safe travels!

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Thanks! D23 has decided it’s East Coast or bust for her. Will see if that holds after this trip!

And he didn’t like Stevens Point? It is one of the best schools in the country for that.

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I would have him apply to three schools just in case. Since he has ADHD, keeping him close to home and being able to supervise him to a certain extent IMO is a good idea. As for more visits, I would just hold off. If he is accepted then going to an accepted student’s day or similar to vet the schools and programs might be a better idea since he is jaded at this point. He might be more interested in watching peer perspective videos on Youtube. Both my kids were/are.
FAFSA – I would do it the first year just to see where you stand.
Choir – At some point, we have to treat them as adults. He is 18, let him choose.

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Mom of 2022 kid here. I would aim for 5 schools. We did 5 that were all target/safety and it was a boost to her when all the acceptances rolled in. She did have a favorite and did end up going there, but it was nice to have the other acceptances too and she could have gone to any of them and been pretty happy.

Definitely go to the accepted students days if that is feasible and let him see if he can see himself with the other kids who are there. In person visits helped my D22 so much.

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My daughter should be hitting the button on a school or two tonight. Santa Clara has 11/1 deadline but she wanted some last minute adjustments on her essay before submitting that one.

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We are also hoping for 11/1 submissions.

I just realized when D23 finally let me see her essay when she uploaded it that it’s beyond the maximum word limit, so she will have to make adjustments.

I admit to opening a word document of my own to experiment with how I would make adjustments to fit the limit. I also sanitized my version because some of her vocabulary felt rather gritty to me. H said my version was very polished but inauthentic. D refused to even look at my ideas. She says she will be able to do any edits herself tomorrow to be able to submit apps in time.

I can’t wait until this is done. Waiting for the essay part if it to be done has been so stressful that I have sometimes wondered if it would just be better for her to submit without an essay for colleges that don’t require it.

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Thanks, your opinion seems to be the consensus.

The essay part was stressful!

Son is a freshman at Univ of Denver and we are from the Northeast. It was a total last minute decision but he absolutely loves it. Let me know if you have any questions.

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Looking for more options for my son. As of now his top choices are Belmont and Point Loma. He is a musician but is pursuing a Business program. He is worried that Belmont may be a little too music heavy if he is a Business major, Point Loma is a little small and may also be a little too religious for him. He is coming from a Catholic high school so he is not against a religious school. He is about a 3.2, 0 APs, test optional. Ideally he would like a mid-sized school, in a setting where there are other things to do off campus. I would love to keep the total cost around 50k, we can spend a little more for the right fit. He is also applying to Utah and Boulder but is concerned those may be a little bigger than he wants. Any ideas? So many of the schools that fit what he is looking for are coming in around 80k and that is more than we feel comfortable spending at this point. Thanks for any feedback!

I don’t know much about it but that it is beautiful and tons to do off campus- maybe Loyola New Orleans?

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Is that $50k a year or $50k total?

What does mid-size mean to you (rough numbers)? And how far a distance is he willing to go?

Off hand, I’m thinking University of Dayton, Xavier, maybe St. Louis University.

ETA: Loyola Chicago, Cal Lutheran also might work

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By mid-size 6-8k was his thought. I will check out those ideas, I think maybe Loyola Chicago could be interesting. Thanks!

Great idea of New Orleans, had not thought about that one. Thank you.

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I would check the Common Data Sets to see how many students receive merit aid. At some schools it is truly for merit (a small percentage of students receive it). At other schools, it is very much a discount (i.e. 97% receive). Thus, I am including some schools which will be over the $50k price point with respect to list price, but that I think would likely fall within your budget after the school makes its offer. I also focused on warm-weather schools, since that’s what popped out at me when looking at your list.

  • Abilene Christian (TX)
  • Azusa Pacific (CA)
  • Barry (FL)
  • College of Charleston (SC)
  • Lipscomb (TN)
  • Loyola New Orleans (LA) seconding this suggestion
  • Samford (AL)
  • Southeastern (FL)
  • U. of Tampa (FL)
  • U. of the Pacific (CA)
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My D thought about applying to University of The Pacific (not to be confused with Pacific University in Oregon). Per talking with friends, relatives who lived there and my brief visit several years ago, Stockton seems to be pretty dangerous. So, I would do some research or visit before applying.

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@dh2

My son would love a midsize or bigger school as well but he would compromise on school size if near a bigger town or city. Hes also considering music and business type degrees.

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