Exactly!
I have no issue with parents bragging or celebrating their children’s success. I celebrate along with them - even when it’s folks I don’t know at all (like on this forum). But there’s “proud parent” bragging and there’s obnoxious bragging. I know it when I see it.
Yes I’m interested!
I’d like to be added. Thanks.
Thank the flipping lord. ALL applications are in, and before Christmas! The essays…my god the essays. My girl applied to 8 schools and had to write a total of 15 essays. Only one could be somewhat repurposed and used at 2 schools. Just brutal. She is exhausted and ready for a break! She’s been accepted at her two safeties and now she waits for the rest until March/April!
I thought D23 was finished in August! But she’s STILL writing scholarship essays. It never ends.
@Izzy74 I know what you mean. It literally never ends. I went through this 4 years ago with D19 and I really wasn’t looking forward to it this time around.
Getting kids to write more essays for scholarships is not a fun thing to do.
While we are on the topic of scholarships, bragging and full-rides, etc I will relate to you what what going on for my D19 4 years ago. D19 was gun-ho about the process. She ended up applying to 17 schools that really ran the gambit on the types of school. Flagships, Small LAC, Small state schools, and one Ivy. She had high stats and drilled it into her head to try to get as much in scholarships as possible. My wife and I graduated with college loans and we really didn’t want that for her.
Offers came in all shapes and sizes. Some great and some not so great. She competed for some full-ride and full-tuition scholarships. Her schools were ranked all over the board. She didn’t get into the Ivy. Her number #1 choice gave her merit $$, but less than expected. Her number #2 was similar. I even had her write a letter to her number#1 choice and had her include an offer from another school that was similarly ranked. That school did up her offer, but it was still below the similarly ranked school. D19 had a choice to make. Go to one school where loans if any would end up being very low or go to her #1 choice and for sure have to take out loans. She did have better offers from lower ranked smaller schools but she decided against those.
In the end she went to the school where she had 70% of the COA in scholarships. She has been mainly happy at the school and I don’t think she regrets the choice. She is quite happy that she will graduate with no loans. Thankfully we have been able to pay the other 30%. She did help her cause by getting additional departmental scholarships the last 3 years in the amount of $2.25K per year. She doesn’t have the top grades at college, but she did fill out the form.
So 4 years ago I was very in tune with what schools were offering. I had 16 examples of what D19 got. I had done a ton of research on other schools looking for places that might work for D19. At the end of the HS year they have a top 10% dinner. Kids are recognized and everyone says where they are going to go to school. Many of the kids D19 had known her whole life. I think it was then when it really started to click with D19 what some kids would end having to borrow to attend certain schools. D19 has carried that knowledge throughout college. She school she ended up attending had about 20 full-rides for each year. D19 also understood FAFSA and she knew no matter how small of an amount parents made kids always had to at least take out the Federal Subsidized loans. She never called anyone out, but knew if people were embellishing their situations. When D19 got to college she was part of a group that help mostly low income kid navigate through college. She ended up being a student mentor to many kids and saw some kids really make some bad decisions on majors and loans and spending.
Overall this process it tough on everyone. Some will brag about it and some will keep things private. Some will make decisions that might be a head scratcher to many. There is no one perfect answer for all kids. All I know I really glad D23 is my last and that I won’t have to do this again.
I’m interested! Thank you!
Wishing for the absolute best results for her!
Just a possibility, but one that I think reflects reality: For many and probably most families without significant academic cultural capital (which is more people than one might expect, including some very educated folks) it isn’t misrepresentation, it’s legitimately not understanding the difference themselves.
I am interested as well!
Im interested.
It’s been essay madness over here too between competing for extra scholarships and essays for honors consideration. We were hoping he could pull from the other essays but they are asking things like:
“If something magical could fall from the sky what would you want it to be?”
“Which 2 professors would you want to do research with and why?” (he has to research a whole department of psychology professors!)
“You have written a 500 page biography. What’s on page 368?”
“If you could change anything in the world, what would it be?”
I give them credit for being creative with essay questions but would much prefer the generic ones at this point. Lol.
I feel for your poor student! (But as an English major am LOVING these prompts!) Page 368 of mine would be the hellscape that is college admissions on the first go-round! 
Spoken like a true English major 
. My STEM background, on the other hand, would have me trying to fit it into a bullet points on a powerpoint 
I am interested. Thanks!
This is so true. My son is sick of writing all the additional things for special programs/honors programs etc. I have taken to bribing with fudge. At the end of last week, he turned in the last ones. Each program wanted TWO different (so four total at the same college for different specialty programs) essays of 750 words each! 3000 more words. Son pointed out that each one was longer than the main essay on the common app! He finally closed the computer and said, “I wrote 378 words on Cato the Younger and that is all they are getting. I am not writing another word. I need to sleep.” And that was for a program he really wants at a college that is one of his top choices at present.
Seriously colleges, listen! 300 words per question is more than enough for these supplemental scholarship/honors/program things unless it can be recycled e.g. “if you could design a major what would it be?” That one is fine since it comes up again and again. If you are asking for more writing than the original application to the college, there is a problem!
Oh, I am totally writing these down for my middle school students for journal prompts-they’ll love me! Lol.
Dalhousie U’s Entrance Scholarship Essay is… up to 3000 words. I kid you not - one essay. It will be interesting to see if my son is still interested enough during Christmas break to write a novella.
Are you an English teacher?