This article gives more details of his background: How I went from troubled foster kid to scholar at Yale and Cambridge
Iām not not in favor of TO. I just think that itāll be hard to incentivize my particular kid to do well on tests that might have no bearing on merit awards.
We need mondo merit. But heās a white male from a generally upper-middle-class background, no athletics, no hooks like playing the French horn or whatever a school might desperately be in need of in any given year.
I love him dearly and he has a quality GPA (but not perfect) and lots of great ECs, but they arenāt gonna get him any money.
So he needs to shine somewhere, and Iāve been hoping test scores might do the trick.
ETA
Then again, I just need to stand down. Heās doing great. We could cash-flow the Temples or Pitts of the world, with just a student loan and no merit, and heād be wonderfully happy at either.
Sometimes I make myself crazy for nothing.
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Hi @tombrady123 and welcome to our little neurotic parentsā group! Iām sure your leadership ECs helped but honestly, they didnāt tip the scales in your Harvard admission, surely?
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@Gatormama i heart you. Same here. I feel the same except my kid is hooked. I donāt think that matters for merit. I was planning on merit scholarships based off his SAT also. I need to stop driving myself crazy. I can pay if I stop eating out and traveling for 4 years. I just donāt want to.
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The goal is to make sure our crazy isnāt in fact making our kids anxious and ruining their mental health. I see way too many college kids at work who are depressed and suicidal due to unnecessary pressures set on them.
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I think they had a really significant impact, especially hosting a community tree-planting event. I wrote my essay about that, and after viewing my admissions file, it seems like they really liked seeing the initiative that I took. Your kids can also do it if they are interested! I worked with the non-profit Tree-Plenish that helps students plan tree-planting events to offset their schoolās paper usage
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Iām not in favor of test optional with my kid not even close to the top 10 % but I do think he will test well. However with that said, he took the ACT for the first time this past Saturday and said that he didnāt finish all the sections. At least he has the exposure. Now Iām trying to find a tutor he can use this Fall that will prepare him for more ACT/SAT tests for his junior year.
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Last week of school for my S23. We did an initial screening with a tutoring company and are looking to start sessions by the end of June. The one thing they did ask is if he had a preference for either ACT/SAT. Although there is some overlap in material they would focus tutoring on one specific test to get the most out of the sessions.
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The world turned upside down in our house, not unexpected but sudden. My husband and boysā Dad passed away 8 days ago after a very short battle with sepis, but a 6 year battle with cancer.
The twins have always thrown themselves into academics as a coping mechanism. They not only finished the year (excused from last week of virtual school) with straight As, but one son won a national academic competion and a competion against China (teams of 4). Both twins will be competing in a International Academic Olypiad next month. Not listing the subject, to protect some privacy. Twins took SATs (cicadas everywhere) last week, when I brought them home I found that my husband had taken a turn for the worst. He was at a rehab/nursing home after breaking his ankle. I was able to see him and be with him when he passed.
One of the twins is trying to deal with this loss, by trying to control what he can. For him, this means running NPCs. I posted a thread on Financial Aid to get some answers to his questions. Itās been a long week, with lots of calls to make. Thanks to automated answering systems, you can now be offered condolences by a computer voice. We are surronded by loving friends and families, I am past moving on second by second and well into moving on minute by minute.
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oh mom24boys; I am so so sorry. I feel profoundly sad at hearing this; i cant offer anything but hugs and prayers your way. Please take care of yourself. I hope you keep coming back here to check in. 
Iām so sorry. What a terrible loss for you and your boys. My deepest sympathies to you all and wishing your family strength.
So very sorry for your loss. Devastating. Hopefully the boys take the time to allow themselves to process and grieve now.
Iām so sorry for your loss. You and your boys are so strong, thoughts and prayers for you all.
@Mom24boys so sorry for your loss, thoughts and prayers to you and your family.
Oh my heart - I am so sorry! Huge hugs to you and the boys. I agree with @2plustrio Take time to grieve and heal - maybe consider counseling.
S23 got his license. We are currently in a very heated ongoing argument about what type of car he should buy. I am disappointed that he is acting even more arrogant and self-centered than his usual angsty teen boy self. He thinks its totally logical to try to beg his dad to drive 12 hours to look at a twin turbo charged sports car thats over his budget. His other top choice is a 20 year old sports car with no ac for a stupid high price (which he said that I could pay for the ac fix as I said I would help with some money). I get that many teen boys may have dreams of their first car and he has worked hard for his money and he needs to choose his car. But man, is he ever being bullheaded and narrow minded right now. Even his grandpa who is usually his biggest supporter literally looked at my son today and said āboy, your thinking and view of the world is seriously screwed up and you need to take a step back and appreciate what people are doing for you right nowā (yet my dad did not hold back the swears). Years of my son being the golden child in his dads eyes has come to ugly peak right now with this car issue.
It feels better to get it out. I love my kid and am proud of all he does but I dont tolerate acting entitled. Since all the other cars are ānot good enoughā for him, I will continue to have to be his chauffeur every day getting him to required summer school and activities. I was really hoping for a break from mom taxi.
My deepest condolences. Iām so sorry your family is dealing with this.
Very sorry for your loss, and hoping that you all find the time and grace to mourn and come to a place of peace.
Are you paying his insurance? If so, then you most definitely get to choose the type of car he gets.
Regarding the sports car: Yikes! Are you making him pay for insurance? That could be a way to get sports cars out of his budget. Congrats to your son for saving up; that is no small accomplishment. Sounds as if it worked too well in a way, if he can afford a sports car! Good luck.