D24 & S24 also took the SAT today; said it was harder than the one they took in December!
ETA: Funny because of my twins, D24 already has an ACT score that she wanted ! S24 did not study/ review/ or do anything the first time he took the SAT, so hoping this will be an improvement at least.
S24 also said the math was hard and weird, he is hoping that some of the odd questions are not real ones. The kids on reddit are also complaining about how hard the math was.
We did not take the SAT today because D24 took it in school like 6 weeks ago. We are going to take in August in the hope she can get 30 more points, which would help her some on merit scholarships. I think August will be our last chance because she really does not want to take the new digital one. Sheâs been done with school for 2 weeks and started her new job this week so she wasnât really up for it.
D24 came out of SAT all worked up about one of the math questions. She said the question was unclear to her and she could see how depending on what they were really asking it could be one answer or another one. Sheâs convinced she picked the wrong one. I tried to put in perspective that it was just one question but she was having none of it 
Yes my D24 who is a âmath personâ said she didnât finish one of the non-calculator math problemsâŠ! I guess that is why it is good to take it multiple times. My D24 scored high on the ACT first time trying so she will go with that if all else failsâŠ
It seems likely that there will be quite the curve for the math section
Honestly, kids need to be done by August just so can move on and focus on the actual app, but if she really wants to try again, it wonât switch until March 2024.
Yes! My S24 also commented on the very weird math problems and his confusion. I hadnât thought they might be in the non-scored section; that is a good point!
Thanks. I thought I read somewhere it was going digital in October. But yes, August is her last shot. Her score is FINE, and will get her into the honors program at her first choice, but a teensy bit better would get her higher on scholarship grids.
Our plan is to apply EA to her best shots for scholarship money, and then follow with state schools RD if she needs to. Trying to get all applications in in August so she can turn to honors program and scholarship apps. She was working on her half reported academic record today.
That was part of our reasoning for S24 taking it again. Score is more than fine but if he does not make NMSF (which is possible with a score that would in any state other than ours), then a blow them away SAT may help with merit. No harm in an extra sitting for the test if the kid doesnt mind.
Yes, we are in Texas and D24 would have made the NMSF cutoff in many other states, but sheâs going to be fine. So one more go at the SAT and sheâs out.
We are nearing the finish line. Two weeks left to go (one week will be finals). S24 has been ready to be done for the last month - itâs been worse since his brother came home from college as heâd rather hang out with him than focus on finishing strong- I canât wait for it to be over. Academically, S24 had a fantastic year. He will be prepping for a second shot at the SAT over the summer (will take in August). Canât believe HS is almost over.
How did your S22âs year go? I remember that he is at UMass Amherst, but I donât remember what heâs studying. My S24 is considering UMass Amherst, because it seems like the most affordable option if he does not get NMSF, and a reasonable chance of admission if he does not major in CS. But I have heard mixed info on whether it is manageable/pleasant for a low-key, non-partying kid if he does not get into the honors college. Iâm also wondering about how smooth things are administratively. Does your son have any insight from his experience this year?
We are in Texas too and my S24 just took the SAT on Saturday, he didnât want to wait until August because he will probably give ACT another go instead. His ACT score is fine, but he wants to try again to get it a bit higher to help with merit.
I would say S22 had a mixed experience. He did really well academically which, of course, is the most important thing. He was involved in ultimate frisbee which he really enjoyed. He is not a huge partier (although he did attend a few parties) and didnât get involved in âfrattingâ (attending crowded frat parties) but seemed to find things to do. I think his biggest issue was class size (very big) as he doesnât enjoy large format lectures. For Engineering/CS the classes arenât as big (he is a psychology major) - he is living with Engineering/CS majors next year and he told me that they work very hard - the classes are very challenging and the kids are really smart. The food is great - itâs not an exaggeration. I think in retrospect my son would prefer a smaller school but at the time he rejected small schools because he attended a fairly large public HS. His roommate was strange which didnât help things. Iâm happy to answer any questions - feel free to PM me.
Yeah, we are in NJ, continue to hope for pandemic learning loss.
Weâre in our last week and so ready to be done. Itâs hard to believe itâs the first year since 7th grade that sheâs had a full year of school and learning! So many missing days.
Unless she ends up at a school that has a scholarship requiring a higher score, she is done testing. Her score is solid and will be good at the places sheâs considering.
She asked teacher for letters of recommendation so thatâs a start. Hoping to get a lot of the application process done this summer.
Submitted my parent brag sheet to D24âs guidance counselor, and it was more difficult to write than I anticipated. Sheâs a phenomenal kid, but it felt strange to write about how wonderful she is without feeling like it was too much.
The problem is that it seems that nothing is ever good enough in our highly competitive environments. I am having the same issue and feeling a lot of stress to write this. Greatful for the opportunity though. These are all wonderful kids in their own way!
Good news. Got an email from the airline. They found D24âs passport that she lost on the flight from Paris to US at end of her school trip to France. Now we have to provide a paid UPS shipping label so they can send it back to us.
D24 completed 1st week at McDâs today. Sore muscles from lots of time on her feet. I think maybe some Dansko shoes might be in her future. Those are a godsend.
DH temporarily got D24 worked up recently over merit scholarships because he took what the rules are at the state colleges weâre looking at and blurted out an assumption that this is how scholarship money is doled out everywhere (ie, by unweighted GPA). Got the kid calmed down. Reminded her of what the LACs said when we visited 2 of them in AprilâŠholistic app review and all that stuffâŠand she calmed down.
DH remains frustrated that public universities and private colleges/universities donât have one common shared way of evaluating applications. Didnât have the patience in the moment to explain it all to him again so I kind of gave him the equivalent of âtough. Deal with it.â
He very much gets sucked up into the frenzy of what other parents are talking about re: college applications and then will assume that what this ONE person said about ONE school is true at every college across the whole country.
So for the time being, I told D24 to come to me with questions or concerns and she should also consult with school counselor, too.
Good times! Every day is an adventure. 
