<p>What if the return address on the envelope is wrong?
Once admitted, if I'm slow to send in deposit, will I be denied?
I gave my teacher the wrong size envelope; am I in trouble?
My recommendation was TOO good; should I worry?
I forgot to give my resume to the college fair presenter; am I in trouble?
My volunteer hours are X and my friend's is X+20; am I in trouble?
I got a 2300, should I retake?
My son didn't get a "likely letter" Should I worry?
I messed up in eighth grade and ...</p>
<p>Good luck to all the students and parents out there. Stay calm if possible!</p>
<p>My daughter is a freshman. One of her friends decided she wanted to go to Yale back in 7th grade. Immediately after receiving her first 9th grade report card, she computed her weighted GPA. Then, her first grade in AP Human Geography second 6 weeks was a 70. She immediately sat down and computed what that grade had done to her weighted GPA. Now THAT is an obsessed student!!!</p>
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She immediately sat down and computed what that grade had done to her weighted GPA. Now THAT is an obsessed student!!!
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<p>I'm almost insulted lol. I created a Grade/GPA calculator in Java to keep daily (or whenever I updated) records of my class grades and GPA.</p>
<p>I actually used to be more antsy about stuff that the OP mentioned, but after reading some of the outrageous stuff here on CC, I took a look at myself and decided to chill out.</p>
<p>Some of my favorites:
"Should we mail a fruit basket/flowers to our interviewer?"
"Will my teacher call my dream school and tell them that I missed class once?"
"I got one B+ and now I'll never get into HYPMS"
"I used blue ink on my application, will they auto-reject me?"</p>
<p>Isn't this the truth! The level of anxiety and paranoia is unbelievable. I read these threads and I feel like answering each one saying "calm down!" I can only wonder what the admissions offices hear. I imagine they must have many stories about students who worry themselves to death over the silliest things.</p>
<p>I don't know all that much more than anyone else about the admissions process. But as a parent of an '08er, I do think that you do what you can do and then let it go. It's not going to change the outcome to send off your application and then fret endlessly.</p>
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One of her friends decided she wanted to go to Yale back in 7th grade. Immediately after receiving her first 9th grade report card, she computed her weighted GPA. Then, her first grade in AP Human Geography second 6 weeks was a 70. She immediately sat down and computed what that grade had done to her weighted GPA.
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<p>Having been through the admissions process in 2002 and knowing both my own stats and my own results, I am constantly amazed at what students here THINK they have to do to get into top schools.</p>
<p>I've seen plenty of "Will a B kill my chances of getting into top schools" threads (it didn't appear to kill mine, and I had eight Bs). And all the people who think they need to retake the SAT for scores well over, say, 2100.</p>
<p>I try to offer both advice to chill out AND sympathy, because I remember not having perspective on this stuff. In my case, it was pre-high school. I wanted to get into the local math/science/technology magnet high school program. I took the SAT in 7th grade for the Duke Talent Search, and got a 730 verbal but "only" a 630 math. I was very upset because I thought that now, with my "low" math score, the magnet program would never accept me. My mom comforted me, and also told me to chill. I suspect it took her a fair amount of effort not to burst out laughing. :)</p>
<p>Very hard for a parent to exercise self-control sometimes. Doing really well in freshman year of high school is the probably the worst because now you have to "maintain your grades" because who wants to have "falling grades" i.e, from A+ to A.</p>
<p>It even continues on here once they're in college.</p>
<p>I constantly read threads about:
"I just got here...I'm a freshman, but I want to transfer to a better school."
"I failed my chem midterm. How will this affect my chances at medical school?"
"What are the best schools for I-banking, pre-med, engineering...?"</p>
<p>The amount of paranoia on these boards is funny.</p>
<p>Continues into medical school until at some point they mature. Quote from a wise professor in medical school: "Congratulations on getting into medical school. Now please stop trying to get into medical school and start learning how to become doctors."</p>
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I read these threads and I feel like answering each one saying "calm down!"
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<p>I wouldn't mind in the least if lots of participants did that. This is a tense time of the year, and the high school students need some reminders to relax.</p>
<p>One friend of my daughter's created his own "viewbook" last year and had it bound on nice paper at Kinkos. He's at an Ivy this year on a full ride!</p>