<p>Have solid handle on you common app/ personal statement before senior year. It was 10 times better because I had the time to think about my writing with out the usual distractions.</p>
<p>The online version of USNWR is a useful resource - but remember that their admissions numbers are from 2 years back, and their deadline dates are not always correct. ALWAYS check critical information with the colleges website. </p>
<p>One of our CC posters noted that the lower the admission rate at a college, the more likely a ‘match’ is to be a reach. A surge in applications - as happened at RPI (last year, I think) can quickly make admissions very hard to predict.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>During August, my son went to a cozy cafe he likes with his laptop and a list of college application essays he needed to write. He spent 2 days doing this. Unfortunately, the list contained some essay topics from the previous year, so he had to redo a few. So, be sure you are looking at admissions info for the fall of 2009! Aside from that, it was such a relief to have those essays done when he started the rest of the work on filling out forms, obtaining recs, etc.</p></li>
<li><p>No matter what record-keeping system you decide on, be sure to write down everything you send to every school. You think you’ll remember, but you won’t.</p></li>
<li><p>I agree with taking the SAT in the summer. Get it done and get the scores back. Then you can decide if more test prep is needed for a repeat test.</p></li>
<li><p>Recommendations - if your school is handling them, then you just go with their system. If you are using recs from outside of school, ask for them in early September. Many colleges have a form that should be included with the rec when it’s sent in, so check on that.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Do NOT under any circumstances send any free scores from either the SAT or the ACT. SEE the scores then possibly retake, see scores and THEN send. ACT lets you send only the scores you like and SAT sends all tests including priors. Either way you can be sure that the schools either see an improvement (SAT) or only the “good” ones(ACT).</p>
<p>Regarding Safeties/Rolling admission. I strongly recommend this (some schools accept applications as soon as Junior year grades are final) for the security of knowing you are admitted SOMEWHERE…
But be prepared for one potential unintended consequence, waning enthusiasm for additional applications and a [incorrect] perception that those schools love your S/D more than the schools that have later notification dates. DD has had acceptances from several schools since August, and they have “shown her the love” with letters, scholarships, phone calls; while several of her previous top choices won’t be notifying her until next month and she needs to be applying for scholarships at these right now. To her it feels like they don’t care while her other schools (all outstanding choices and fits for her, don’t get me wrong AND financially WAY better for her) seem to not be interested.</p>
<p>Also, something I did to help my “varied interest I love everything D” sort and condense before application time was to sit down with her and make a list of “must haves” and “deal breakers.” This list included all her possible majors, size of campus, what activities were available, etc. Then she prioritized them by most important to her to least. If a school she heard about didn’t have one of those, it got dropped from the list to a “no longer under consideration because…” list (that list is almost as important because come application time she may not remember why it got taken off the list and now everyone is talking about it, “maybe I should look at school X?”</p>
<p>Be prepared for unsolicited offers from schools once S or D takes SAT or ACT, “free app” “no essay”, etc. Have them do a couple if their list is light but make sure the school fits S/D’s criteria.</p>
<p>Finally, as long as a school fits your financial/distance/whatever criteria that YOU need to be comfortable with S/D’s selecting it, try to detach from the outcome, selection.</p>
<p>Oh and read “Accept my kid, PLEASE! A dad’s descent into college application hell” by Hank Herman. Quick fun read that helps put it in perspective and gives you comic relief.
:)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>In our case, that would be pre-calc/trig sometimes taken during SOPHOMORE year. Those pesky trig formulas get forgotten over the summer. On the other hand, the additional mathematical maturity obtained during the junior year of Calculus may be beneficial for the Math IIC, but I suspect the student would have to cram to re-learn the trig.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Yes, US History is definitely a good AP/SATII match!</p>
<p>There’s been a lot of discussion about when to take SAT. My advice is don’t take it unless you have to. Start with the ACT and see how your kid does. If he/she does well, then the SAT is not necessary. Remember, ACT has score choice so you get to decide which score/scores to send. If you start with the SAT and are unhappy with your scores, it may not be possible to “hide” them-if SAT subject tests are taken, the SAT will also be sent with those scores. Take the ACT early in junior year to get an idea of where your kid stands. Do not take ACT or SAT for the first time in the summer. There will be a lot of pressure to improve if the scores are lower than expected.</p>
<p>I agree with everyone who said that the common app should be finished during the summer, including the essays. It will make life a lot easier in the fall. </p>
<p>Come to an agreement with your kid before applications start about how much help you will be giving, how much they want, how deadlines will be handled etc. Don’t underestimate how much time it can take to apply to schools. It’s better not to procrastinate. web sites crash, power outages happen. The sooner they get applications done, the sooner they can enjoy senior year.</p>
<p>Be honest from the very beginning about what you can/will pay. Don’t let your kid be accepted to an expensive private school and then say you can’t/won’t pay. It might be a good idea to look at some of the financial aid calculators online to find out how much you might be expected to pay. A lot of people seem surprised by how high their efc is.</p>
<p>All the application fees, visits, etc. can be pretty expensive. If money is an issue, start putting some aside now.</p>
<p>Put together a realistic list. Make sure they have a safety. Certain schools are reaches for everyone.</p>
<p>My eldest is a high school junior. At the end of last summer, the mom of one of his friends who was going to be a senior told me about this web site. I am SO glad she did! Back in the day, I took the ACT with no prep, applied to one school, was admitted and that was it! My son already has SAT scores and we are trying to decide on a date when he can take it one more time. (Lots of seniors were taking the SAT for the first time the same day he did.) </p>
<p>The only thing I didn’t know “soon enough” was about the SAT IIs. I honestly didn’t know they existed. I wish he had taken World History when he took AP World History last year. You’d think that a school that prides itself in being in the Newsweek Top 100 (which is based on # of AP classes taken) would at least mention the SAT IIs to the kids in the AP classes that have corresponding SAT IIs.</p>
<p>My one piece of advice would be to not rely on high school counsellers to keep you on a good schedule. Poor things are very overworked (our building has one counsellor per class of 600+). Do your homework here and elsewhere so you will be ahead (which you are doing of course since you are here.)</p>
<p>“Do NOT under any circumstances send any free scores from either the SAT or the ACT. SEE the scores then possibly retake, see scores and THEN send. ACT lets you send only the scores you like and SAT sends all tests including priors. Either way you can be sure that the schools either see an improvement (SAT) or only the “good” ones(ACT).”</p>
<p>If your kid is a good test taker, it’s worth the minor risk to send the free scores. I did this with both of my sons. By the end of junior year, they had no need to retake the SAT as both had SAT I scores in the 98th or 99th percentile.</p>
<p>If a retake is necessary, more than likely, the admissions officers won’t even have started looking at applications when the the retake scores come in in the fall. Most colleges – particularly top ones-- superscore anyway, using the highest subscale scores of all of the SATs or ACTs the student takes. If the student took both ACT and SAT, the college will usually use only the highest test score of either the ACT or SAT.</p>
<p>Scores sent junior year are typically just filed probably by a clerk as the college will open a file on the student, but knows that many such students won’t apply anyway.</p>
<p>Sending scores early, though, might be helpful if the scores are good and the school does special things like fly-ins for students who could be strong applicants.</p>
<p>I have been through two kids going through this process. Both are very different and had different experiences with the application process. My daughter, now a jr at Yale, was a top student, was interested in seeing a lot of schools on the East Coast and eventually had lots of choices (she applied to nine schools). Because we had seen a number of schools during the summer, what was critical for her was going to a few admitted students’ weekends during April. Going back and re-visiting the school, meeting other accepted students, and having a chance to visit classes completely changed her mind about a couple of schools she applied to. The school she thought she liked most fell to the bottom of her list and a school she wanted to see again just to be sure she didn’t want to go there moved up on her list. Kids change a lot during senior year and the admitted students’ visits are well worth it if you can afford the expense and the time. Also, if you can I recommend trying to visit schools during the school year rather than the summer, you get a completely different sense of the school when you can see the student body, eat in a dining hall, attend a class, etc.</p>
<p>On the other hand, my son went to visit about 8 schools during the spring of his jr year and chose 6 to apply to. He wasn’t interested in seeing a lot of schools and he did a very good job of choosing a balance of schools, including a few reaches and a few that he was fairly certain he would get into. One thing that was helpful for him was that two of his schools offered Early Action which he did. If you can do EA it is very helpful in getting the application process started. Kids tend to stress about their essays and an early deadline breaks the logjam I have found. He also applied ED at his top choice school. His first acceptance was from his safety school and he was thrilled, it was a good way to start the process. He then got into the other EA school and was also accepted ED at his reach school so he had a great Christmas break.</p>
<p>I think the key things to remember are:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>You need a range of schools, but only pick schools you think you would like to attend. Doesn’t make sense to have safety schools that you wouldn’t want to attend on your list. Don’t get hung up with all of the hype about “top” schools. A top school for one kid can be very different from a top school for another kid. Unfortunately the kids on college confidential are very rank oriented and often overlook some great schools in favor of the Ivies and elite LACs. In fact, I wouldn’t recommend this as a site for kids to read–there is too much “chance me” and uninformed advice given by students on this site. There is some helpful stuff about dorms, meal plans, etc. but overall I think this site reinforces the prevalent attitude that there are only a few schools really worth applying to. (Just my opinion.) </p></li>
<li><p>Use EA if you can. Also know that many schools that offer ED take a higher percentage of students from their ED pool. So while you have to know that you want to attend and you have to be willing to forego all your other applications and the sense of accomplishment you may feel when acceptances start coming in, if you are sure, ED can give you an edge. My son’s ED school has an ED acceptance rate of 35% while their RD acceptance rate is about 19%.</p></li>
<li><p>Try both ACTs and SATs. I wouldn’t worry about low scores with SATs being seen by the colleges. Most colleges, except the UCs, superscore the SATs and take the highest scores overall. Some kids do better on the ACTs than on the SATs, but I think it is worth trying both. I thought my son would do better on ACTs but overall his SAT scores were a bit higher. Schools try to give you the benefit of the doubt here and will look at highest scores between the two tests.</p></li>
<li><p>Definitely take SAT IIs as close to the time you have taken the corresponding course, if there is one. My son took Bio-M SAT II at the end of sophomore year right after taking Bio Honors. Math Level 2 is generally not recommended before the end of junior year in our school district. Prepare to take the SAT I a couple of times but don’t overdo it. </p></li>
<li><p>Finally your child should use their summers wisely. Sometimes taking a summer session at a school your child is interested in can help not only in terms of admission but also and more important, can help them decide if they think they would like that school. But make sure the choice of ECs reflects your child’s interest and that it is not just about strategy to try to ensure college admissions. Both my kids were very passionate about what they did outside of school and it really showed on their applications.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>1) We used those four free score reports to send SAT-II score/SATs to schools that liked demonstrated interest. That is something to consider if your S/D is not sure how they’ll do on standardized testing. We were confident of DS’s test-taking abilities, so did not wait to see the scores first. In any event, he was not inclined to re-take any of them short of a major disaster (fire, locusts, plague, illness), so there was no reason from his perspective not to send them. </p>
<p>2) Ivies do not give merit aid. If you want to apply for merit aid (based on grades, scores, ECs, etc.), DO YOUR HOMEWORK. Not many of the USNWR Top 25 give out merit money. Among those who do, the pool is extraordinarily competitive. If you are in the merit hunt, look for schools where your S/D will top out the applicant pool. These may not be schools you think of as “prestigious” in some cases, but can offer a fine education, personalized attention and special opportunities for a sought-after student. </p>
<p>3) Just because your S/D has stats in the top 25% of the applicant pool as reported on College Board does not mean that school is a safety. Competitive, yes. Safety, no. Some schools are super-reaches for everyone. </p>
<p>3a) Corollary to #3: Your student with a 3.9+ UW/2250+ is not entitled to an Ivy acceptance just because she/he had worked hard and deserves it. </p>
<p>4) Rolling and EA Admissions are your S/D’s friend. It is SOOOO nice to have the pressure off once that first acceptance rolls in. Rolling/EA are also good ways to get a sense of one’s strength in the applicant pool. </p>
<p>5) Have your S/D assemble an activities resume NOW. This gives time to gather info, put it in order, figure out where their strengths are, etc. DS found the resume helpful to recognize patterns of interest/involvement that he then developed further in essays.</p>
<p>6) Have your S/D ask teachers by the end of junior year if they’ll write recs. Some teachers limit how many they’ll write. This also gives the kids a chance to find out who’s enthusiastic about the task, telescopes interest to the teacher, and if your D/S gets the teachers the packet of materials they want as soon as school starts in the fall, the teachers will REALLY appreciate it (and say good things about your child’s organization skills!).</p>
<p>7) TALK ABOUT MONEY. Yes, I’m shouting. Make sure you and your student are on the same page. It’s your responsibility as a parent to assess your family’s situation and come up with a budget that works for you. Communicate this to your student. Now. Not next April. Kids are more savvy to their family’s financial state than you might give them credit for; model financial responsibility by showing how you plan, budget and discuss money. We started this years ago with our kids. We didn’t share details about salaries, but did talk about how and why we spend on X but not Y, etc. If you expect your kids to work/take loans, communicate that up-front. </p>
<p>8) Pay attention to the fall senior year schedule. DS took a lighter schedule (comparatively speaking) this fall and it paid off big time. Fabulous GPA, time to write terrific essays, and the ability to take advantage of some very exciting opportuniities he’s worked hard to achieve. (I know this is hard if your senior is taking many APs, as they are full year courses.) DS is taking a tougher schedule next semester to demonstrate that he wasn’t intending to slack off senior year.</p>
<p>9) Apps are time-consuming – it’s not just the writing. It’s the thinking, developing the willingness to share one’s innermost thoughts, and to put oneself on the line. This is the stage where leaving home becomes reality, not just an enticing mirage in the distance. It is scary stuff to a lot of kids. Respect that. It’s part of growing up.</p>
<p>10) Encourage your S/D to develop a list that reflects room to grow. Will School X meet her needs for the next four years? Is School Y the kind of place where a reserved person feels safe to emerge? Will School Z offer enough depth in your student’s major, esp. if she is coming in with college work in that area already?</p>
<p>11) Let your kid be authentic. Don’t sculpt essays, ECs, etc. to what you (parent and student) think the admissions folks want to see. Better that your kids are at a school that loves and accepts them for who they are – weird music, strange hobbies and all.</p>
<p>12) Agree with previous posters about getting SAT-IIs and SATs out of the way by the end of junior year (and subject tests ASAP after the course). Kids who try to add 200 points to their scores in the fall of senior year generally don’t. The stakes are too high and time too short by then. Allow time for re-takes junior year. That’s when preparation and planning pay off in bigger scores.</p>
<p>13) Do everything you can to make this an enjoyable and less stressful time. It’s been an honor and privilege to see how my son has handled this entire process – he is so excited about his future, loves to discuss how he’s changing and what his latest thoughts are, and to reflect on how far he’s come. It’s a golden time and I wouldn’t have missed it for anything.</p>
<p>The problem is that people are fixated on the USNWR rankings and THOSE are the schools people apply to en masse. There are in fact hundreds of lesser known and perhaps less selective colleges who have a very open policy of admissions. Sadly, people are very status conscious and credentialist and discourage kids from applying there, when it may well be a better place for them socially and academically. While we always want to strive for the best, sometimes its better to have a comfort level.</p>
<p>Lots and lots of very good colleges out there with very good faculty.</p>
<p>I would recommend the College Board’s website over that of the USNews. It has more information, a more user-friendly layout and no rankings to mess with one’s head.</p>
<p>My son’s goal was to have a list where he could see himself picking any one of the schools over all of the others. There were compelling reasons for every one on his list and he felt he’d be happy at any one of them. As time went on, he developed some preferences among the schools on the list, and he did some drop/add after EA, but he had done his homework. Sat in on classes, talked to profs, talked to people he knew from ECs who attended some of these colleges. He had a list of eight by April of junior year, and that list didn’t budge until EA decisions came out. (I know that most kids will be fiddling with their lists 'til the bitter end. However, it may well be possible to have some broad parameters and a couple of schools on the “definitely will apply” list by then.)</p>
<p>The more your S/D can get out of the way that CAN be dealt with early – SATs, SAT-IIs, an activity/awards resume, who will write recs, a well-reasoned (even if not final) list – the better off you’ll all be when senior year rolls around. If your S/D is thinking about submitting research to Siemens or Intel – the more that gets done before school starts, the better.</p>
<p>DS didn’t focus so much on reach/match/safety as on target schools. By this, I mean he looked at schools that had the programs/profs/fit he was seeking, without being focused on “name brand.” He then targeted his applications to discuss in detail why he wanted to attend that school. DS said his “Why X” essays wrote themselves – his feeling is that if they don’t write themselves, why ARE you applying there, anyway?</p>
<p>I took my SAT IIs before my SAT. I had not taken the PSAT for complicated reasons, and the SAT IIs proved to be a great foray into the test-taking world. They are much shorter than the SAT and are not written in the same intentionally misleading way; they are truly knowledge tests which, if a student knows the material well, shouldn’t be too hard. A good score on an SAT II can really bolster confidence when the time comes to face the SAT. Also, I would recommend that students not take the SAT more than twice. By the second time, barring any unpredictable conditions like a high fever on test day, many people’s score range has settled. Don’t overdo it with the test taking or the test prep. The SAT is designed to be an aptitude test, thus one that cannot be studied for, though familiarization definitely helps.</p>
<p>Check your local princeton review office. In our town, they offer a free workshop that tells you whether you are more of an ACT person or an SAT person.</p>
<p>
I think waiting a year after precal can be very beneficial. In my case, it was. The year of calculus that I had allowed me to be able to mature in my problem solving abilities before taking the Math IIC. I spent all of 15 minutes re-acquainting myself with trig formulas a few nights beforehand and that was all the studying I did. Went in that Saturday and made an 800, with time for a 20 minute nap at the end!</p>
<p>I don’t think if I had gone in June of my sophomore year, I would have done so well on the Math IIC.</p>
<p>I could spend a good hour or more sharing some of the lessons we have learned as we went through this process, but I here are the ones that stand out the most to me:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Decide which college(s) your child would see themselves attending if there is no aid (no merit, financial, etc.) In other words, receiving money from that school is not a factor.</p></li>
<li><p>If your child has an interest in a field, when on the visits get him or her to try to make contact with a prof in that area and visit the dept. while there. </p></li>
<li><p>Yes, you are sooooo proud of your son or daughter! He/she is a staight A student, scored great on the boards, is involved in everything under the sun. They are awesome! Guess what? There are thousands of great kids out there just like them. Who also want to go to college and who also will be looked at for those scholarships…(#3 is the reason for #1)</p></li>
<li><p>Let/Make your kid do the looking, researching, contacting. (Some go after it on their own, some, like mine you have to kick in the butt sometimes!) Yes, you can look, too, and yes you will feel like you were totally gipped because 20 years ago you weren’t nearly as aware as you are now at what these amazing schools had to offer! But let them own this…it is theirs.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>It is a blast, though, and I wish all of you the best of everything with your soon to be senior!</p>
<p>For the Parent: This is the time for the student to take over, but heed the guidance below. </p>
<p>For the Student: Use collegeboard.com to search through various colleges that peak your interest; gauge your chances at certain colleges based on median score ranges. Think about where (geographically) you want to study, what you want to study, and in what environment you want to study. Be realistic. Do not get caught up in the hype of the USNEWS, similar college ranking systems, or the opinions of your friends. Look into community college; it is a good alternative if you need time to develop academically. Visit all the potential colleges if you can, but it is not imperative. Get a list of colleges that are a good fit for you. Six to twelve should be a good amount, anymore is overdoing it–trust me. Check and see what those colleges require. Most will require the ACT or SAT Reasoning test: take the ACT. With the ACT you only have to send in one score report, and you can take it as many times as you want. Study: it really does help. Take some practice tests and get a tutor if need be. If you must take SAT II Subject Tests, take them directly after the subject is taken in school. For instance, “I just finished US History in school, so in June I am taking the US History SAT II.” Talk about your hopes and expectations for college with your parents. Ask them what they are willing to contribute financially and emotionally throughout the process. Most importantly, evaluate WHY you want to go to college. You should take some serious time to think about what is important to you, and what you want out of life. If you are not ready for college, take a gap year. I have a friend who says it was the most rewarding year of her life. If you don’t think college will benefit you along your intended career path, talk about this with your parents. </p>
<p>It is time to do the applications (August-December). Ask for teacher recommendations at least a month in advance. Around christmas give them a little gift to show appreciation, and remember to give them a thank you card after it is all over! Write the essays as early as possible and edit. Go back a month later and edit them once again. Have several teachers, at least one english teacher, look over the essays to check for grammatical mistakes. DO NOT LET THEM CHANGE YOUR VOICE. Remember: this is YOUR essay, and you are responsible for it. Yes, it is certainly acceptable to have someone look over your essay, but it is essentially yours. You are going to college, not them. The admissions committee wants to know about who YOU are. Double check your applications for any mistakes. Send in a resume and supplemental recommendations if you believe they will add to your application significantly. Make sure you let that college know why they should want you as well as why you want them. </p>
<p>Decision Time. Visit the colleges you were accepted to. Talk to students and professors. Talk about your decision with your parents. If they disagree with you, remember it is YOUR decision. If they will not pay for it, and you are dead set on going: go. I have another friend who goes to a school that her parents would initially not let her go to. She took out loans and she is going there. After the first year her parents came around and they are helping her out. Though, there is no security in that result for everyone. </p>
<p>And, of course: relax. Enjoy your time in HS. Leave applications and college business for the weekend if possible. Do not let your social or academic life drop because of this college stuff. Do not think it is the end of the world if you don’t get into your #1 choice. College does not make a person successful, life does. </p>
<p>Ok, I am sure there are some mistakes in this… but I don’t have time to edit. </p>
<p>So, Good Luck!</p>
<p>I agree with everything KandKsmom says. As an additional advice re: #4, I bought an expanding file folder at the start of the college search for DD, and helped her to set it up to keep track of all the paperwork from each University. We had a deal to meet once a week to discuss any issues she had, and then let her take it from there.</p>
<p>I agree with citymom the most, mythmom, colegePLEASE and others.</p>
<p>My biggest suggestion would be Actually visit colleges starting in summer. It’s hard to grasp the idea of college so early. I’m a student myself and I can say that as a junior, I didn’t grasp what I truly wanted in a college at that point. Make sure your child gets that full picture before diving into “ED” or anything. Visiting is most important!</p>
<p>Oh and really, don’t PUSH your child too much junior year. There’s so much stuff going on. But, if your child is going to start preparing for the SATs on their own–just a warning, start around Jan/Dec. Now for May. There is so much going on and it just seems to fly especially if you’re doing a lot. </p>
<p>*Don’t start apps until Sept/Oct. It’s hard to really get into college mode until senior year truly hits! Also, there are so many variables that cannot be determined until senior year aka final SAT/ACT/GPA/leadership throughout HS. I mean, it DOES count.</p>