<p>Ah, hello people who live on planet earth and not in the rarified air of the stratosphere!</p>
<p>JHS, I agree with almost everything you said, except many of your LACs are not realistic for what I consider to be "B students". Colby, Bates, and Hamilton are hovering in the 30% acceptance range, and Lafayette & Connecticut College aren't really B student places either (unless it's B's in honors/AP classes). When we toured Colby with my older child, the adcom spoke of AP History as if it were a basic course that everyone would take. </p>
<p>My current hs D takes a mix of honors and college prep classes. She generally gets As or A- in college prep classes, and B or B- in honors classes. I doubt she will take any AP's. She has great EC's though (varsity sport, class officer, dance team, peer guide, CCD teacher) and a great personality. She doesn't enjoy reading, she's more of a hands-on learner. I guess I'll know more about where to look after the PSAT this fall, especially since our hs won't give class ranks until Oct of Senior year. I'm thinking we will need to look at schools like Fairfield, Quinnipiac, Providence, Villa Nova, Clemson, and our state flagship.</p>
<p>"Are you worried that the schools your DD/DS will get in to won't provide a quality education?"</p>
<p>Not really. There are many quality schools for solid students who are willing to work hard, and who finally get to focus on what they enjoy/are good at when they get to college. I am a bit skeptical about the public colleges in my state, simply because they are cash-starved. But I think there is a good education to be had at many other state's schools, and many mid-level schools, small and large. I think the secret is finding the school that is the right fit for your child. Easier said than done!</p>
<p>Hold on to your hats, I have a D who graduated with a C average and was probably in the 40% range for SATs She never tested well even in elementary school. Didn't get into any 4 year state school so started at a two year and graduated with honors. She then got accepted to five or six 4 year state schools graduated and now has her masters. With a job she loves, a nice income, and beautiful family I couldn't ask for more as a Mom. I would like to say this wasn't a case of learning disabilities or slacking off, she always did her homework and studied for tests but it just was difficult for her. Sometimes it makes me sad when I hear kids say I worked so hard for my 4.0 and I only got into Cornell. B and C students work their hardest also, but it sometimes feels to me like they aren't respected for their effort but seen as slackers. I have a brilliant but disinterested son, he attends our top, very selective state school and will get his degree. He may even get into a good grad school because he aces all his classes in his major but could care less about most required courses. So take heart parents of B and even C students they can be successful. I personally don't know anyone who went to an Ivy, but I know many happy people who live in nice homes and seem very content with their lives. I have never believed that its either Top 100 school or janitor, but maybe I'm naive. OP thank=you for this thread its nice to acknowlege our pride in all our kids.</p>
<p>I have a D with a 3.4-3.5, who works diligently for those grades. Instead of AP classes (too much pressure), she's taking classes at our community college. By the time she graduates, she'll have 17 credits of Community College work which she finds to be at about the same level of her high school's demanding program. With these credits, I'm hoping she can take a little lighter load through college and avoid those 18+ credit semesters that might overwhelm her.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, a 3.3 puts kids in our high school into the bottom half of the class and we learned from a S's experience that bottom half is a cut-off for many colleges trying to keep up their stats. D wants to wait for her PSAT to narrow down her list, and wants to get an idea of how she'll do in high school physics this year before picking a major. In the meantime, I'm anxious to get going with her college search (LAST KID! HURRAY!). </p>
<p>First S was a 3.3 student in high school, who had a slow start at a large public university. Once he got into the right major, it was clear sailing and his grades jumped. He'll be graduating this year with honors, as Pres of his university's Mortar Board Honor Society (looking at law schools). He got a fine education at a large public university.</p>
<p>I'm a little biased towards those large public universities....I graduated from a state university 30+ years ago (they claimed to be cash starved back then, when room, board & tuition was $800 a semester), and went to a professional school. There are a lot more of "us" than "them" out there. I work right next to a grad of Harvard, doing the same job for the same money. He graduated 30+ years ago too. I've been in meetings where people have actually rolled their eyes when he brings up Harvard. </p>
<p>My middle kid says it doesn't matter who "wins" in high school...he wants to "win" at life. Based on every school's list of prominent alumni, I think all of our kids have very good chances to be as successful as the 4.0 HYP student.</p>
<p>Momneeds: I don't dispute what you are saying, but pretty much all of the kids I have known going to those colleges in recent years have been legitimate B students. Sure, most of them were B students at very good private schools, because that's generally who applies to LACs, some were B students in the honors track at a public high school, and most (not all) did not need extensive financial aid. Not a single one of them ever heard anyone say "You should be going to Harvard." That's not to say that any of those colleges is a sure thing for such students, but I thnk if you poke around you'll fine a lot of great B students at those schools. (I should have also given shout-outs to Trinity College in Hartford and University of Rochester, which seems fairly LAC-ish.)</p>
<p>Hi, Dad II. The profile you posted is really more of an "A student" profile. High ranking, few B's in proportion to A's, and all of those 4 and 5 scores on AP tests makes flags this as an outstanding student in the real world and a fairly typical CC student.</p>
<p>A "B+ student" profile would have equal numbers of B's and A's, or a few more B's than A's, or a few C's in the mix. The unweighted GPA would be 3.1 to 3.5 or 3.6.</p>
<p>DAD II
Play nice - no bragging about "A" students allowed on this thread. : )<br>
We "B+" parents need our own playground.
Maybe you can start a "Proud Parent of a College Freshman" thread instead.</p>
<p>Because you said:
"I'm not the typical CC studying machine and have a great social life in High School while developing people skills that will carry on through the rest of my life." That sounds just like my S.</p>
<p>I have to laugh. Students with scores like those listed by Dad II are not going to have any trouble getting into top ranked schools (aside from the crapshoot that is HYP) and will use my B+ child's "dream school" as a safety. Only on CC can such a child be considered "B+"</p>
<p>I'm following this thread because my D2 is starting hs this year and in middle school she was an A-/B+ student and my sense is that she'll continue in that mode in hs. I'd much rather figure out her range of opportunities performing at that level which for her is, I think, the right balance, than try to push her to becoming a 4.0 student. She has a few very deep intellectual interests that I think would suffer if she chased perfect grades in every subject.</p>
<p>I think JHS's posts on this thread are very insightful - especially the point about kids who don't flourish in hs where they are forced to generalize and find that college fits them better where they can specialize.</p>
<p>^^^ Why is it assumed that excelling academically = no social life? I know a girl with perfect academics, great ECs, AND a "popular" extrovert personality. Conversely, I also know B/B+ students who have no social skills at all.</p>
<p>Okay, off to a great start! Thanks everyone.</p>
<p>While some have kindly mentioned colleges to consider, it would be great if everyone could chime in on that score. Where is your 3.4er applying?</p>
<p>I've read Colleges that Change Lives (you've all read it, right?) and love the guidance there, but it's pretty much limited to small (and usually expensive) schools. DD wants a bigger school, but I'm concerned that undergrad educ is rarely a priority at those (it's more a matter of "smarts kids in, smart kids out"); we're looking for a transformative ecuducational experience. </p>
<p>Suggestions welcome nationwide.</p>
<p>Here's where DD is kicking around: Anyplace in England (oy!), Denison ("too small" says DD), UMass,...</p>
<p>To answer scattered questions: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>DadII, I think you know that 97th%ile and 12 APs are not what this thread is about. I'll stop there.</p></li>
<li><p>Yes, MSU is Spartans </p></li>
<li><p>Yep, people who attend any school (or who don't go at all) can be successes in life; my focus here is on maximizing that chance, while completely understanding that DD's roommate draw will have more to do with her happiness than how many Rhodes Scholars are on the faculty, alas.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>mammall, I predict that my rising 7th grader will be a B student in high school. She just doesn't care enough. If it were up to her, she'd play volleyball, do gymnastics, take tumbling, cheer, run cross country, dance, swim and rock climb....school? Who has time for that?</p>
<p>Here are some schools I like for the type of student we are discussing:</p>
<p>Eckerd College (St Petersburg, FL)
Oxford College of Emory University (Oxford, GA)
Trinity University (San Antonio, TX)
College of Charleston (Charleston, SC)
University of South Carolina (Columbia, SC)
Champlain College (Burlington, VT)</p>
<p>I second the suggestion of Ithaca College.</p>
<p>In the case of less than optimal stats, I think it is especially important to use Naviance or similar available info to find out the acceptance results from your high school for students with similar GPA and SAT/ACT scores.</p>
<p>D is limited to schools that have hospitality (event) management and on the east coast (Dad does not want her "all the way" on the west coast). She wants a college town or campus feel, definately staying in dorm, and it MUST have a football team. ugh, don't ask :P</p>
<p>University of Central Florida
Florida State University
Temple University
East Carolina University
Penn State - University Park
Montclair State (in-state safety)
Purdue
Michigan State</p>
<p>The last 2 I added within the past few days because we found that they are tops in the Hospitality field (although D may turn them down because the winters get TOO cold).</p>