<p>out of curiosity do you feel comfortable telling us what the three schools are and what their reasoning is for not wanting you to go to your top choices?</p>
<p>out of curiosity what are the three schools and what are your parents reasoning for not wanting you to go to your top two choices. Only if you feel comfortable sharing of course.</p>
<p>As a parent , If I'm paying, I better agree with the choice..If schools are equal, no problem.</p>
<p>My parents don't care at all. Where ever I want to go, they're happy with.</p>
<p>My dad (a republican) did look a bit grumpy when I mentioned a few of the schools I was interested in (noted for being very liberal), but if I'd like to go there I don't think he'd object.</p>
<p>I often ask them for advice though. My mom went to a little tiny liberal arts school in the middle of nowhere, while my dad when to a huge state school. So it helps to have the perspective.</p>
<p>My boys pretty much got offered the same amount at the colleges where they were accepted. If they hadn't they knew that we had X amount of dollars per year & they would have had to take out loans depending upon their school choice.</p>
<p>I think that the kids should ultimately decide where they want to be with parental guidance. We looked at the colleges before they even applied & we didn't dislike any of the colleges they applied to. I guess I can't see any reason we would have objected to any college though. Other than size or location they pretty much are all the same to us (except for obvious schools like Bob Jones, etc. which they would never have chose to begin with).</p>
<p>Our Son was told that we would completely support his decision of which college to attend. While we discussed with him our thoughts of his top selections, we felt the choice was his to make since he would be the one attending the school.</p>
<p>S1 made the decision himself. We had already discussed money issues long before the search process began, so he knew what he was responsible for covering and what our thoughts were on the process.</p>
<p>We saw how thoroughly he investigated and selected each school before applying, he talked to undergrads, grad sttudents, profs and other adults he knows, and when it came down to decision time, he made a matrix of various qualities he considered important and ranked each school on each criteria.</p>
<p>He made a somewhat unconventional choice, but it has proven to be everything he hoped for, and he is doing very, very well. He knew what he was doing.</p>
<p>Edit: He also discussed his thinking with us the entire way through, which as parents, we appreciated a lot. It gave us confidence that he was really making a thoughtful, considered choice. I have to say we really enjoyed the college application process with him -- no drama, no angst.</p>
<p>Good question, and the answer is both.
The conscious decision-making process is chosen by me
But, the unconscious arrow that dictates which direction I'll go, as far the institution itself, stems a lot from my parents.</p>
<p>OP please define:</p>
<p>
[quote]
parents who chip in
[/quote]
</p>
<p>It's a free country, if you are 18 and you don't need your parents support financially or otherwise, you can go wherever you want to.</p>
<p>I am sure your parents have their reasons, are they that unrealistic?</p>
<p>I choose it myself. My parents don't care, they've never cared about my applications, tests and essays either. They just pay for it all, fair enough.</p>
<p>Why did they allow you to apply to your "top choices" if they don't want you to go there.</p>
<p>they allowed me to apply just to see if I could get in or not.</p>
<p>I'm a big techie and so far I've gotten into RIT and GT.
But apparently I dont have an option anymore
and I have to go to my mediocre state school.</p>
<p>:(</p>
<p>i chose, the families on both my mom's and dad's side have gone to two diff. colleges i was considering of the three, and i chose one of those two, but both parents stayed out of it except to tell me all of their wonderful memories at each campus during the visit</p>
<p>Is it a money issue, or a they want you to be close by so they can keep tabs on you issue?</p>
<p>If its a money issue that's completely understandable, if its a close by issue then its less justified but if they're financially supporting you there isn't really anything you can do about it.</p>
<p>heroesPM wrote: "they allowed me to apply just to see if I could get in or not."</p>
<p>I think what really happened is that they didn't want to give you a hard NO!, but hoped like heck you wouldn't get in, and thusly the problem would have simply disappeared. </p>
<p>If they or you really did it just to humor yourselves with the knowledge, that is really disrespectful of applicants who truly aspired to those schools, and disrespectful of the adcoms' time and emotional energy.</p>
<p>The parameters, if any exist, of which universities are acceptable and which universities are not acceptable should be set by the parents (they are the shareholders after all) and clearly communicated to the student at the begining of the college search. Those parameters should include geographical preferences/restrictions, financial limits (if any) and expected quality. If the parameters set by the parents are unreasonable, it is up to the student to negotiate a more reasonable set of parameters. Once those parameters are finalized and communicated, I think it should be up to the student to pick which universities to apply to and, once admitted, attend...assuming all of the parameters are met.</p>
<p>If it's not a money issue, I suggest touring the schools. Gatech is wonderful.
Sounds like they let you pay ~$60 each for street cred ;)</p>
<p>I say it is a joint decision if your parents are paying some but if you are completely paying for everything then it is your decision the whole way.</p>