I did not mean to leave my last comment unfinished. I had to rush out of the house to get to a doctor’s appointment, haha!
Almost a year ago now, S26 was drawn to SLACs, specifically Kenyon, and he was open to other SLACs as far as Kenyon from home. We visited Kenyon 3-4 times, I think, and that last visit made him realize that he prefers being closer to home! He loved his time at Kenyon last summer for their summer workshop, but he admitted that it was too remote for him. This secretly crushed me and my husband. We thought Kenyon was his place - the students there seemed to be his people, and they offered merit/grants that brought COA below his in-state options. But we could not make him choose it - we just couldn’t.
S26 also realized that while he loves being in smaller creative writing classes, he admitted that once in awhile he would like to fade in the background and be in a larger class! This was also a 180 from last year! He realized that he wants a larger school than Kenyon and Susquehanna and then Va Tech felt too big. So what’s left on his list? UVA!
UVA was not on his radar because he didn’t like that the creative writing concentration was gated. His reservation at the time was, “what if I don’t get accepted into the concentration?” He only ended up applying because I made him LOL - because it’s in-state and it has his major. What sealed it for him was the visit that allowed him to sit in on a creative writing class where he got to chat with the professor and with some students. He had the biggest smile on his face, and he knew. And we knew. Even more so after their admitted students’ day and their dean talked about Raphael’s School of Athens, liberal arts education at UVA, and when two History professors spoke, my S felt that “this is it” moment.
So he’s heading to UVA where he will find his people, where he will evolve and grow. And be happy. I wish all this for him!
Thank you, everyone, for listening, for advising, for suggesting, for caring. What a journey it’s been!
Yay! I’m so glad that he found the answer that feels right for him! And as a VA parent who couldn’t convince either of her kids about the awesomeness of our state schools, I’m also excited for you for the tuition! Even if Kenyon would’ve been cheaper, at least you’re also getting something out of our years of tax dollars!
In all seriousness, we’ve had so many friends attend UVA and love it. I hope he has a similarly wonderful experience.
Thank you! Yes, so grateful we have good schools here in VA! And heck yeah for getting something out of our tax dollars! ha!
@tsbna44 I think it was you who suggested we write down his impressions after a visit. That proved to be so helpful!! We didn’t record his reaction lol, but I did make mental notes. Thank you so much for all your advice and suggestions!
Congratulations to your son on great choices and on making a decision that brought a big smile to his face! Hearing that, it definitely sounds like the right place for him.
Thanks for keeping us updated along the journey and best wishes to him for a wonderful college experience!
Congratulations
What a thoughtful journey it’s been and what a joy when you realized he “knew”.
And THANK YOU for taking us through the process all the way through his decision.
It’s interesting - because there’s another thread (one of many over the years) talking about the right amount of schools to apply to - and in this case, I forget the amount - but there were budget issues and inclusion of small and rural (Susquehanna and Kenyon) to the larger in state - Va Tech, UVA ,etc.
And OP found the right school for them - but at one point the small school led, and at another the largest school led.
Every search is personal. Some might say - but applying to all those was a waste - and I’d say that’s bunk - because the student visited, studied - really processed all of them to come to the best decision for them - so all played a key role.
This is a beautiful process and story that’s taken place over the last months.
And it shows while there is no clear cut answer to building a list - other than assuring affordability - which this family did very well.
Yes, along the good reasons to have a longer list are chasing merit and being unsure about preferred format of school. In this case both were applicable.
Thank you, everyone! Yes, what a journey it’s been! I think it helped that S26 isn’t my first to go to college. I’m grateful for the knowledge & insight I’d gained guiding my first two. I knew there was a chance that S26 might change his mind regarding campus size and distance from home, so I urged him to apply to SLACs, larger schools, in-state and OOS while balancing financial fit. Kids evolve during their senior year of HS. I’ve watched my middle kid’s preferences change mid-year in his senior year.
UVA was not in S26’s top 4 list because he was intimidated by the gated major he really wanted. I urged him to reach out to the dept chair at UVA which he did not want to do at first (he’s shy and was so busy at school at the time), but he acquiesced after realizing, “what’s the worse that could happen, what if?!?” An email led to a zoom chat with the professor, then an invitation to sit in on a creative writing class which led to chatting with students within the major and which ultimately led to his decision to commit!
I guess I’m grateful that my kid trusted me enough to follow my advice! He’s very happy and very relieved! Now he’s got just AP exams to tackle next.
