@SugarSmarts Haha your username is fitting! You’re the sweetest! 
@desideratum as one of the students at one, it’s quite an interesting place to be. Most of my friend group isn’t as driven as me, so half the time, I feel like I’m smart, but the other half of the time, I’m around people like the guy I mentioned above and my self-esteem takes a trip down an abyss.
Hardest class: AP World History. Okay, so this class isn’t actually hard. It’s my easiest class. Which is precisely why I need to work absurdly hard to ace the AP test. (And I have now figured out that I hate ancient history, which is absolutely wonderful.) Also, we have to take a ton of notes in a really annoying format.
@tonystarkofwinterfell Ahh, I see. A lot of my friends are similarly driven, and many of them are presidents of multiple clubs, but none of us have really accomplished anything at the level of the person you’ve described…It must be pretty overwhelming ://
OH I REMEMBER TAKING WHAP. To be honest, it’s been my favorite history class; I’m not particularly a fan of APUSH - I think the generality of WHAP appeals more to me than do the specifics of US history, which kinda sucks as I know that in order to exact change in our political/social system, it’s important to know what’s going on and why it’s that way…but sometimes I just can’t bring myself to get excited about US history, ah! How do you all take notes?
General question, then: What’s the most effective way of studying for all of you guys? Studying has been one of my weaknesses for so long - it’s only been recently that I started rectifying that :’)
@eyrar99 aw thank you!
ew competition…I read a study that compared the amount of happiness between high powered Ivy-esque schools and your average state school, and was surprised to find that the numbers were pretty similar…and I am assuming that the Ivy leaguers endured more stress and financial burden to get there. Not to mention the crazy toll on our health from like not sleeping…but who needs sleep anyways??
Sometimes I read stories about people that @tonystarkofwinterfell talked about and seriously get myself down. It feels like nothing I’ve worked for is important enough to be noticed in the fifteen minute reading of my application (what I like to call the “determination of fate” cuz hahahahaha screw apps). And then I’m like, why the fork am I still doing this??
The fact that we’re all sticking with this insane path to insane colleges makes me think that it’s more than just getting in, though, because I know a LOT of people who want to get into HYPS and are not doing nearly enough to do so. I think (correct me if I’m wrong, but this is from personal experience) we’re more in it for the a) learning, since obvi we wouldn’t put our heart/soul/eternal fate in the hands of an admissions officer without kind of liking what we’re doing; b) the success factor, b/c heck yes when we get into our dream schools I’m calling every person I know ever and telling them, and because we’ve worked, what, 12 WHOLE YEARS to get to this point so we deserve some recognition; and c) you smart. You very smart. And you want to hang with other smart people (lol that’s why we’re on this site).
So yeah, don’t get yourself down about what crazy high powered student X is doing with his startup or whatever, because your own passions and journey to get to these schools means you’re just as deserving as he is to get accepted.
Hahahahaha well I just wrote a novel
Peace out I’m going to bed
REAL QUICK THO
@desideratum I am hands down a terrible visual/audio learner, meaning I have to DO everything to make sure I understand it. So for me, flashcards and literally writing out the answers is how I study. Otherwise I find that I can memorize info pretty quickly in the short term, so I tend to do a lot more procrastinating than I should…so all my study strategies rely on acronyms and visual aids to provide me with quick ways to memorize.
I think to some extent people (not necessarily us) get caught up in their own little community and don’t realize the sheer number of incredibly smart and brilliant students there are in the US, let alone the world, who are also being told “you’re a shoo-in for _____!”
@desideratum It depends on the class! I do lots of review problems for chemistry and precalculus, but stuff gets trickier in English, history, and Spanish. I have nit found a study method for English (but that’s ok because I only have essays!!), Spanish consists of practicing audios or readings (though I used to do online practice activities for grammar and use Quizlet for vocabulary), and history tends to be a mix between creating timelines and rewriting my notes.
By the way, I’m pretty pumped for college visits! Sometimes I feel it’s not just a trip for college visits, but also an excuse to go visit other cities 
Edit: I’ve never made so many typos in a post before…
@SugarSmarts I got accepted into the Carleton Humanities Program. I’m not sure if I will, but if I do attend it’ll be a great chance to check it out because I am definitely considering applying there RD next year (actually, this fall – senior year is only a few months away!!)
@tonystarkofwinterfell I also go to a Bay Area school. The struggle is real 
My ranking is abysmal
@SugarSmarts you’re so sweet ah!!
yeah - it’s kinda sad, how those stories about wunderkind teenage entrepreneurs or activists are supposed to motivate us, but just end up causing us to feel worse about what we’re already doing (at least, in my case :’)). but all the reasons you gave for why we’re in it for the long haul, busting our butts off to get to the universities of our choice, are definitely accurate!! i’ve never really been one to take ap classes - or classes in general, save the aberration that was medterm (although that class helped me definitively say: I DO NOT WANT TO BE A DOCTOR/NURSE :’)), for the way they’ll look on my transcript. the best thing about ap classes is the environment, definitely. in my favorite ap classes, discussion is abundant and there are tons of ideas being tossed around, and the curriculum is challenging, which sparks even more interest!! and you’re right, success is definitely a factor because it feels AMAZING to achieve your dreams! although i feel that we’ll all keep pushing no matter what we achieve cause you can always get better/improve no matter where you are ^-^
trueeee. humanities - imo - are the hardest subjects to study for, mainly cause i don’t like reading as a form of studying that much…but i’m really lazy when it comes to rewriting notes etc.
from what you guys have said…i guess bay area schools aren’t that great…
but no matter where you go, it’s still really stressful!!
i’m curious - what are you all planning on majoring in, everyone who’s checking out carleton?
I like the story about how a guy who built a nuclear reactor in his garage was rejected from MIT. Don’t compare your accomplishments with other applicants when your personality, work ethic, etc are more important factors in admissions processes, especially with top schools when ALL of the applicants have amazing grades and accomplishments.
@iamnotironman I understand what you mean, but at least having amazing accomplishments under your belt won’t harm you. With them, it’s a crapshoot, but without them, you have absolutely no way of knowing whether you’re x college material.
Junior year is almost over THANK YOU GOD is anyone else exhausted?
@desideratum that is a perfect way to describe it!! And omg same I entered high school thinking I was going to be a surgeon…did a complete 180 turn after taking anatomy and dissecting a rat. Can I just say ew…
To answer your last question, I’m not completelyyyyyy sure what I want to do. It could be anything like:
-Med school (still not a surgeon! and it’s a pretty noble profession, etc etc etc)
-International relations (uh but like I don’t like politics…)
-Languages (WHERE ARE THE JOBS???)
-Something regarding sustainable development in impoverished nations?? Or something that helps low income people get educations?? But then how would I make a living off that…
@fairagoura YES IM DYING
Ugh I was just thinking about AP tests today. Let’s not go down that road yet…
@fairagoura The worst is yet to come. SAT II and AP fest in May sigh…
@neoking haha same…
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“Helping low income people get educations” THIS. ESPECIALLY IN IMPOVERISHED NATIONS, OR AT LEAST INCREASING THE ACCESS OF SUCH PEOPLE TO SCIENCE AND MATH!!! @SugarSmarts
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Oh, another group question: How strict are your parents, and if they’re relatively strict, how do you deal with them in terms of conflicts?
@desideratum I would looooove to major in Art History, but jobs. I will probably major in English and become a teacher or journalist/columnist. Or I might major in Psych because I loved AP Psych last year. I could be a social worker or go to grad school and be a psychologist.
My parents are veeeerrrrry strict (rarely allowed out with friends, no TV, few movies, no wifi access for my iPod…). It’s infuriating, because I’ve never done anything not to deserve their trust, but they’re just automatically very limiting. Basically, I just try and avoid conflict (because it will only make things worse) and remember that I will be moving out in a year and a half.
@desideratum WOULDN’T IT BE SO COOL TO DO THAT???
Anything along those lines I would be totally fine with lol
OK SO GLAD U ASKED THIS
Prepare for a debriefing of my life in the paragraphs that follow.
My parents are complete opposites.
I like to call my mom the Hispanic tiger mother because she’s very intense and um…emotionally unstable haha…
My dad is your typical quiet scandinavian guy. He’s purely logic, so if I ever need a definite opinion on something I talk to him. If I want to talk about something for three hours and make little to no progress, I talk to my mom.
Ok so they can be strict but it depends on the situation.
- Electronics: My brother is a freaking computer genius (no lie he hacked into a website when he was nine), so my mom does not ban them. However, she has blocked every single distracting website (so youtube, facebook, and even CC at one point!) on my phone and laptop. When she gets mad at us, she literally TAKES THE WIFI ROUTER OUT OF THE HOUSE. This happens more often than you would think. The rule in our house is that we are not allowed our phones in our rooms and we can’t do anything fun online during the weekdays, but it’s always been that way so no big deal. No social media allowed.
- Homework and grades: I am expected to keep my grades at an A or above. If I get a B on an assignment my mom gets concerned and asks what’s up. But I’ve never really had anything lower than an A- on my report card, so I guess I don’t know what she’d do if I got a bad grade in a class. My brother on the other hand has a 3.2 GPA and she doesn’t care–unfair? Yeah.
- Friends: This is probably the most problematic for me since I’m relatively social and DO want to hang out with people. My mom does not let me drive with other teens nor does she let me go on dates alone (my brother had to go with me and my mom dropped me off…needless to say that didn’t go well). I am also not allowed sleepovers or allowed to talk to strangers online (EXCEPT FOR CC HAHAHAHA WHAT NOW MOM), among a billion other rules she has made up. I can’t drive in the dark. I can’t go to other people’s houses without her meeting the parents. And I sure as heck can’t form any study groups because they’re “distracting”. So most nights I’m at home alone.
She is also a die hard puerto rican catholic and if I say anything remotely blasphemous or crass, she makes me pray for forgiveness #sorrygod.
She also talks ENDLESSLY. LIKE SHE DOESN’T FORKING STOP TALKING. It’s 1 am and I’m like madre tengo escuela kapeesh and she just keeps on talking. It’s like my form of punishment at this point.
My dad doesn’t really do anything.
On the rare occasion he’s mad, everyone shuts up and does exactly what he says. But he’s way more chill than my mom on a given day.
There are too many rules to keep track of tbh…
Hahahahaha so sorry that was way too long. If you want to read it, go for it. Otherwise, here’s the condensed version:
Mom=kinda crazy, lots of pressure, emotionally unstable and punishes me every other day.
Dad=hides in the shadows studying insurance rates. doesn’t punish me unless he’s really mad, then all hell breaks loose.