<p>tvheadmom -
My daughter did not apply to any schools that required SAT IIs and she did not take them. A few schools were test optional so we did not send any scores at all. If your son is a great test taker or really stellar in an area I think the SAT IIs could help, otherwise he may not want to bother.</p>
<p>My S took Math I & Math II in November of his senior year I believe. It was optional on his part to do this, but his potential major was math-related. None of the schools he applied to required the SAT Subject tests. He wanted to show proficiency in math.</p>
<p>For many schools that require the SAT IIs, the ACTs will usually replace the need for them. So that may be another way to go.</p>
<p>If the schools do not require them, you might still want to take them if you expect a good score and:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>You are applying to schools where your HS is not well known, so a good score will add credence to your overall record and/or</p></li>
<li><p>The test is in a subject related to your proposed major or</p></li>
<li><p>I tmight help[ you place out of part or all of a foreign language requirement.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>tvheadmom: If you check out [Free</a> College Search | Scholarships | College Admissions Requirements](<a href=“http://www.collegeboard.com%5DFree”>http://www.collegeboard.com) you can see who requires SATIIs and who doesn’t. I found that by making a “my college list” my daughters were able to take note of and readily compare the requirements of a variety of schools as far as academic and testing requirements, priority due dates, what sort of admissions they offered etc.</p>
<p>This is my first time posting, but I have spent an inordinate amount of time reading this wonderful 3.0 -3.3 thread when I should have been doing lots of other productive things. I so appreciate feeling part of a virtual comunity of “my kind of people”!</p>
<p>My son is finishing up his junior year at an academically rigorous private CA high school. He is a bright, compassionate kid, but definitely not a superachiever like many of his classmates who fit right in with the profiles of the kids on the regular CC boards (4.5 gpas and off-the-charts SATs). My boy took his sweet time adjusting to being a freshman and consequently got horrible grades that year. He started getting it together and there is an upward trend since then. His cumulative gpa at the end of first semester junior year was 3.2. Finals approach – we’ll see if it can go up a bit.</p>
<p>We visited UC Santa Cruz and he fell in love. It would be an in-state school about a five hour drive from home for him IF he could get in. He’s all about the indie/alternative/liberal/creative atmosphere. He’s a strong writer and I know his essay will be strong. But will they even consider him? If they did interviews, that would be the clincher --but they don’t.</p>
<p>ca1vin: depending upon your S’s test scores he could have a decent chance. your S’s gpa puts him in the lower end of the accepted pool but if he has high test scores they could counter balance. </p>
<p>I recommend a visit to the UC admissions website to figure his UC gpa as well as a visit to the college board website to see how his test scores stack up. </p>
<p>Like most of the California publics UCSC admissions is pretty numbers driven so doing those things will help you figure out where he stands.</p>
<p>I am an alum and I love UCSC. Best of luck to your boy!</p>
<p>calv1n, what is your son’s UC GPA? UC doesn’t count freshman year grades, so all those “horrible” freshman year grades won’t figure in. Since you’re in-state, any honors courses certified as such by UC (check with your school) will garner bonus points. His UC GPA may well be higher than 3.2. </p>
<p>The other big question will be his test scores. Has he taken SAT IIs yet? He’ll need two, and you might want to pay the late fee so that he can take them on the June seating. Otherwise, he’ll have to wait until October or November. That’s not a problem in and of itself, but many students are the most ready for the SAT subject tests at the end of junior year. </p>
<p>The final gotcha for UC admission is a year-long course in Visual and Performing Arts.</p>
<p>Thanks, historymom and SlitheyTove. </p>
<p>Son is retaking ACT in a month. He got a 24 with no preparation and is now sure that he can do far better with the help of a tutor. He is on trck regarding all of the UC requirements for admission in terms of classes taken. His GC has been good about that. SAT II scores aren’t out yet. </p>
<p>He really likes northern CA rather than SoCal (of course, because we live near LA – wants to go awaaaaaaay for school!) He’s a big town/city kid who likes San Francisco, but is afraid that SFSU may not be intellectually challenging. We checked out Sonoma State, which I though was great, but he is iffy about. Doesn’t love it like he LOVES Santa Cruz. Humboldt is too remote for him and the Chico, Fresno, etc. don’t appeal to his “alternative” sensibility! In-state would be great, but not absolutely required. If he could find what he’s looking for, at least on the west coast, that’d be fine. Maybe Oregon or Washington? Just wondering what should go on the college list at this point that would include a bit of a reach like Santa Cruz and any others that you might suggest, and safeties like SFSU and, perhaps, Sonoma State. </p>
<p>Also, I should mention that he’s my first to go to college and I grew up in South Africa, so am still learning the American college routine. I had three universities in the entire country to choose from, so you can imagine that this is a bit daunting. We need a list of 8 -10, OMG!!! Any and all help is greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>Ca1vin: Lewis and Clark and University of Puget Sound both come to mind.</p>
<p>It’s wonderful that your S is so invested in finding what he wants! That’s half the battle right there! Good for him.</p>
<p>PS My D1 just came back from studying in South Africa. She is proudly wearing her University of Cape Town sweatshirt today (she didn’t go there, but had several friends in her program who did - she was doing conservation ecology in national parks through Duke University). And she also will wear proudly her South African football jersey during the World Cup!</p>
<p>You might have him look at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. Very high on the alternative/hippie atmosphere and reasonably easy to be accepted. Olympia is a fairly small town, but has a good music scene. I believe it’s in the WICHE exchange program, so you could possibly be paying in-state tuition.</p>
<p>I’d second University of Puget Sound for the “alternative” vibe, and also recommend that he visit University of Oregon. UC Santa Cruz will be totally dependent on his UC GPA, so hopefully that less than stellar freshman year will be wiped out and his UC GPA will be higher. The UCs are so impacted that even with a 3.5 UC Santa Cruz is a reach. </p>
<p>A good friend of my daughter’s is just finishing up at Sonoma State and likes the school, but has struggled to get the classes she needs and is forced to take some this summer at our local community college. Another good friend’s daughter is just finishing up at University of Oregon and mine just finished at Indiana University, and they both got just about every class they wanted at the times they wanted with few problems. So really think about OOS schools if you can afford it. With the lower room and board factored in the total cost isn’t as much higher as you might think. Good luck with the search!</p>
<p>Emmybet: I grew up in Durban and went to university in Johannesburg, but really wanted to go to Cape Town (darn parents wouldn’t let me since it was too far from home! And now I am them!!) Glad to hear your kid had a rich experience in South Africa.It is so beautiful and so full of complex problems as well as hope. The people (not biased here) are mostly amazing.</p>
<p>Regarding western colleges for my son, many thanks to those who sent suggestions and especially for hooking me up with WICHE about which (no pun intended) I knew nothing. Sounds amazing. Hubby had been clutching his chest and looking grey at the thought of OOS tuition, but this info helps! </p>
<p>In looking at the WICHE list, Portland State is a maybe, as is U of Oregon. I think we have a Pacific NW college trip in our very near future! Thanks everyone. (He’ll still apply to Santa Cruz. Just got his mid-semester grades and he’s at a 3.7 - just for that, not cum. Looking a bit better. UCSC will have to be the stretch, I suppose.)</p>
<p>calv1n, U of Oregon does not offer the discount rate to students from California, only to students from the other western states.</p>
<p>For info on UC Santa Cruz, you might find this useful: <a href=“http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/pdf/ucsc_chart.pdf[/url]”>http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/pdf/ucsc_chart.pdf</a>
But it’s a year out of date, and each year has been getting more competitive.</p>
<p>ca1vin Western Washington also may appeal to your S and it does offer WUE tuition. I may be wrong but I think OSU joins U of O in not having a WUE agreement w/ CA.</p>
<p>Check out this thread: for other possibilities: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/907349-western-schools-3-0-3-3-kid.html?highlight=Western[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/907349-western-schools-3-0-3-3-kid.html?highlight=Western</a>. page 6 has all of websites hyperlinked. Schools added after page 6 have their website linked too but on the page wherein they were added to the list</p>
<p>It’s fun to see SFSU show up on the CC board…many years ago, I spent Freshman year at a fairly tony LAC in New England that I basically picked out of a hat–great little school, bad fit. All I wanted to do was come home to San Francisco and hang out. So my folks said, “Sure-if you go to college.” San Francisco State it was.
What a delight! I know this was awhile ago (I’m 50) but it was FILLED with bright, fabulous profs. who wanted to live in the city and tons of kids of all backgrounds and intellects. In my department (English) alone, we had Stan Rice (a renowned poet, Anne Rice’s husband before he passed away) and that woman who went on to write
about her life in Tuscany to great acclaim. Every class I took there had sharp teaching and smart kids.
Best of all, it’s a cozy, buzzing community in a really safe part of the city–bordering on dull–so it was easy to really enjoy campus life and have the city be a temptation but not an overwhelming distraction, easy to get to but easy to avoid if you had work to do. Californians looking for an interesting state school opportunity our kids can get into----don’t discount SFSU! I had the career of my dreams with this school on my resume. Go Gators!</p>
<p>AcsinGa: great to hear something good about SFSU. I wonder if anyone has a recent update…it is my son’s safety school and he’s a bit worried about the commuter-i-ness of it, and, perhaps, that it won’t be intellectually exciting these days the way that it used to be. Is there an honors program, does anyone know?</p>
<p>historymom --I don’t know how you do it, but as I read past posts, I see that you are truly the dedicated expert! Thank you for all your hard work on behalf of our kids. I’m looking into your various suggestions. Schools with easy access to cities in Oregon would be a hit with my son. How does the U of British Columbia, Vancouver work for US students? Would he still qualify for financial aid since it’s another country?</p>
<p>Arghhh. Son gets a very “selective” invitation to join Mu Alpha Theta today but didn’t go to the info meeting. He wanted lunch. He says he’ll tell them his mom is interested.</p>
<p>Ok, shameless brag, but I don’t get to do it often.</p>
<p>Congrats Shrinkrap! Sounds like something my son would do too–skip an important meeting for lunch and hanging out with friends. </p>
<p>We have to jump on shameless brags when we can!</p>