Parental Pressure Vs. Encouragement

Minnymom
Sat, 28 Dec 2013 19:21:06 +0000

S has planned to apply to Stanford since junior year. He has already applied to several fine schools, including other highly ranked California schools. His Stanford app is complete, LORs uploaded, test scores sent… with the exception of the Intellectual Vitality, Roommate, and What Matters to You essays. He now says that he is not Stanford material because he has nothing to say on these topics. His dad and I are disappointed that he is not following through on this application and it is causing a lot of tension in our home. I know that his chances are slim, yet not awful… 2090 SAT, 740 Math II, 680 Chem. His GPA is strong- 3.98/4.38. He is African American male and has some interesting ECs. As a parent it is really hard to straddle that line between pressuring him to get it done and encouraging him to follow through. Once he finished UC and other apps at the end of November, he lost his momentum. We are trying to talk with him and not argue but he is shutting us out on this. Whether he applies to Stanford or not, he has several great schools on his list and I am sure will be accepted into at least one that will provide a great education for him. But I want him to complete this app and follow through. Any ideas on how I should handle this?