<p>Jolynne, UAL may have some similar demographic concerns and want to make sure kids are not disadvantaged if they can’t afford a computer. Interestingly, our older son says he uses the computers in the labs for most of his work rather than his own laptop because he doesn’t want to slow his laptop down by loading it up with all those memory hungry programs. Also he says it’s quiet in the labs and easier to work. However, UVA is reportedly decreasing the number of computers in the labs since all of the students have their own and the labs are under-used. </p>
<p>Another interesting tid-bit from the visit is reportedly 50% of the engineering students at WVU go to summer school. That seems really high and I’m not sure what to make of that stat. Job placement for all engineering majors is reportedly 100%, with 2-3 offers common in this economy and 6-7 in a normal economy.</p>
<p>Neither of our boys play computer games because our computer at home could never manage them. I couldn’t even load Vista on this old thing, which is why I’m in the market for myself as well as S2. We did buy a Wii and the younger one plays that sometimes. He isn’t on facebook much because I am always on the computer! I think his primary form of communication is texting/cell phone.</p>
<p>One of the things I’ve heard from some college types is that some professors are discouraging computer usage in their classrooms. The reason? The kids are surfing instead of taking notes and listening to lectures. Perhaps that is another reason why colleges are not too excited about laptops these days. </p>
<p>The Analyst, you mentioned about the high number going to summer school. I’ve got a thought. Is it because these engineering majors did not meet the math requirements? I have a student who is going to WVU, and he told me the other day that he needs to learn calculus in a month so he can meet that requirement … or he will need to spend an additional year in school. A lot of kids these days are struggling with the math requirement at a lot of schools. Several get through AP calculus, do lousy on the exam, take a placement test at their college and learn that they need to go back to pre-calc.</p>
<p>momreads, it probably is due to remedial needs. Our son will take the math and chemistry placement exam at orientation in June and I am assuming he will do fine. He is in regular calculus (not honors or AP) this year but has an A+ and finds it very easy. I sure hope the class hasn’t been dumbed down too much. Our older son took honors calculus, but I don’t think it was AP (didn’t take any AP exam that I remember). Anyway, he sailed through his engineering calculus classes at UVA and did comment that he was surprised by how many of the kids were really not properly prepared. I’m assuming that either the calculus teacher at our high school is very good or the boys have some sort of natural feel for calculus (or both). The physics teacher, where S2 also has an A+ this year, is reportedly horrible so I dismiss that grade as meaningless. He got some ridiculous amount of extra credit for building a great catapult that wasn’t even his creation but that of a brilliant kid in his group who will be majoring in art at VCU next year (unique design). </p>
<p>High school has been such a waste of time in terms of our son actually learning anything, from what I can tell, but he seems excited about college. I know college isn’t supposed to be about job training, but the affiliation with the FBI and the concrete discussions about how what he will be learning in college does apply to an actual job seems to have made a huge difference in his motivation.</p>
<h1>tm - cyber hugs from over here too. my D is very much a last minute kid, with a bad case of senioritis. she has a major English paper due at the end of next week that she has barely begun. she spent this weekend (including missing a day of school) at her final youth group regional event, where she saw her former BF for the first time since the breakup. so I know it was a very emotional few days with lots of “lasts” for a close group of friends, and probably little if any sleep. she will not come home in great shape for buckling down on that paper :(</h1>
<p>rachacha - re:
. is the floor of her cave covered a foot deep in dirty clothes, etc? ;)</p>
<p>Still no college choice. And no progress on 2 scholarship apps due next week. S waited too late to ask favorite girl to prom and she is going with someone else. He’s going anyway, but no tux (or anything else) arranged for May 9 prom.</p>
<p>D2 officially got asked to prom last night. The young man made dinner reservations at a very nice restaurant and the waiter brought over a special menu that the date had printed that had a nice poem and the big question about going to prom with him embedded in the regular menu. Then the waiter brought out a huge bouquet of flowers for her. It was very nice. Now we just have to find a dress…this could be our last minute vigil! ;)</p>
<p>Not that I am happy anyone else shares my pain, but this place is SO GREAT. I can truly feel <em>I am not alone</em>
Thanks to all of you who commiserated with me and good luck to all of you who are facing similar scenarios. Someday we will all sleep again</p>
<p>TheAnalyst & momreads–those are good points re: computers. I can definitely see that son is distracted sometimes in his school computer classes by surfing the web. I told him zero non-schoolwork-related comp time in school (thought this would be obvious, but, apparently necessary to mention). </p>
<p>NorthMn–how cute!! Son’s friend sent a girl on a scavenger hunt all through town, ending at her favorite place to eat – he was there in a sharp suit & w/a prom-request poem. She said yes. I told son’s group of friends that girls really love stuff like that!</p>
<p>I sure hope so…woke up several times during the night thinking about son’s college choices. He’ll have to live with his decision, and I hope he makes the right one for him…I’ve shared some of my thoughts with him, but am reluctant to say much for fear he’ll rebel and make an opposite choice. </p>
<p>I would love to have some prom stories to share instead of the decision obsession, but I’ve heard nothing about it!</p>
<p>after prom party here–oh, but S and GF have not even passed out their handmade invitations and the prom is this next Saturday! I had decided that I would be calm, cool, and relaxed. Woke up this morning and found myself ANNOYED. S thinks I worry too much.</p>
<p>About the computers–I have 2 nephews who are going through college without their own computers. They use the U’s labs. The family cannot affort to buy them and the boys have worked around it. One is a library science major. They did not have after prom parties either…:o</p>
<p>It has helped some to too tell S that there are only 24 days left of classes and then finals. It seemed to make him realize that it will be over soon and so “hang in there”.</p>
<p>Historymom–when I purged the college files I felt very emotional and anxious. All those possibilities and roads not taken. Just scared me.</p>
<p>cpeltz–for weeks I’ve been waking up at night, unable to sleep, worried about choices (& the attendent loans for some of them). When son 90% picked less expensive school, I could sleep better. But, still worried about the consequences. </p>
<p>Interesting re: your nephews, oregon101. I guess laptops aren’t a necessity for everyone, that’s probably a good thing!</p>
<p>I cannot wait to throw out the huge file of college info! Son had applied to so many schools that by the time the reach/waitlists/rejections came, we were immediately tossing everything into related to those schools into the trash w/out a second thought (at least I was). </p>
<p>Not to say there won’t be angst (likely mine) re: roads not taken. Just can’t wait to get ride of all that stuff!</p>
<p>Btw–for those of us down-to-the-wire … just looked at the ‘don’t double deposit’ thread … trying to parse it to see if you do double deposits before May 1st that’s a problem? I’d think not, othewise they wouldn’t require deposits before housing selection which occurs months before May 1st’! Also, someone from one of son’s final group of colleges encouraged him to make a deposit to hold a spot (I think, after 5/1) until some more final fin aid info comes through. Is this some huge moral quandry? (looking at all the moral admonitions on ‘don’t double’ thread…!!!).</p>
<p>PRJ - I am afraid to even open the door!! Needless to say “I pity the fool” that is going to be her roommate…maybe she will be a little more courteous with someone else sharing her space…can’t wait to see that questionnaire!</p>
<p>For those of you who are already at that point, what kind of questions are the schools asking for roommate matching?? More than the just slob/neat, early/late riser stuff???</p>
<p>Rachacha, Richmond asked if if D could tolerate a smoker even if they didn’t smoke in the room; they asked how into sports they were, they asked about views on alcohol and what types of music they couldn’t stand and about study and sleep habits in terms of noise. Oh they also asked if they were unusually tall and needed an extra long bed.</p>
<p>We did the file purge to recycling a week or so ago and cleaned out all the email boxes on the main computer devoted to all the schools not selected.</p>
<p>DD won two small ($250) scholarships in the past few days. One for the best career passport which was a school requirement but if you turned it in they considered you (1 winner per high school and all winners were female) so as she said, it was easy money and she didn’t have to write an essay. They have a breakfast in the kids’ honor so she gets to go to school late that morning (best part as far as she was concerned). </p>
<p>D is going to prom with a group of 7 including 3 girls without dates. She and another girl decided to buy each other corsages (cute). They had their senior superlatives pictures taken on Friday. She was voted most intelligent (she and the boy had pictures taken with signs in front of each of them that said I’m with stupid) and most likely to make $1million (that one didn’t do anything for her).</p>
<p>We must be bad researchers, but we have very little in the way of files. We have a few brochures sent to us in the fall and a stack of acceptance envelopes and some waitlist and rejection envelopes. Nothing else. What else do you have?</p>
<p>last yr my s had files for each school, with correspondence, scholarship info, this yr my d had things all over the house, I bought her a hot pink file organizer and now all the stuff is well, stuffed into that. my d will be contacting her school tomorrow with her decision. (she made the decision weeks ago but stalled on calling–which worked out–once they recvd her midyr transcript she was awarded even more scholarship $. </p>
<p>I may suggest that after she calls tomorrow, she get rid of all the other stuff, and make it kind of a little ritual.</p>
<p>shawbridge, we had all these glossies from visits on campus (trips made the summer of junior year) business cards of professors that D met with while on campus, information about the city the college was in if it might prove useful later on and the actual correspondence from the colleges.</p>
<p>I guess life was simpler for us. Our son decided not to visit schools until after acceptance so we didn’t have any glossies or cards. But, it seemed to work out OK.</p>
<p>we didn’t visit early either but still have files. Acceptance letters , award letters with return dates, College Catalogs - which S found the most useful to be able to compare courses side by side from different schools, audition info, visit dates, basically anything that came through the mail and some things we printed off the internet went into a file for each school he applied to. As info became available it also went on to the spread sheet (I have been purging the schools off the spread sheet as they are eliminated too. I ended up doing the filing system because every time I went to look up something (my memory is not what it used to be) I would have to sort through the stack. Having a folder for each one was simple</p>