<p>sounds like an interesting book to read scualum. I really found the Gatekeepers fascinating, have you read that and how would you compare? The Gatekeepers follows maybe 6-8 kids at various levels of detail through the process, since this is 100,000 I assume it is more just little things from their applications that are commented on?</p>
<p>re the AP tests, the schedule is the same each year. So for example if test A is the first Friday one year it will be the first Fri the next year. Only variable is what the actual two weeks are. So we have kids that take a test the afternoon before their prom each year.</p>
<p>I have not read the gatekeepers so really canât compare. Each chapter in this book takes on an issue in admissions from the perspective of the admissions dean and the college. I found the book really helped me understand the perspective of the other side of the applications process - the person who evaluates the application.</p>
<p>A few points that really stuck for me were </p>
<p>1) How many very qualified applications were turned away - essentially the claim was the Stanford could throw away the applications of those they admitted and admit the next 5000 kids instead - and not have any significant drop off in quality of the class.</p>
<p>2) How they agonized over the decision - sometimes we, as parents and students, think that the decisions are mechanical or unfeeling - this book showed me how the decision makers work through a painstaking process, knowing that real people are behind the paper.</p>
<p>3) She also does a series of chapters on the more difficult subjects - Affirmative Action, Athletics, Legacies, etc. While I may not agree with her stance on all of these, it is obvious that these are topics that have been discussed in detail for years within the admissions office and that the positions are not lightly taken.</p>
<p>For the most part she does not get into individual applications other than a few examples to illustrate a point.</p>
<p>scualum - I think The Gatekeepers is probably similar - though itâs written by a reporter who was allowed to observe the admissions process at a school (Wesleyan?), and not an admissions person. A is for Admission by Michelle Hernandez who was an admissions person at Dartmouth (I think) is another book like that. I think theyâre all helpful, but they do make you realize how much luck is involved in the selection process.</p>
<p>Understanding that luck is a part of the process is something that many donât understand⊠I heard yesterday from a friend of a friend whose child is applying only to Yale, Princeton and Harvard. They were discussing how they were going to chose between the three. While their little darling is wonderful, she is not THAT wonderful. I sense major disappointment in their future.</p>
<p>scualum, thatâs unbelievable. Hopefully, her schoolâs guidance counselor will set her straight. My son was speaking to a friend last night who told him that her PSAT score was 199. She was very excited about it (as she should be) but thought that she might be a National Merit SEMI-finalist, and her parents agreed with her and told her that when she became a finalist and received $$, they would give her certain privileges she wanted. My S didnât have the heart to tell her that the commended cut-off has generally been 200. Lots of people donât have access to or havenât sought out correct information.</p>
<p>jym,
Absolutely understood! She isnât even going to be commended if that 200 score holds-my S knew that and didnât have the heart to break it to her.</p>
<p>Oh yes, I know you know, momof3. Any chance she is a minority and could qualify for the National Achievement or the National Hispanic Recognition scholarships???</p>
<p>As the early decision and early action results come out, it has been very helpful to look at the results threads. This year seems to be even more insane than last yearâŠor maybe it just seems that way to me. I wasnât really following those threads last year. My concluson: I am going to redouble my efforts to find really good safety and match colleges.</p>
<p>Momof3 - They are ignoring the GC - according to my friend, âoh her - she has no idea what she is talking aboutâ⊠I was just chatting with the friend on the phone and she said that the parents were talking about buying her a new lexus to celebrate getting in⊠I also found out that her SAT scores were in the 2000 range. They are in for a rude surpriseâŠ</p>
<p>Just thought Iâd throw in here that I met a fellow junior mom today, and she told me sheâd sent a note to the counselor asking for her ddâs student access code to get the PSAT score. Glad Iâm not the only one! Maybe I should coordinate an effort among all the parents! Mwahahaha.</p>
<p>^^^ Really, youdontsay; you dont say? (Sorry, couldnât resist ) Do any colleges offer scholarships for students recognized by CBâs NHRP? Surely there must be some benefit to this honorarium??</p>
<p>Yes, there are individual schools that apparently do offer scholarships, just nothing from CB, like there is for NMSF and NA through the NMSC.</p>
<p>I started doing some research on it when riverrunner (or riverdad?) was asking about Natl Achievement. I ended up calling both NMSC and CB to get it all straight. Apparently, the grant that established NMSC programs didnât include money for a program for Hispanic students. When I called NHRP, I learned that becoming a Natl Hisp Scholar is a two-step process, just like NMSF/NMF. Once you make the initial cutoff, which is based on state-by-state scores, just like NMSF, you have to qualify for Scholar status, which is based on your GPA. I think 3.5 qualifies for Scholar, but I donât know whether thatâs W or UW. I figure S will cross that bridge when he gets to it.</p>
<p>If Iâve got this all wrong, someone please correct me.</p>
<p>Itâs always something! Last night, D casually mentioned to me that she had a problem when she went to take the ACT on Saturday - she couldnât find her name on the list. Apparently, when I registered her, her name flipped, and her first name became her last name! Not sure how that could have happened, but I have to call them today to straighten this out - and I have to cross my fingers that her score doesnât get lost in the process.</p>
<p>LIMOMO2âhave you been reading the Meta thread? A name change might be a good thing! Last names as first names have that certain *je ne sai quoi * that adcoms are subconsciously looking for! </p>
) Do any colleges offer scholarships for students recognized by CBâs NHRP? Surely there must be some benefit to this honorarium??</p>