<p>Go ahead and fill in the blanks with the biographical information - it is no different than putting a stamp on the envelope in the old days before everything was on-line.</p>
<p>So sorry for bluejrs loss. </p>
<p>Oy d’s procrastination is so annoying. She is entering a writing scholarship competition at one of her top 2 schools. Must be postmarked before the 31st. No school this week as it is Regents exams. The teachers are there though. D needs to have her English teacher sign off that the work is original. She went to the school to find him before her play rehearsal. Of course she can’t find him. Oy!!! Hopefully he will turn up and we can get this mailed out. Honestly it is a longshot that she would win the competition, but given that it is one of her top choices, it is worth trying to get the $1k a year!</p>
<p>I asked S about scholarships this week since I keep seeing them referred to all the time on here and he told me he has a lot to work on and will do so after Monday when midterms are mercifully over unless we get another blizzard.</p>
<p>I guess he has quite a bunch of them they keep giving him at school. I would think the kid would have spent some time banging a few of them out instead of working on his novel. At some point he has to learn time management, doesn’t he?</p>
<p>I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of them expired. He has no concept of time-just like H. It is really pretty aggravating. He has had a job and should have some concrete concept of how long it takes to make the kind of money he could get winning a couple of these but he hasn’t done it-I don’t think there is anything wrong with doing the “filling in the blanks” but he has made this whole process so much harder than it had to be that at this point he is on his own-I love him dearly but he’s pushed me over the edge with this stuff.</p>
<p>I agree with filling in the blanks with routine info. I of course would never write anything that required sentences! Perhaps because I have always worked with a support staff, but I view that type of info I.e. Name address etc as ministerial.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the welcomes!</p>
<p>Funny how different strategies work on different procrastinating kids. My D does not react well at all to the “15 minutes a day” goal. She sees it as nagging and an affront to her ability to manage all the balls in the air. But suggesting working for larger chunks of time on the weekend seems to work much better.</p>
<p>And I wanted to contribute to the val/sal discussion from previous posts. D’s school (BIG public school) ranks (based on weighted) so there is a val/sal, I guess, but the positions are not given any public recognition. The top 10% of the class votes on who should be the commencement speaker (from among the top 10% of the class). This always seems to lead to a smart kid who knows how to talk - and less worry about competition for the tippy top spots.</p>
<p>I don’t think there is anything wrong with filling out the basic info and leaving the writing up to them. I did that for most of my Ds apps. If it wasn’t for that, they probably would not have gotten done on time.</p>
<p>On the val/sal discussion: Ds high school ranks and val does speech at the graduation ceremony. The young lady who is probably going to be val, probably has been working on her speech since freshman year. I think she has been #1 since then. D has been top 10 her whole time in HS, hovering between 5-7, with mid term grades she fell from 6 to 7 even though she got an A. It had to have been because who ever went ahead of her took an honors course first semester and D just took regular course. School weights honors with .5. I am hoping she stays in top 10. Her school recognizes top 10% by calling them first at graduation. I like that since her graduation class prob has about 500 kids.</p>
<p>Aargh - the frustration continues. Sorry, but I just need to vent. Remember the school that didn’t get D’s scores despite the fact that we sent them over a month ago? We finally got that sorted out, thanks to H calling both ACT and the school. Well, logged into the school portal yesterday and they’ve now updated all the requirements. Everything is in - but they haven’t received the school report (transcript, profile, guidance rec)!! What the ??? D talked to the GC (he sent it over a month ago). She asked him to fax them the documents again. He just called back an hour ago, saying they are having trouble with the server and he can’t get to the documents. Will have to be done Monday. D is not going to be happy - this school is a reach, but a favorite reach for her. She just heard back from the alumni interviewer who told her that she was a very strong candidate and that he indicated as such in his evaluation. She’s hoping these snafus don’t jeopardize her app.</p>
<p>Anyone else hitting such snags? Or we just the (un)lucky ones??</p>
<p>arisamp - I’m so sorry to hear that. I think you’ve had a particularly high number of snafus. I hope it clears up soon.</p>
<p>I vote for the parent filling in the easy stuff if they want to. My D was grateful for a few things I did that on. Part of it is that they’re in school all day!! I’ve known when it felt like cheating - I won’t write an e-mail pretending to be her, even if it’s a simple question. And I agree - I draw the line at sentences. Just checking boxes and simple demographic type info.</p>
<p>My kid is definitely not in the 15 min/day camp. I’ll remark on what’s absolutely necessary in a given week, and she figures out when she wants to get it done. She’s like that with schoolwork, too. I was talking with her acting coach today, and heard she’s doing well with her prep. I know that now that we’re in the last couple of weeks, D will really work hard, and that will be fine. She couldn’t have been “done” with prepping weeks ago (as maybe I would have been at her age), but she also won’t run out of time and be up late at night, either. Lately I’ve been feeling like she just might survive college. Anyone remember me from a couple of years ago? NOT the case then.</p>
<p>Thanks for the nice words about her attitude (and mine). I guess I usually think of things positively - or am such a pragmatist that I find a way to get to the positive. She’s always been more of a pessimist (she says then you’re never disappointed!), but I think she’s able to find the fun side of most things. She has had to, in performing arts - you have to find meaning and “success” wherever you can.</p>
<p>She’s always said that she “hates competition,” and I think that is still true. But she loves a challenge, which is different, and she has a very strong sense of self-preservation. So she’ll put herself on the line, but she also makes sure that there will be some reward from it - either tangible or simply from the learning experience. Sometimes this has made me crazy, because if she doesn’t see meaning in something she won’t bother with it (and sometimes she’s just missed the meaning is all - or maybe someone ELSE had meaning that she isn’t acknowledging). But luckily as the years pass her drive to find meaning has only grown. </p>
<p>You know what? I think this kid really is ready for college. How about that.</p>
<p>Welcome to all the newbies. Glad you are now contributing as well as lurking.</p>
<p>Blueiguana: so sorry to hear your sad news. Your experience and mosb’s remind us all how precious life is. </p>
<p>It’s been an emotional week here. We went to a sentencing Wednesday for three young people who brutally beat the 21-year-old son of some of our closest friends. He is permanently brain damaged and will never live on his own. Justice was served and our friends displayed incredible grace and foregiveness. That afternoon we learned that one of the pillars of our church and our school district has three months to live. Nothing the doctors can do any longer for her cancer. Did I already say life is precious?</p>
<p>As for local scholarships, a friend asked me why we were bothering for the small ones. I said $500 here, $1,000 there can add up. Still have applications for military family scholarship, research fellowship for freshmen at our state flagship and local PTA to do. Then I think we might be done.</p>
<p>My husband is headed to Vegas for a convention and industry exam tonight through Thursday. I’m looking forward to chick flicks! Happy weekend everyone.</p>
<p>Welcome newest moms. The first post is taking the plunge. Now follow up with another. And I would say there’s more room here–so any others want to step forward?</p>
<p>arisamp–so vexing! I hope all the paperwork gets to the right spot sooner rather than later. Did the U contact your D to say they were missing items? </p>
<p>Of course the kids are burned out! Finals, end of semester, that long fall of applications, essays and more essays! </p>
<p>olderwisermom, would it be possible to ask H to put one chip on D’s favorite number while in Vegas? Odds don’t seem much less favorable than getting into some of the reaches these days. What a “merit” award!</p>
<p>arisamp, had your problem with 2 schools. One first showed they had all materials - then a week later changed to transcript missing. I believe they just lost it. GC faxed and re-sent by mail and eventually they acknowledged receipt. Another claimed they had not received ACT scores which had been sent 2 months prior. We contacted the school, gave them his ACT ID # and asked them to search for his scores. Voila! The missing scores appeared. It was very annoying - the first was his rolling safety, and it delayed the acceptance a while. The second was his ED school.</p>
<p>Our HS has top 3 kids speak at graduation (weighted grades). They used to calculate final GPA’s for this before finals were done, and then a couple of years ago the val turned out to be #3 when report cards were received a week after graduation. I’m not sure what they do now - they may wait to calculate after finals, since the top 3 are writing speeches anyway.</p>
<p>Arisamp - we’re also having a frustration with GC. D got in touch with her to be sure she had submitted the mid-year report to the common app. GC wrote back in the affirmative but addressed the e-mail to another girl (same last name, similar first name - but clearly not D!). GC hasn’t responded to the polite, “just wanted to make sure you sent in the correct mid-year report” e-mails, and now D is going to need to e-mail colleges (at least one) to be sure it’s HER mid-year grades that were sent. Not a huge deal, but one more detail to worry about!</p>
<p>D has had issues with supporting info getting to the schools and getting put in the right file (she has a complicated name). ACT scores seem especially problematic. Hurray for the Common App or I am sure the GD counselor would have messed up getting transcripts, etc. in.</p>
<p>I spent an afternoon back in November calling every single college on my son’s list (he has over a dozen) and just explaining that I was playing secretary for my son and wanted to make sure that his application was complete. A couple of schools did not have everything from the HS so I had son follow up with that the next day. Another college had him in the computer twice so they were able to make him just one person. I think son had started the app on the common app site but then realized that the college said they preferred their own applications, so he stopped when he was nearly done but the rec’s had already been downloaded by the school. It was quite confusing.
Arisramp, here’s hoping that the paperwork glitch doesn’t matter too much. It sound like you have left a good paperwork trail proving that your daughter really did her part.</p>
<p>My son is also pretty competition averse. Yesterday he told a college that had asked him to apply for an early study abroad that he didn’t want to do it. When I asked why he didn’t, he said he was worried that it would be too hard since they said it was only offered to top scholars. I told him that the college was not MIT and that this was not a reach school for him, that he WAS the top scholar. But, he didn’t want to do poorly. oh, well. I did ask if I could take his place!</p>
<p>Me too, I want to study abroad! Bunch of scholarship apps due this weekend or soon after so hopefully when ds gets done what he needs to do (sleep, go to dinner w/friends, play xbox), the apps will also get done. I am working logistics now making sure everything can be emailed/submitted online so we don’t have the rushing around for post offices like last time. Just reminding everyone, OP Loftbed scholarship ([OP</a> Loftbed $500 Scholarship Award](<a href=“http://www.oploftbed.com/scholarship]OP”>Scholarship Award – OP LoftBed – Custom Beds, Design & Mattresses)) is due 1/30. Here’s a few others: [Courage</a> To Grow Scholarship](<a href=“http://www.couragetogrowscholarship.com%5DCourage”>http://www.couragetogrowscholarship.com) <a href=“http://www.bestbuy.scholarshipamerica/org/information.php[/url]”>www.bestbuy.scholarshipamerica/org/information.php</a> [Optimist</a> International Essay Contest](<a href=“http://www.optimist.org/e/member/scholarships3.cfm]Optimist”>http://www.optimist.org/e/member/scholarships3.cfm)
Owm - I’m glad that justice was served.</p>
<p>Sorry, bad link before
[Best</a> Buy Community Relations - Scholarships](<a href=“http://www.bestbuy-communityrelations.com/scholarship.htm]Best”>http://www.bestbuy-communityrelations.com/scholarship.htm)</p>
<p>I have just sent our CSS Profile and the third edition of our FAFSA out to our ten colleges. I have a lovely 2010 1040 with a “draft” watermark and a letter from our accountant explaining why it is in draft to send to IDOC. Now I finally get to work on the individual financial aid apps for the various schools. What fun!</p>
<p>Blue, so sorry</p>
<p>Never mind sweats, how about a hoodie? I keep the heat at about 61, since I hate the hot air heat we have.</p>
<p>S had a scholarship app that had to get out today. So when did he do the essays, of course last night and was late for school as they weren’t printed. I had to fill in the name & address stuff - no one can read his writing. Luckily they let him type up EC’s and all the essays and attach it to the app.</p>
<p>When I was bugging DS to get the scholarship app done he said “don’t you want to pay for anything”? I had a good laugh at that one.</p>
<p>So tired of the snow, I am afraid of what is going to happen when this 3’+ of snow melts. We are the lowest house in the neighborhood. I’m thinking pond in backyard if we are lucky.</p>
<p>S is at a cotillion tonite. Gosh he looks so grown up in his tux.</p>
<p>Brain foggy. Think I called owm’s S2 a D. doh!</p>
<p>Wonderful new news: S2 was just accepted to U Miami (their EA reports Feb 1–odd, eh?) There are rumors on the UMiami board that getting results in the early batch means the scholarship round. I am trying to ignore such idle gossip. ;)</p>
<p>Sad news: Looks like S2 did not get an invite for one of the big scholarships at USC. Aww. His older brother really loves it there–and so did S2. </p>
<p>But, you know… onward!</p>
<p>Madbean - Thanks for reminding me to ck ds’ Univ Miami account and yes, ds got accepted to Miami as well! I am happy to hear rumors that this first batch might include scholarships because, since we chose big state schools that had big marching bands and UMiami was the only private besides Cornell (who doesn’t give merit aid) there has been NO scholarships and I would just like to see something on paper that says “hey, you are someone we like so much, we wanted to give you a prize for coming here!”</p>
<p>Anyway, he has no feelings towards Miami since he didn’t visit, and I am so sick of the snow…maybe a trip is in order? FIMath what’s the weather like again?</p>