Parents of the HS Class of 2013

Parents of HS Class of 20xx
5841

<p>I am new to this whole forum and am feeling totally lost! My son is our oldest of five and a junior. I am totally stressed! Maybe some of you can advise. I already have that feeling that I am missing things…like I just discovered that his transcript was completely wrong and had dropped his gpa and class standing because of an error. He is supposed to list 2 schools for the College Plans Reporting Service by May 23 and I don’t even know what the best way to use this opportunity is. I have parents telling me that I should be taking him to the east coast to look at top 25 schools (we live in Michigan) and I am feeling very guilty. Whenever I suggest we visit an in-state school he says he wants to wait till summer. </p>

<p>@ mamabear1234 & Socialdramamama: How amazing to have such awesome schools coming to your area! I am so envious, it is too bad about the conflicts.</p>

<p>@ RobD: Maybe you can offer some advice on the whole NMF thing. Actually, he is scared that scores are going to make a jump and he’s not going to make it. The last 5 years his score would have qualified for our state, but by a very slim margin.</p>

<p>@ MommyDearest13: Your son’s opportunities sound amazing! Congratulations and best luck choosing.</p>

<p>By the way does anyone know much about Boys State? It is one of the two leadership camps my son wants to attend this year.</p>

5842

<p>Thanks, CBG. I’m surprised to see Johns Hopkins on that list as I spent a lot of time last night on its website and couldn’t find that info. You’d think that if you were need-blind and met 100% of need you’d advertise that!</p>

5843

<p>I’m so sorry to hear about all the kids stressing out, having meltdowns, and disliking school. My S never complains and never “appears” stressed – Mr. Chillax. So I asked him how he was holding up through this crazy time – he said he’s good, but he sees a lot other kids freaking out. He said he takes a break and watch the Simpsons, then all is good again. LOL</p>

<p>SAT SUBJECT TESTS - The SAT 2s seem like the biggest rip off. The kids take a Collegeboard AP test, then they have to turn around and take the SAT 2, another Collegeboard test. Can someone explain to me why the AP test isn’t good enough for admissions? There’s really only a short list of schools that require them – even fewer if you’ve taken the ACT. </p>

<p>AP TESTS/FEES - We pay for AP tests, but they are in one of the school buildings. They have a big room they use for various things like that. I think the reimbursement for high scores is a good incentive. I’d make my S pay for them himself – I’m sure work a little harder if he knew he’d get his money back! The kids probably don’t care if it’s their parent’s money. I can’t believe how high some of your fees are – I think we pay around $175 a year.</p>

<p>DISTANCE – If S could go to CA, he would. Heck, he’d probably go to China. I think he needs to leave this area for better job opportunities anyway, so I need to get used to the idea that he will probably not be living near home unless we follow him! I think a nearby airport is a must too, and the cost of airfare needs to be considered into the COA, but other than that, it’s his choice.</p>

5844

<p>Walker – Both programs are fully funded (tuition, room, meals, etc.) – so that doesn’t help with the decision. He would have to buy books for the STEM programs – about $150-200. I figure I’m saving money if they’re feeding him for six weeks – a growing boy with a hollow leg! </p>

<p>PghMom – I like the term “high octane”! If S decides to go to that program, I hope he can stay level headed like your son. He always is, so I’m probably worrying for nothing. I just didn’t realize that is an actual focus of the program, so I’m sure the expectation is that the kids will aim high. </p>

<p>Perazzi - I have the same outlook as you for AP Physics - S will be retaking in college, but he needs to prepare for the SAT II anyway so mum’s the word. For Euro and Art History, I would like him to do well so he can get those gen ed credits. </p>

<p>Ama308 – I know nothing about NYA-AD, but I hope you’ll tell us all about it through this process – sounds exciting!</p>

<p>Nellieh – so sorry about the accident – that would be scary for a new driver. I hope it didn’t discourage her.</p>

<p>Apollo – your kids are so adventurous! I can’t imagine not talking for weeks – I’m going to have to build up to that! S isn’t really committed to foreign language in general, but he does want to learn Chinese and see it all the way through. He’s really interested in their culture, and he sees it as a very relevant language. He’ll take it in college either way. He is aware that if he doesn’t do the Chinese program this year, he won’t be applying for study abroad next summer. NSLIY is the one he was looking at.</p>

<p>Lacrossemom – congrats to your D on achieving her goal! Is she totally done with school after APs?</p>

<p>Drmom123- Welcome and congrats to your D on the great grades/SAT score. If she does to decide to apply to the lottery schools, I think giving the ACT a try is a smart move. Lots of kids (not all though) do better on the ACT.</p>

<p>Anniezz – It is hard to stay away, isn’t it!?!?</p>

5845

<p>YDS - this is the list I have - it’s from USNWR. All schools meet full need, but I’m sure some include loans of varying levels. JHU is not on it - maybe they only guarantee it for ED like CMU.</p>

<p>Amherst College MA
Barnard College NY
Bates College ME
Blessing-Rieman College of Nursing IL
Boston College MA
Bowdoin College ME
Brown University RI
Bryn Mawr College PA
California Institute of Technology CA
Carleton College MN
Claremont McKenna College CA
Colby College ME
Colgate University NY
College of the Holy Cross MA
Columbia University NY
Cornell University NY
Dartmouth College NH
Davidson College NC
Duke University NC
Emory University GA
Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering MA
Georgetown University DC
Gettysburg College PA
Grinnell College IA
Hamilton College NY
Harvard University MA
Harvey Mudd College CA
Haverford College PA
Macalester College MN
Massachusetts Institute of Technology MA
Middlebury College VT
Mount Holyoke College MA
Northwestern University IL
Oberlin College OH
Occidental College CA
Pitzer College CA
Pomona College CA
Princeton University NJ
Rice University TX
Scripps College CA
Smith College MA
Southern Arkansas University AR
St. Olaf College MN
Stanford University CA
Swarthmore College PA
Thomas Aquinas College CA
Trinity College CT
Tufts University MA
Vanderbilt University TN
University of Chicago IL
University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill NC
University of Pennsylvania PA
University of Richmond VA
University of Southern California CA
University of Virginia VA
Vassar College NY
Washington and Lee University VA
Washington University in St. Louis MO
Wellesley College MA
Wesleyan University CT
Williams College MA
Yale University CT</p>

5846

<p>MommyD, awesome! I wondered because I was pretty sure JHU didn’t promise to meet full need, but know from personal experience that Carleton does, but it wasn’t on the wikipedia list. I’m sure it’s all a bit of a moving target.</p>

5847

<p>Is anyone’s '13 kid feeling burnout? My D13 is home today feeling “sick” which I believe is more like exhausted rather than sick…she only has three weeks left but she is a mess…</p>

5848

<p>^I’m sure you’re right. It does look like this this is over a year old. I see now in the text that JHU and Vanderbilt missed the list by just a few percentage points - so very close to full need. I’m not sure if I’m allowed to link it, but you can find it by googling “USNWR full need colleges.”</p>

5849

<p>Burn out…that’s it!
Youdontsay: yes, she has spent 2 weeks on a college campus for dance in the summer. I have told her she will absolutely not go to a summer college program this summer because she is just so stressed by school; I want her to have a real summer,where she might have more time to let herself think, away from home and school, about what she really wants and why she wants it–apart from peers who are in the school mode for the summer.<br>
What is a Lottery school? </p>

<p>–yep, this is addicting, but also helpful, and I can see where it can add to the stress if one begins to think you have to do what everyone else is doing! So far, I am finding it helpful to read, think and ask questions. thanks everyone.</p>

5850

<p>Burnout is in the air. I read here about kids asking for LOR’s. So, I think my “Have you thought about who you will ask for LOR’s?” might have been a bit much. The look she gave me was “Seriously now? Wow, mom, just wow!” ooops. Maybe after AP’s would have been a better time to ask. After all she has 5 weeks to go!</p>

<p>Reed College is a school recommended for D. My friend was just there and said the out of the box kid would be great there, but not balanced for the well rounded kids.</p>

5851

<p>Happy to say that Jr survived his (2) Finals in (2) days while prepping for the AP’s at the same time. 106% on the AP Bio and still waiting for the Hnrs Pre-Cal grade.</p>

<p>But the BEST news of the week is that he is good to run this Saturday! Looks like his “team” of Dr’s has helped him get back to 100%. Cannot tell you how happy I am about this!</p>

<p>On a completely different topic…has anyone visited Baylor? (It has been added to my D14’s list as she has had some interest from their Acro Coach.)</p>

5852

<p>D needs a break to “de-stress” but she absolutely won’t take it… S14 on the other hand does not know the meaning of stress… not sure which is better, to be honest. I can’t believe the range of times these kids get out of school. We go through the middle of June. That said, I think they basically have parties and watch movies from Memorial Day on…</p>

5853

<p>Welcome, mommaof5. My son still hasn’t chosen his two schools either. If it would initiate an offer for a free app, I would choose those schools. The consensus seems that that the high reach schools don’t care about NMS, so don’t bother with those; the guaranteed scholarship schools (ie Alabama) are guaranteed, so don’t bother. I think S will just flip a coin! </p>

<p>Are you looking for guidance on which schools you should be looking at? If you tell us a little bit about your son (intended major, gpa, act/sat/psat, geographical preferences, etc), we might be able to help you get started. For a lot of us, finances are a huge factor, so that often has to be the starting point. If that’s an issue for you, then there are a lot of things you should consider when putting together your list. A lot of top schools have very low admissions rates for even the best of students. Their admissions are based on more on subjective criteria. Not to say your S shouldn’t apply, but he should also plan to apply to some safety schools that are very likely admission and very likely affordable. You may already be on top of this - I’m just throwing it out there!</p>

<p>I agree with Haystack – CC is like an alternate universe! It can be very informative, but it can add to the stress level!</p>

5854

<p>I was just thinking about the end-of school dates varying so much. I wish my kid would have classes that just showed some movies…that might actually help her decompress and not hate school, right now…</p>

5855

<p>OK - so son never told me he needed to get to school early this morning for AP exams. School starts after 8, but apparently AP exams start at 8. UGGH.</p>

<p>He has difficulty with his disability to complete test timely to begin with. Hoping for at least a 2. Otherwise the high school will not list the course as AP and he will not get the GPA weighting.</p>

<p>Some days I want to strangle my kids more than others.</p>

5856

<p>Drmom – sorry – a lottery school is a high reach school for ANY kid (like the Ivies you mentioned) – gaining admission is a bit like winning the lottery! Admission seems so random – lots of kids with perfect GPAs and SATs get rejected – even kids with what would seem to be a “hook” – they are trying to put together a diverse class and you have no idea where you stand! Crap shoot is another term you’ll see on CC!</p>

<p>Three weeks of school left here! I think they go strong to the end. Finals the last week in all classes except two of his APs.</p>

<p>Longhaul – Oh no - so was he late and still allowed to take it? Breathe deeply . . . .</p>

5857

<p>Longhaul: A good glass of wine may help this week :slight_smile: Good luck to your S on his testing. This is such a crazy time for ALL of our kids… You couldn’t pay me to go back and do it all over again.</p>

5858

<p>@MommyDearest13: thanks so much for welcoming me. Son has not decided on a major. His gpa weighted is 4.27, unwieghted 3.98, ACT: 34, SAT: M 750, CR 690, W 640. In 8th and 9th grade he took an accelerated program to do all of his HS english requirements at Michigan St. U, so he is partial to it because of the huge impact the prof. had on him. So I think he wants to list MSU, which would be his safety. Finances are definitely a consideration, we have four younger ones (3 still in tuition based school). Any advice would be appreciated, we are in a small town and I don’t have a lot of people in the same boat to bounce things off of.</p>

5859

<p>so hard to keep up.</p>

<p>MommyDearest – I’d urge my son to go to the STEM program if he is unsure of a college major. My logic - It is easier to get into a STEM major when applying for colleges than to change to a STEM after enrolling. So, I’d want son to get a solid idea of what is involved with STEM.</p>

<p>As for the National Merit schools – 1 that my kid chose was Juniatta, a small PA LAC that awards competitive full tuition to NMF. For him, it seemed the best way to get on the schools radar. His 2nd choice was kind of a waste because it was one of those guaranteed scholarships. But, he really didn’t have time to research for the smaller schools with competitive NM scholarships. I would have liked him to choose 2 LACs or schools that care about interest.</p>

<p>Momma of 5 - BOYS STATE - For NJ, all the Boys States delegates have been chosen and orientation meetings have begun. If your son is interested, have him contact your American Legion or see his counselor immediately. Here is NJ site with links to all states. The websites are very informative. [ALJBS</a> :: Links to related sites](<a href=“http://www.aljbs.org/php/about/links.php]ALJBS”>http://www.aljbs.org/php/about/links.php)</p>

<p>School doesn’t slow down here after APs. We let out June 7. He has two Engineering projects, at least 1 paper in English, power point presentations in History and final exams in all that I am aware of – he doesn’t tell me everything, so I’m sure there is more</p>

5860

<p>Thanks for the info Longhaul. We are in MI and his paperwork was turned in today. We spoke to our local American Legion rep last night and he was frustrated that they couldn’t find kids who wanted to do the program. NJ kids must be more on the ball!</p>

<p>Schools out May 31 here.</p>

<p>We pay $88 for AP, but there is no refund if you score well.</p>