We went through a similar situation with S-2011. He had always been a straight A student through middle school and one day he said that he wanted to get through HS with all A’s and be #1 in his class. He managed to do just that although his HS had a different means of selecting the val and sal. They took into account the strength of schedule along with leadership roles. In the end, there were 3 co-vals and everyone was happy. He was selected to give the commencement address and all three of them have their pictures on a permanent plaque in the academic awards “trophy” showcase in the commons at his former HS. He feels that his val ranking helped him with his college admissions in a couple of cases as well as looking good on his resume (it will come off with college graduation). I think your son should go for it as it will be his honor and distinction and something that can’t be taken away from him in his future years. Congrats to him!</p>
<p>@austinareadad - I just talked this through with my hubby. I initially was like hmmm… I’d feel bad going for it. Then hubs was like - if that girl is really hungry for it then she’ll need to work for it. Why should she get a pass? She needs to earn this title. So after thinking it over, not like it matters, but I agree your son should go for it. </p>
<p>I’m surprised you all know who the val is already. Val/sal at d’s school hasn’t been announced. D is #6, but has no idea who might be ahead of her.</p>
<p>@eyemamom, I think your h has a good point. The current Val I is not out of the running and she sure can knuckle down and fight for her rank. Who knows, maybe the current #3 may be staging a coup anyway!</p>
<p>We have narrowed down my D’s acceptances to 3 schools … The first is the state flagship where we will have to pay almost nothing out of pocket. The 2nd choice is the PharmD program at Northeastern. She is currently doing a high school internship at a pharmacy and loves it … She thinks this is what she wants to do. However, she was accepted to her dream school Vanderbilt which does not offer pharmacy. She is going to major in neuroscience which she loves almost as much as pharmacy. With the PharmD program, she will be done in 6 years. If she goes to Vandy for 4 years, she will then have many more years to go to grad school to become a pharmacist or if she wants to be involved in research in the field of neuroscience, it too will be many additional years. Funds are limited, and both schools are offering identical financial aid. It is hard to pass up the wonderful 4 year experience at Vandy, but the coop sounds great at Northeastern. We are going to visit both schools this month. Not sure which would be the best opportunity. Any thoughts? Anyone else in a similar situation? I’m packing my bags for the SS Indecision!! </p>
<p>@AvonHSDad, @eyemamom, @ordinarylives : Guys, thanks for all the input! Now, if he does manage to pass her up, I will feel a bit better about it. You guys are right in that it is her responsibility to hold onto the position. If she fails, at least she will learn a valuable life lesson.</p>
<p>At my S’s school, the kids know where they stand and how close they are to each other. S isn’t worried about # 3, as she is far behind and is fighting now to hold off # 4.</p>
<p>My S continues to be suffering from senioritis …My S got the following email today … “you have apparently not turned in your Taming of the Shrew journal. You’re much too bright a guy to let these habits undermine your academic standing and progress. Please have something to give me by Friday at the latest”. S is lucky his AP English teacher is flexible because grades closed last Friday!..No all teachers are this flexible. </p>
<p>I wish we knew about Val/Sal status, but it is not posted anywhere by my kids school. I don’t expect D14 to be in the running, but I’d still love to know where she is at, since she has not exhibited any senoritus symptoms. Helps that she’s taking more art classes than hardcore academics. She took summer college courses last year to meet senior year requirements, so that she could have a lower stress senior year. She was ranked 8 at the end of last semester, and each semester moves up – so even though I don’t think she’ll move to the front, I’m still curious. Sigh. Oh well, will just have to wait until the senior awards towards the end of this month. Or, more likely, for her final transcript.</p>
<p>D14’s dear friend (doesn’t live in our community, so they see each other infrequently) just accepted admission at UCSC – which really tipped the scales substantially in that direction. So many pluses for UCSC – only game design major in the UCs, honors, scholarship $ which should make it the most affordable option, near family and her BF could come on the shuttle once in a while to visit from UCB. She still wants to go to Triton day at UCSD, but I think it has more to do with wanting to spend the weekend in SD, lol.</p>
<p>No real signs of academic slack off here. S wants to dual major or major/minor in textile engineering and chemistry. It will be much easier and cheaper if he can get 9-14 credits from AP programs. But, things are definitely changing. He is very reluctant to complete required NHS service hours and seems at odds with many of his friends, even while he has been getting along better with the rest of the family. I think he’s just ready to move on and hates the maudlin drama of the end of senior year.</p>
<p>I want to thank the CC community for all your help over the past 2 years. We started visiting here when doing the research for D’s initial college list, and have kept up with all the good / not so good news from everyone. D had a 33 ACT, 3.77 GPA, 7 APs/weighted, drama, lit. mag and other ECs. She wants to major in Psychology. We originally visited nine schools. The University of Illinois, Northwestern and Wisconsin didn’t feel right so she did not apply. Out of the 6, here are the final results:</p>
<p>Reaches:
North Carolina Chapel Hill (rejected)
Notre Dame (rejected)
Michigan (wait-listed, then rejected)</p>
<p>Matches:
Indiana University (10k per year merit)
Purdue (5k per year merit)</p>
<p>Safety:
Northern Illinois University (full tuition / room & board)</p>
<p>In the end, come August she’ll be a HOOSIER! Indiana University in Bloomington is the best fit. Next we have Prom, finals and then (can you believe it?) graduation.</p>
<p>Best of luck to everyone else during the home stretch of this “marathon”. We are all so blessed to have such great kids! </p>
<p>@Austinareadad, here’s another parent saying “go for it” to your son. At my S’s school, the top ranking kids all seem to know exactly who is in which spot, so they must freely share that information. If someone is in the number 1 spot , they know they have to keep after it. </p>
<p>@SuburbanChicago, congrats on your daughter’s decision and merit scholarships! </p>
<p>Luckily, no senioritis at our house yet, just a giant ball of stress. </p>
<p>So, I haven’t been quite sure why S14 had banned college talk until he visits these schools. I asked today, because I was concerned it was because he was upset with his options. He said that wasn’t it- he just wants a break because he feels it’s all he has talked about and thought about. Alrighty then. I consider that good news </p>
<p>@vandyeyes - we also just paid the Tulane deposit, and my son was thrilled to get his congratulation. He wants to apply to Wall, likes the idea of the residential college. Wall seems to attract involved, positive kids, which definitely describes him. He is so excited right now, about to go to NOLA this weekend for Destination Tulane on Friday and Top Scholars Weekend Sunday and Monday. He is also going to Crawfest with his brother and hopefully a Tulane baseball game on Saturday. His bro is really excited that he is going to be attending Tulane as well, since a job in NOLA after law school for S1 is looking like more of a reality. I think he made the right choice, but I hope some of the scholarship apps work out, so that I feel a tad less anxious about the whole deal. It’s doable, especially with the merit aid and the grant, but of course I’d like to have to “do” a little less financially!</p>
<p>Anyone else is second guessing their kids top pick?
My s is leaning to pick a school that’s half way across the country and I am so worried. Most (2/3) kids will be instate. No one from our school has gone to this college, at least in the last 10 years. We have visited once, and liked it. But what if we are not getting the whole picture, and he’s not going to fit in? He decided not to fly again for the accepted students day, says he’s seen enough. I just don’t want him to pick wrong and transfer, I guess…</p>
<p>@MAC8993 - My husband’s half brother went to NYU - was obsessed with going there - and incurred a ton of debt, and after it all, regretted not going to a more affordable choice. I used to live in NYC, and while the campus at NYU is beautiful, I don’t believe that having raised one Tulane graduate, and now another, that NYU has significantly a lot more to offer in the reputation department. I think it depends on the program you want. NYC winters are kind of grim, but it is an exciting city. New Orleans is a lot more relaxed, and Tulane is also incredibly beautiful. </p>
<p>We just received our FA package (or the lack thereof) from Cornell. I was hoping Cornell will at least give us maybe a couple grand and/or workstudy. But nada. All that CSS Profile works, for nothing.</p>
<p>My D’s school district’s val/sal selection policy is published 1st 7 semesters grades, last semester of Sr. year not included, so pretty much by the end of December last year, the kids know their ranking when they received their transcript.</p>
<p>@AvonHSDad - the itinerary looks wonderful, Captain! And I must say, these margaritas are the best ever. I have started a paper umbrella collection. They look lovely framing the mirror in my room.</p>
<p>I’m glad we’re not the only household with senioritis. On the third quarter report card, DS got his first C ever. The startled look on his face when he saw the grade was priceless. I am glad it happened because it showed him how quickly a grade can drop when you skip homework assignments. As long as he keeps the experimentation in bounds, this last semester of high school seems as good a time as any to push the limits a little. @Stacyneil, I think this was a great time for your daughter to see how she did off of her medication. </p>
<p>We visited UCSD this morning. A clear “I love it” or “I hate it” would have been equally welcomed, but both of us had a more mixed reaction than that. For those who don’t know UCSD, it is divided into 6 residential colleges which separates students by interest rather than by major. Each college has its own GE requirements. For example, one college emphasizes international relations (and is the only college with a language requirement), another focuses on Classic Literature, etc. The college to which my son was admitted - Warren - seems ideal for him. It’s quieter, has a lot of engineering students, emphasizes social responsibility, and the GE requirements make it easy to pick up a minor area of study. This is very attractive.</p>
<p>The other attractive draw… puppies!!! When the tour guide said they bring puppies to the student center twice/week as stress relief for the students, DS’s ears perked up. </p>
<p>However, it is large and has a somewhat industrial feel. And San Diego is warmer than Santa Barbara or Santa Cruz, which is a negative for my easily-wilted son. So after a day of indecisiveness, he decided he will not go there. Fine by me, as now it’s down to two. I’d kind of just like to send in a deposit somewhere!</p>
<p>@austinareadad: Go for it in terms of being the valedictorian! My older son decided at age 7 that was one of his goals. He has never had a B in a class, including through college! He was also No. 1 in arts & sciences when he graduated from college. Nothing wrong with setting the bar high!</p>
<p>Son '14 had a great day in his first conference track meet. Set a new school record in the 800. He broke his previous mark by five seconds. He was pretty pumped when I saw him after the race. </p>
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