<p>Congrats dadfor2014! Closure, and a very good place to be at UM Florida.
Thanks Gertrude. Fingers crossed nothing big will come out of the meeting. I’m inclined to deposit at CofC regardless then deal with it later. But I’ll still be at the port, waving you all on the SS Indecision!</p>
<p>Congrats dadfor2014! So glad you made the decision!!! Excellent choice. Warm weather, great program, nice price! Aaah. To be done. </p>
<p>@dadfor2014 - Congratulations! I’m glad you’ve reached the finish line of the admissions process. And, it’s hard to beat full tuition!</p>
<p>@Classof2015- I am sorry to hear you are in distress. Why is it ex-husbands only get involved when they have something to lose? It would be nice if my ex would contribute to D’s college, but since I haven’t seen any child support for a long time, I’m not counting on it. Of course, that won’t stop him from questioning our decision. I hope your ex doesn’t cause any problems for you! </p>
<p>It sounds like a lot of our kids are looking for a different environment than HS. My D attends a HS with nearly 4000 students and wants to attend a college with @1500 students! She is quiet soul and likes “cozy.” I think large campuses and lots of people simply overwhelm her. I hope there are enough students that she can find her tribe. Now y’all have me worried. </p>
<p>@Classof2015, @3tallblond, @Overtheedge Thanks to all of you and I hope you all finish the May 1st Line soon.</p>
<p>Now we are moving to other stuffs like booking flights for Orientation and Thanksgiving and Winter break plus housing selection, etc … I guess its a never ending story and we just cross the biggest hurdle and rest will fall in places… I am sure where ever our kids will go they will be happy in their Choices…</p>
<p>I agree Miami is much different then the Windy City of Chicago no more Cold Vortex. I am planning to Retire myself in the sunshine state when the Time comes… but for now will try to visit as much as I can. B-) </p>
<p>@Overtheedge - don’t worry, I’m sure she will do fine. The most important thing, and what I wish I had known, is to join some extracurricular group. It’s very hard to make friends just by sitting by people in class, a little easier in the dorms, but to truly find people with a common interest, joining something - anything, as long as you have a genuine interest in it - is the quickest & best way. I did not do this & I’m sure my college experience would have been far richer if I had.</p>
<p>Congrats dadfor2014! Closure!</p>
<p>@classof2015 Good luck. It is rather late in the game to be getting involved! Let’s hope it is in the right spirit.</p>
<p>@glido thanks…</p>
<p>Thanks for the welcome, everyone, and congrats to everyone who has decided on their schools! My sister has narrowed it down to Iowa, Smith, or Miami of Ohio - ISU and UIUC aren’t big draws, and she thought Augustana was too heavy into Greek life for her taste. The only one she’s visited so far has been Iowa and she liked that a lot, and we’re going to Smith this week. I think it’ll come down to distance and size there but I’m secretly rooting for Smith - I think it’s the best place for her. I’ll let you know what she thinks, and I’ll be so glad when this is over! I get a short break and then it’s time to look at jobs and grad schools…</p>
<p>thanks overtheedge, crowlady, dadfor2014. Just heard from GC that H wants to sit down with him and S. I guess he doesn’t realize Spring Break is coming up so this won’t happen before the 21st. I sent in the deposit anyway (worse case, I’m out $300). I didn’t think we’d be re-thinking this now.</p>
<p>pageturner – go Smith! Hope she decides on Smith too. Good luck with your own search.</p>
<p>Can I just say how happy I am that most everyone here seems so normal and grounded? The race for top schools can be unbelievable and cut throat in the real world, and the comments people can make about kids going to a school that someone else considers less than can sting too. I just like to hope that kids thrive wherever they go, and no one school is the secret to happiness and success in life. </p>
<p>D is considering an instate and an out of state private and I am getting flak for both depending on who I talk to. I guess it is so easy to criticize others. Remember all that advice we got when our kids were babies and toddlers - from how/what to feed to what clothes to buy… </p>
<p>Thanks @GertrudeMcFuzz for the encouragement and advice! I think D is planning on joining an a cappella group and literary organization. Hopefully, that will help her find her tribe. </p>
<p>@chrysanthMum – I have a feeling that a lot of people will be surprised when D14 chooses UCSC over UCSD, because too many people only see the prestige. I looked on the website someone posted a link to, that shows how many chose one school over another when they were admitted to both – and 85% chose UCSD over UCSC. </p>
<p>But it just seems so clear cut to her, and to me, that UCSD isn’t as good of a fit. And we also watched a video that someone linked from a well respected speaker (can’t remember where or the guys name) that talked about how is has been statistically proven that students are more successful in their careers if they were in the top 10% of their college – so it’s better to be top 10% at UCSC than 50% or lower at UCSD. </p>
<p>Fortunately, most of my friends would be thrilled for their kids to get into any UC, so I won’t be hearing as much flack as my daughter may at school.</p>
<p>@Overtheedge - sounds perfect! My D is also looking forward to the acapella scene if she ends up choosing Temple over CSU Long Beach (which doesn’t seem to have one). Over the last couple days, the SS Indecision seems to be trending slightly toward the northeast…</p>
<p>And regarding all the flak - here’s hoping we can all tune it out to the best of our ability. Think back on all the thought that has gone into this decision over the past year. Hours of research, campus visits, etc. to arrive where you are. The people making off-hand comments know none of what you have learned about your schools - they are making snap judgments based on vague impressions. I am feeling somewhat relaxed on this issue since I know we will get about equal flak no matter which choice D makes. Her friends all think Temple sounds cool and exciting, while the grandparents are firmly in the CSULB camp (close to home). </p>
<p>As it turned out, it wasn’t as bad for her as I thought it would be. They had to do an assignment based on what school they were going to, and she decided to just go for it with UCSC. The project started a dialogue amongst the students (basically half the graduating class) about where they are going. A few people are going to UCLA, but most are going to UCD, and some are continuing at the CCC where they do their DE, as well as a few other CCC’s. It seems, as far as she knows from what students said, that she is the only one to get Honors – and her peers think it makes sense that she would go for the Honors option at UCSC. I told her she can’t SIR until we get the FA package (they are delayed, probably due to the strike last week). But, she has made her choice unless the FA package is wacky.</p>
<p>Woo Hoo!! I think I’ll be serving some champagne on the SS Indecision within a day or so if that dang FA info would hit the inbox!</p>
<p>Congratulations @PetraElise! UCSC is an amazing place and it is close to Bay area which has its own rewards. So happy to hear that other students are looking beyond the “brandname”. </p>
<p>The speaker in the video clip is Malcolm Gladwell. We made DS watch it at some point in the past couple months.</p>
<p>@GertrudeMcFuzz, You are so right, “equal flak no matter what”! </p>