<p>Case sounds right up his alley with his interests and the 22k sounds good!</p>
<p>Morning All! Son made his decision and we paid the deposit last night. He ended up saying no to a top 30 national and saying yes to a top 20 regional which no one has ever heard of. It’s a great fit and I think he will really grow. It was fascinating to watch how he weighed his pros and cons – it showed a level of maturity and future-thinking that I have not seen before. There is no doubt in my mind that he is ready for college and will be successful. (whew!)</p>
<p>So, now off to serve the rest of you still on this boat. I make a mean green smoothie that doesn’t taste like grass…any takers? Also, maybe a bit of yoga to relieve some stress…</p>
<p>@spritle - which school did he end up choosing? </p>
<p>I leave in the morning for vacation, not a moment too soon!</p>
<p>@eyemamom - he chose Christopher Newport, with the honors and president’s leadership program. Enjoy your vacation! </p>
<p>Congrats to all who have decided. I’m a tad jealous. We flew out to CA to visit USC. Both my girls plus their younger sister fell in love. The climate, the campus, our tour guide, etc had them at hello. Academically, they want to be on a premed track as well major/minor in theatre. USC seems to have both. My husband and I know their hearts are in the theatre so we want to make sure they have opportunity to explore their creative side as well as the sciences. </p>
<p>However, I’ve been reading a lot of negative reviews from students at USC. Now I’m very hesitant. Any advice on that? </p>
<p>@spritle - I really liked that school and I could have seen my d there. What I really liked about it, besides how pretty it is, is how small the classes are and how involved the professor are with the students. It just really seemed like it was a little jewel - for a state school I much preferred it to the other’s in VA.</p>
<p>@3tallblonds - all I can say is think about who writes reviews. It’s someone with something to say. Some things they say are real, but don’t matter or shouldn’t surprise anyone, there may be a few legit things. With a school that big, and I assume you are talking about the left coast school, not the east coast - that there will be all kinds of people, all kinds of experiences. </p>
<p>I found that it is important to look at the validity of the review site, percentage of responses per total student body, etc. You don’t always get an accurate assessment. The more valid review is one done by the National Survey of Student Engagement. You can always ask admissions about the reviews that you read and see how they respond. That is more telling than the student review itself. I also learned to trust my child’s and mine “gut instinct”.</p>
<p>@threetallblonds we had the same concerns about reviews for the college my D ended up picking bcz there was alot of negativity on a certain student review website. We almost wrote it off but we asked a ton of people in the area who had attended or had kids attending and never heard one bad remark but exactly the opposite. Then the student for a day really helped her see that the people were so nice and nothing like the website described. We also asked the interviewer about the negative comments and our concern…he said that there are always going to be some people who do not have the experience they were hoping for and will be disgruntled. I thought that ea am acceptable response. The students were even bad mouthing the administrative offices but our experience was that they were among the kindest and most helpful and quick responders than all of the twelve schools D applied.</p>
<p>so for us we had enough first hand info togive it a try.I’ll post back in a year or two if it turns out otherwise.</p>
<p>@threetallblonds- My S11 has had a wonderful experience at USC. The school felt right to him from our first visit when he was a HS senior. He will be a senior next year and enjoys campus life so much that he will be a RA in the dorms next year. He has made great friends has had fantastic social and academic experiences, Unless you are quite wealthy or have high merit awards, financing SC can cause stress so reviewers expect perfection. If it works for your family, go for it as it offers the total college experience. Fight on!</p>
<p>@threetallblonds. I live in the general vicinity and if the degree of ferocity of Trojan spirit is any indication, it’s a great school. Yes, it’s in a scuzzy area of town but it’s a wonderful program with excellent opportunities for those who can afford it. FWIW, I’ve never met a dissatisfied USC student. I think you should go by the feel of “fit” for your daughters.</p>
<p>Ugh. Leaving for surgery in a few minutes. Not what I want to be doing right now AT ALL. I also feel badly because I can see how worried/stressed my D is about it.</p>
<p>@threetallblonds
My niece and my nephew are USC alumni. In fact my nephew loved the school so much, he had his masters at USC as well. They loved USC. USC has a very actvie alumni network. Even better than UCLA and UC Berkeley, imo. Fight on!
My daughter went to USC’s Explore 2014 and stayed overnight for their Presidential Scholar program and had a positive experience. USC is 3rd on her list right now behind UCLA and Cornell.
Are we the only parents left on the boat?</p>
<p>@2018dad There are still plenty of people who haven’t registered the final choice in the Google doc <a href=“https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZxUwgbCqcCpq4L_2L4lAhqcKQAN0AyGHDAjf1rDX9rI/edit”>https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZxUwgbCqcCpq4L_2L4lAhqcKQAN0AyGHDAjf1rDX9rI/edit</a></p>
<p>Not that it is terribly up to date 
</p>
<p>@staceyneil Good luck with your surgery!</p>
<p>And congrats on a decision @spritle – we made a similar regional-over-national decision. I think it will be interesting if more and more people start to do that and universities realize that a focus on undergraduates successfully attracts students, not just research reputations. National universities pressure faculty to bring in grant overhead and often penalize those who spend too much effort on undergraduate teaching. While that can be good for some undergrads, it is does a disservice to others. I was the sort of person who approached a professor after a lecture he gave in a large class and said “I’m really interested in your work, how can I get involved in it?” Resulted in an excellent summer job and subsequent work-study during the year. But I can’t see my S being so pro-active.</p>
<p>Hi - I don’t post often, but enjoy reading all the news! My D selected UT-Austin about 2 weeks ago. It was between UT and Clemson. She loves the big school spirit and Southern vibe. We live in SF Bay Area. She has a few friends at UT from her high school, and I think in the end, she was worried that she would know no one at Clemson, whereas she has friends and family in the state of Texas. She is not a high maintenance kid - makes friends easily, and is not worried about a large school. </p>
<p>If you thought college apps were bad, trying getting letters of recommendations for sorority recruitment, especially when you live in an area that has never heard of them! </p>
<p>Regarding USC, I have to concur with all the recent comments. A large number of kids apply from our area, and only a few get accepted. Everyone that goes absolutely loves it. It is highly regarded and you cannot beat the alumni connection. </p>
<p>Best of luck to those approaching the dock - may your arrival be smooth sailing!</p>
<p>I also don’t post here often. I just ordered D’s graduation announcements. If anyone still needs to do that, I used Pear Tree Greetings online. No, this is not an advertisement. It’s just that I used them for my older D’s announcements and they were just beautiful, and there are so many options to personalize.</p>
<p>@staceyneil thoughts and prayers for you today!</p>
<p>Although D has committed to Villanova, I will be posting a major FA RANT regarding her # 2 school which was Lehigh. It will take me longer that I have time to devote to it while at the office today.</p>
<p>Congrats to the latest decisons. @staceyneil - Best wishes to you on your surgery.</p>
<p>Don’t forget to partake in all of the speical holiday weekend activites that are being held onboard this weekend including the special midnight chocolate buffet on Saturday evening.</p>
<p>@student4ever - I feel for you. Have you or your DS considered a gap year for him? I actually wish we’d encouraged my 20-year old to do a gap year. I think he just wasn’t ready for school at the time. He’s very smart, but his mind just wasn’t in it. He ended up going to the local CC, but he wasn’t motivated and didn’t do well. He took last year off, although in retrospect, we should have helped him plan out his year to make it more productive. He is back on track now, having started a job last week to contribute towards the tuition for CC in the Fall. Although my D14 is so ready to head off to school, whether it be a few hours away or on the opposite coast, her twin, my S14, is not. He is very content with attending the local CC, and transferring in two years; and I honestly think that’s the best thing for him.</p>
<p>Congratulations @calla1 - so happy for you knowing your son has found his perfect fit at UCSB!</p>
<p>@2014ProfDad - How’d your D’s solo trip go this week? Seems like it’d be in everyone’s best interests, if all the schools held their ASDs by the next to last weekend in April, to give kids a full week to consider all their schools and make their final decision.</p>
<p>@staceyneil - Thinking of you going into surgery this morning, and keeping you in my prayers. How cool for your D to already be Skyping and making friends with a future classmate from halfway around the globe! And how great to have that school fit confirmed all the more at ASD (love the Dean reading two of your D’s accomplishments - no wonder you were teary-eyed, that has to make you feel great!). Sounds like a perfect fit! Maybe someone else on here can answer this, but I’m wondering if the proceeds from the sale of your boat going into a 529 might increase your EFC for the next three years (I’d hate for your sale of the boat to increase your EFC, defeating the whole purpose of you selling it). I also wish there was some financial solution other than selling your boat. Is your D applying for many scholarships outside Mount Holyoke? </p>
<p>@momreads - how great for your Son '14 to be breaking his own records in his final hs season!</p>
<p>@yellowgranite56 - Northeastern or Vanderbilt? Sounds like a win-win situation! Both great schools - love Boston and how easy it seems to get around, and Vanderbilt is gorgeous.</p>
<p>Congrats @Dave_N, @Creekland, @Classof2015, @Minnymom, @PetraElise, @lab317, @MImama, @spritle (I’ll take a smoothie, thanks!), @Gigem86, and any others I may have missed who recently committed!</p>
<p>@onlyonemom - It’s so easy to second-guess ourselves. I’ve done that many times over the last few months. I think it’s good though that your S knows you’re open to either school should he change his mind. I’ll be very glad for May 1st, and to start the dorm room planning.</p>
<p>@2018Dad - Sounds like your D will do great wherever she goes!</p>
<p>@AvonHSDad - Hooray, Captain! Should make for a lot of excitement during the Georgetown/Villanova b-ball games!</p>
<p>@GertrudeMcFuzz and @TitanAPBioTchr - love, love the pro/con party idea! Great friends, great advice! So glad, especially with the last-minute possible offer thrown in, that the decision is made! Go Owls!</p>
<p>@chrysanthMum - I feel for your D, but just a month and a half left of school, she’s almost at the finishline! Thank goodness AP Lit is the one AP class my D is not taking this year! My D loves to read, but is a slow, methodical reader, like me. Along those lines, it does make me a little nervous that if my D chooses Pepperdine, Regent Scholars are required to take the Great Books Colloquium, which is very reading intensive. She has a great attitude though and looks forward to the discussions, although we’ve agreed, should she go there, she’ll need to try and get the list of books beforehand, and do some major reading this summer to get a headstart. </p>
<p>@Moonmaid - Congrats on finishing all the FA apps!</p>
<p>@LucieTheLake - Love your post! Congratulations to your son! 
</p>
<p>LucieTheLakie: Great thank-you note. Roll Tide! I hope your son loves Alabama as much as my older son did!</p>
<p>@Gigem86 - glad to meet another sorority wanna be! My d is going to an SEC school and most women have no idea what she’s talking about when asking for a rec. We both worked on her “package” the pictures, resume, transcript into the stamped envelopes and I’ve maintained her spreadsheet. And she’s not even 100% on this - lol But if you don’t jump through the hoops you can’t do it later. </p>
<p>There is one we absolutely cannot find, we’ve contacted every person we’ve ever known, the local panhellenic sends you to the national and the national sends you back local, then no one just responds after that. It’s a sorority that appears to me to only take in state students so I’m think, forget it, you were going to get dropped after the first day anyway. </p>