<p>I think that’d be a major where he’d just have to get through those two courses. The rest of it wouldn’t be dependent on how well he did in them. If he’ll listen to his brother, great. Another option might be not to take the second class right away (unless it’s the same language; then best to take #2 while the memory is still fresh). My d’14 is a math major, too. She was dreading comp sci, but ended up liking it so much she’s going to add it as a second major. </p>
<p>@momreads, sounds like he’ll just have to gut through the two compsci courses. But he can do it!</p>
<p>Interesting that your son has mandatory study hall hours for his sport and fraternity. My DS is also an athlete in a fraternity but neither has required study hours. He does meet with a coach once a week to discuss academic standing but there is no required team study hall.</p>
<p>I’ve not been posting because I’ve been waiting to form an informed opinion. I have enjoyed reading everyone’s posts though. DS has done really well so far. All As except for Calculus III, which is a low B. We talked about taking Calc II instead, but the consensus at the school was that he should take the more advanced course. Chemistry is going so well, he’s considering it as a second major. UnderArmor has been in touch already regarding an engineering internship. And, he’s decided to row for the Crew team. It’s a tribe to which we’d not been previously introduced. But, we went down to see him in novice 4 at the Head of the Schuylkill regatta. It’s just hard to believe the boy who had to be called three times in the morning to get to school voluntarily gets up at 4:30 Monday through Friday to row on the Schuylkill. It’s changed the way he looks too. When he ran XC he was obviously fit, but skinny. I saw him two weeks ago and he probably put on 20 lbs of muscle. Socially all is well. He gets along well with all three of his roommates and his teammates.</p>
<p>DS is sick for the first time at school. It doesn’t seem too serious, but he is out of action for the weekend. It is hard to accept that there is not much a parent can do from 2800 miles away - can’t even heat up chicken soup. :(</p>
<p>Sorry glido… sick kid so far away :(</p>
<p>Glido, sorry to hear that your son is under the weather. Hope he feels better soon. </p>
<p>2014novamom: My son really is not fond of the 10 hours of mandatory study hall between his fraternity and his team, but with a 3.0 GPA or better, he will be released from the team commitment this spring. With the additional time, he wants to work as a desk assistant on campus. He could earn some spending money. The job would not be too stressful, and he could sit and study when he is not pushing a button to let someone into the building. I told him to go for it. As for the comp sci class, well, he called his older brother over the weekend. Apparently, he is so hog-tied by the experience that he has decided to make math his minor. That’s good, because he needs just three or four math classes for the minor. He really loves math, especially statistics, which could help with any job in the government or private industry. He does have registration today, but he also plans to see an adviser about adding finance and/or accounting as a major to his economics. If that makes him happy, great. There is a tremendous demand for accountants these days. And finance is one of the top paying majors, according to lots of business surveys. He probably will take additional math classes, because his high school BC teacher recommends that he does – and he loves her.</p>
<p>At least he told you. A few years ago, I had a young man who didn’t tell his parents he changed majors. Our kids are sometimes afraid that we’ll be disappointed, that somehow we’re invested in their choice of a major. Silly kids. It’s their lives. We just want them to be fulfilled, contributing members of society (and not living in our basements!)</p>
<p>Ordinarylives: I, too, am glad that he did call and explain his decision. His older brother had e-mailed me earlier and said that comp sci was giving his brother fits and felt he would be better suited in the finance/accounting/econ area. That’s fine with me. We want him happy and successful. We even know people in these fields, and one of my fellow teachers offered to call her daughter to check into internship opportunities for him. And you’re right about the basement thing … except we do not have one. He’d have to live in the shed.</p>
<p>Sadly, I do, and my '11 said she may come home to live in it after grad because she doesn’t want to renew her lease when she won’t know for sure where she’ll be working! 
I guess it’s logical. She may not be able to sit for boards until July or so, and I really have no idea how long it takes to get the official license after the test. Still, time limits. Time limits. Out by October?</p>
<p>@momreads 10 hours a week isn’t bad, especially since he’ll be exempt after this semester with the requisite GPA. Compare that to my son’s friend who is in ROTC at Va. Tech, with mandatory quiet study time from 6-11 pm every weeknight, including Fridays. They are not allowed to use their phones or do non-academic things on their computers during that time. This kid is going bonkers with boredom and has already read ahead for months.</p>
<p>@ordinarylives - I don’t see anything wrong with a kid returning home for awhile after graduation (other than the disruption to your life 
) provided they have a plan and are actively working toward an acceptable goal. If they are not contributing to the household (chores or rent) and are laying on the sofa all day it would be different. My S graduated in 2010 without a job (I really think he just wanted to stay at college longer - lol). He came home and got a part-time job to cover personal expenses while looking for a real job. I gave him a deadline, but I would’ve extended had he not found a job despite diligent efforts. I ended up letting him stay for several months after he started working although I started charging him a little rent. He amassed a solid emergency/slush fund during his time at home. It later enabled him to easily make a cross country move and job change, and to buy a new car. Plus, I don’t worry about his ability to handle unexpected expenses. I feel like I launched him into real life with a good start (degree, no debt and money in the bank), and that makes me happy. </p>
<p>That does sound nice @overtheedge , but my '11 and her dad clash quite a bit. </p>
<p>@ordinarylives - Ah, I understand. Unfortunately, D and my H, her stepfather, don’t get along well either. So I imagine things will be different with D, which makes me sad. Tough, military background, CPA type vs creative, quirky, emotional, literary type. If my D needs to come home after college, she might opt to live with her dad instead. Although I’m not sure how long that would last either. </p>
<p>Thought I would pop in and say hello! So glad to hear that most of your kids are thriving. Transitioning to independence has its obstacles. Go2girl is “overwhelmingly happy.” No regrets at all on her decision, making tons of friends, loving her classes and making the most of the Nasville music scene. It is comforting to know all of her hard work paid off and I can relax. Well, not exactly. Go2boy is a freshman in high school so now he gets my full attention. A few friends are in the throes of application season with their seniors. Hard to believe that was us a year ago! We won’t be seeing go2girl until winter break so Thanksgiving will be a bit lonely. She’s meeting up with her best friend in Ohio so I know she will be well taken care of during the break. </p>
<p>My S just told us that he doesn’t think he can come home for Thanksgiving because it is right before Finals. That’s disappointing, though he said that maybe he will let us pick him up to take him over to my sister’s (his aunt’s) house for the meal itself, because she lives just 20 minutes away from him.</p>
<p>S is a pre-med and, with the pressure to keep grades up, he says he has much less free time than he was expecting. He had planned to party once a week at college but that changed to once a semester and he finds he has less time for extracurriculars than he thought he would. He does say that some of the other pre-med students he knows do party and otherwise take chunks of time off on occasion, but he doesn’t know how they do it and he doesn’t want to take the risk.</p>
<p>At least we know that he is taking school very seriously.</p>
<p>I agree it is great to hear about so many HS14 kids who are now happy freshmen. My D1 is among them, sure she made the right decision, very happy and very busy. She plans to visit closer relatives for Thanksgiving instead of making the trip home.</p>
<p>D2 is a high school senior, so she is getting my full attention as college applications go out for the second year in a row. Completely different kid, different major, different geographic preferences, there is no overlap.</p>
<p>Austinareadad: I can understand the stress that your son is feeling. My older son, who is in his first year of law school, sent me a text last night wondering what our plans were for visiting him in a week or so. We wanted to take him to lunch, and then we’d help him with anything he needed to do in his apartment (last night, my husband ran the vacuum, and I straightened up the bathroom, while our son did things in the kitchen and bedroom). My son answered that he did not think he had time for lunch, because he needed to spend 10 or more hours a day in the library. We did convince him that he needed to eat, and we’d straighten up his place, even if he had to go to the library.</p>
<p>As for the younger son, we are flying down to watch him run in the conference cross country championships this weekend. He’s very excited that we are coming. We also have some surprises with us that will make his day. He finally followed my suggestion and telephoned one of my fellow teachers, who has a computer science background, and offered to help him with what he did not understand. The gentleman told me that they talked for more than 30 minutes, and he seemed much better off than before the call. Will he suddenly thing comp sci is for him? No, but at least he feels a bit better going into the final month of the class. </p>
<p>@Quagmiro, @go2mom and @Snowme - Glad to hear your kids are happy and thriving!</p>
<p>@austinareadad - Your S sounds incredibly self-disciplined and focused. Definitely well suited for pre-med. I hope he is managing some down time in his schedule though. It’s a long race and wouldn’t want him to burn-out before the finish line. </p>
<p>Hooray - Thanksgiving is coming! So very excited for D to come home. For those of you whose kids can’t make it at Thanksgiving, hugs to you, and it’s only a couple more weeks until Winter Break. This will be D’s first time navigating an airport on her own. We’ll stay available by phone, but I’m a little nervous about it. One more “first-time” hurdle to get over.</p>
<p>momreads: Yea, I know what law school final exams can be like, as I am an attorney and remember those exams that would count for virtually the entire grade. That was stressful.</p>
<p>Overtheedge: My W and I tell our S to take more downtime, but he is reluctant to do so. As you say, the risk of burnout is real.</p>