@2manybooks – He does need to submit his SAT scores (via a request to the College Board) to the Nat’l Merit folks to advance to finalist status. But as noted elsewhere, there’s other stuff to do. This is something that is time-sensitive, as he needs to complete his application and submit it before the school can do their part. So he doesn’t get to procrastinate on this piece.
My son is also not applying to any UC’s, but if there’s a UC that might work for your son I’d echo @LKnomad that the application is not that imposing. He can use his common app essay for one of the two essays (which means that he actually would have to write the common app essay) and do whatever for the second. There are so many UC applications to process that I don’t think that the essay makes much of a difference unless it points to the applicant being someone they want to admit for diversity reasons (even though by California law they’re not allowed to do so). So he can do a less than perfect job on the apps, but his other academic credentials may get him in.
My son’s not that competitive (academically) either, but he hates what he views as injustice. And he’d think it unjust (rightly or wrongly) if a kid he knows and dislikes gets into a ‘better’ school than him. But what really motivates him is the idea that he wouldn’t get to go where he’d like to go because he blew it in the last ten yards of the ‘race’. His coach always says, “Win the last lap.”
@Mysonsdad – My sister, a child psychologist, loves the following aphorism (not hers), “God gives you exactly the child you can handle.” I guess in both our cases he/she knew that we were up for a challenge with the older child, but that we deserved a breather with the younger one. . . I never used to give much credence to all the birth order stuff, but I’ve had a lot of parents tell me that their younger child could’ve raised themselves. That’s the case for us, but certainly on this thread there are parents who’d argue otherwise.
My son has applied to a couple of safety schools and opted to submit his ACT (which is slightly better than SAT when looking at conversion tables). My question is…when he begins to apply to schools on his list that require two subject tests as well…what should he do? I read somewhere that some schools do not allow you to do “score choice” with the SAT…meaning if you submit an SAT then you have to submit all the scores from all test dates. Does this apply to subject tests as well? Is “score choice” used when ordering SAT subject tests only? We are not far enough in this process to have attempted this. Would really like some advice, or for folks to weigh in if they have already dealt with this. Ideally for those schools my son would submit his ACT + SAT subject tests.
@4kids2graduate as far as I understand majority of the schools allow score choice for SAT 2s. In fact I can not think of a single school on my DD list that doesn’t. But I think they will also would like to see all SAT1 scores. Few of them will allow score choice for SAT1, but not all.
@4kids2graduate – Obviously you should check school by school, but when I’ve seen this issue addressed on specific schools’ admissions webpages it’s usually been stated in terms of their wanting to seeing ‘all standardized test scores from all test dates’. To make it a big more complicated, some schools say that they ‘require’ all scores to be sent to them, but we’ve come across schools that ‘suggest’ or ‘recommend’ or even more vaguely ‘strongly recommend’ that the applicant send all scores. If you do a google search for ‘(name of school) test requirements’ you’ll be directed to the appropriate webpage.
For the majority of schools you’ll be able to send his ACT and Subject Test scores, but not his SAT Reasoning scores and be in compliance with their admissions testing policy. But again, you have to check school by school.
Also, it’s really easy on the College Board website to send only the Subject Test scores. But he has to remember to not self-report his SAT Reasoning scores on the common app if he doesn’t want to submit them to specific colleges.
It’s the most highly selective schools that want all the test scores, so that may be where @Ballerina2016’s impression comes from, as I think her daughter’s looking at those sorts of schools.
Any body figure out what the word or character limit is for the NMSF essay? If there is a character limit, is it with or without spaces? Also do carriage returns counted as a chacter? Need to get to work nagging my DD to get that done
Thanks, @AsleepAtTheWheel. We’re meeting with his GC in the next couple of weeks, I hope, and one of the questions was which scores to submit, and where. It’s sort of funny - on the ACT he had 36 on Math & Science, 35 on English, 33 on Reading, but just 31 on Combined English/Writing (8 on the essay). His SATs - I don’t remember exactly, but it was pretty much the opposite. 700 in Math, 780 & 800 on the other two. If he could take the Math & Science from the ACT, and English & … whatever the 3rd one is from the SAT, he’d be set! The links you posted look like they’ll be really helpful - thank you!
My kid’s had the interesting experience of being distinctly in the minority at every school he’s attended. In his middle school, he was only one of 3-4 kids in his class who spoke English at home. Few parents attended college, and I’m pretty sure I was the only one with grad school experience. Elementary school was more diverse (more parents with college background). He’s pretty acutely aware of the advantages he’s had (“I didn’t hit a triple, I started out on 3rd base”), so I doubt he’d have any issue with a student with lower stats getting in somewhere that he didn’t. But yeah, I think you’re onto something. It would bug my kid horribly if he didn’t get in because of some omission on his part. He’s quite OK with potentially losing spots to diversity candidates, but not with missing something because he didn’t do his part or missed a deadline.
I’d just like him to do that before 11:59pm on deadline day, y’know? Maybe I’ll try to get him to throw something together for a UC.
We’re still waiting for the school’s notification on NMSF. I know his score’s above the cutoff, but until I get something official, I’m going to worry that he or they or CB or someone screwed something up.
He’s poking at the Common App right now. I have hope.
@Ballerina2016, I don’t know if any UC’s are on your daughter’s radar, but they want all the subject test scores even though they do not require subject tests. I know it doesn’t make any sense.
That is not good @Mysonsdad it took my DD two attempts to get 800 on SAT math 2. Both SAT and ACT she only took once. I hope it is not the case. The website for UCLA is really confusing, but I still think they only want all SAT and ACT scores, not SAT2s.
@mysonsdad & @Ballerina2016 I have also heard that UCLA and UCB want subject tests - specifically for students majoring in the math and sciences. I had heard that this was a request from faculty for admissions.
@Ballerina, they don’t require 2 SAT subject tests, unless you are applying for chemistry or engineering and that is not even every UC. but if an applicant takes them they want to see all of them. That is what I was told when I called UCB. They did say they would only use them if they enhanced the overall application. I asked them if I could do score choice being that they don’t require them and they said no. When I called UCLA they said the same thing, and reiterated that it would only be if they helped an applicant. I just checked with some former students of mine who are incoming UCLA freshman and they also said that when they were on Collegeboard sending their scores, it said UCLA wanted all test scores, there was no exception for subject tests. I was shocked because I swear I once read on CC that UC’s did do score choice for subject tests. I called last April, so unless something has changed, or there is the possibility they gave me the wrong information, I plan on having S send all scores. You may want to call UC’s to find out for yourself, I am hoping I am wrong (he got a 540 on a World History SAT last year yikes!!) .
Fwiw, like I have said before, my school sends a lot of kids to UCLA, the acceptance rate of our students is almost 2x’s the acceptance overall UCLA acceptance rate (last year, 30% of the Seniors from my school who applied got in), UCLA is not big on the SAT overall. I have seen many students get in with 1800-1900ish scores. Their main concern is 10th & 11th grade grades, course rigor and essays. That is what they have told the students at my school when they visit and it has been my experience. If you are worried about your D taking the Math 2 twice, I wouldn’t be.
Waving at all my College Confidential HS16 friends and friends-to-be. I was on this thread at the very beginning when my DS13 (now in college) was applying and I wanted to at least acknowledge DD too. After the insanity of applications in 2013, I took a two-year break from CC and am now back since DD is entering the application season. It’s amazing how addictive CC really is! I can feel myself getting sucked in…hours and hours of my future disappearing…I know I will love getting to know you and your DChildren. Regarding getting those butts in gear: I made a “no screens” rule for all-of-September-or-until-Common-App-is-done and it has been marvelously motivating. Side effect: I am also now the least popular person in the house. Perhaps even in the county.
@EastGrad Welcome back! We do a modified version of that, and it’s not-entirely-surprisingly effective! (I also insist on no screens at mealtime, which makes me hopelessly outdated and surely the only parent in our county to be so unreasonable.)
Welcome @2manybooks and @EastGrad! Glad to have more folks in our slightly frustrated but hopeful community. I wish I could ban screens but given that the HS is nearly paperless and requires many group projects, it would be near impossible to enforce.
I also require no screens at the dinner table. Of course, that works better at home than when we are out and waiting for our food.
Thanks, @Cheeringsection - I think it’s good to be here! OK, it is, it is… but I’m not sure if I should feel hopeful or depressed. I think when I thought it was just my kid, I figured I could expect something to click in quickly and he’d be done. But no, this sounds like a chronic condition that many of us live with during senior year. Oy.
We can’t ban screens either. So much of the schoolwork S16 has to do is online, so he needs it regularly for that. Also, his gf just started college herself, and as they’re still in touch, I don’t want to discourage that. In fact, I hope that chatting about her day and what she’s doing will remind him that he too will have such experiences in just one short year - IF he gets it in gear and gets his applications in!
I clearly need to find another way to be entirely unreasonable and insufferable, the Worst Parent Ever™, so he’ll get going. In fairness, he did spend time on the CA yesterday, so it’s a start.
Thanks for the cheery hellos, @mysonsdad, @petrichor11, @cheeringsection, @sophmore1. Here’s to a fall filled with happy seniors, finished CAs, and a spring of acceptances, no matter whether it takes threats, sticks, bribes, or carrots. I’m willing to resort to all 4. Fortunately, D16 really likes carrots.
I just want to remind everyone not to panic and that while we may feel here on CC that our kids are behind, my experience with D13 is that most applications are not due until Jan 1 or Jan 15 (except for EA, ED, some scholarships) and that the vast majority of those submissions are completed in the week or 2 prior to those deadlines. Just make sure that everyone knows the deadlines, that the tests are completed and ordered, that transcripts and letters of rec are requested. These things can happen before any work is actually done on the CA. Truly, it will all work out and there really is plenty of time (even for very busy seniors).
