Oy! S has his Ivy interview today. In fact I am sitting down the hall while the interview is going on. His interviewer is a prof at a community college so we had to go to his office. We get to the building and all the doors are locked!!! No way in. Of course, it is Sunday and the school is closed. We started at one end of the building tried the doors, went try the second floor, tried the doors, went around the building, tried the doors. Locked! Locked! Locked! Yes, I started to feel a bit of panic. My son remained calm and he logically said, well the office number is a high number, and this end of the building has the higher numbers, since it is on the second floor we should try this door, and he pointed to an obscure door that said, âno student entranceâ. Then he said, I am not a student here, so I can use the door. He marched up to the door calmly (I was freaking out) and the interviewer was waiting on the other side. I swear this was an IQ test. I failed. He passed. Now I am trying to remain calm, while catching bits and pieces of the interview.
Good luck to your son @LKnomad
Omg I cannot even begin to contemplate graduation now⊠Its too far away and too hard emotionally especially with all the college applications and scholarship applications that need to be finished. We just finished soccer and need to take a breath from all that. Next shortly after the holidays will most likely be prom necessities (limo, dress, etc). (In our area if you do not book your prom limo in January then you are out of luck unless you get your parents to be your chauffeur to the Prom, to the after activities and then home again.) Then maybe I can deal with the thought of Graduation plans. My D is number 3 and only vals and sals give speeches which is fine with her because she can write an amazing speech as long as someone else gets up in front of everyone and reads it and using that same train of thought not sure if she would like a party where she would be in spotlight. She never wanted a sweet sixteen for exactly that same reason.
And regarding the leather recliner reading chairâŠas we are working our way down the traffic line on move in day for my S this past August, lo and behold there was someone with a full recliner in the back of a pickup and I thoughtâŠ"where would that fit in Clemsonâs small door rooms. But after we lofted the beds in my sonâs suite there is quite a bit of floor space underneath to fit a recliner (even fully reclined or even a hammock) and a few other things necessary for the almost comforts of home. Many schools dorm rooms are bigger than my Sâs at ClemsonâŠhis regular dorm room at Capital University (his first semester after high school) was huge and could have fit a recliner (even fully reclined) without lofting the beds and with a bit of additional room to spare! So you just never know whatâs possible. Keep it in mind and see what the accommodations are their chosen school.
@LKnomad Good luck to your son but, I am sure your son will do fine! Especially since he was able to think logically when the pressure is on. I would have been panicking as well. Try to relax and breathe and we will all have our best wishes for a great outcome for him. Whether he realizes it or not we are all supporting him and you through this entire process.
@lvmjac1 When does your school chose the Val and Sal? Ours does after the end of first semester . We are so looking forward to a break too, but we have a college visit this weekend and DS16 turns 18 on Veterans Day. The weekend following that 2 days of college visits and interviews. Eagle Board of Review Nov 19, TSO concert, then Thanksgiving. We may get a slight breather the beginning of December . Iâm so glad DS16 has no desire to go to prom. Some of the girls here have already ordered their dresses.
@LKnomad, Iâm excited for your boy!!
And Jupiter, wow, wow, wow! Congrats on that exciting news!!
Hi carolinamom2boys, our school locks gpa on the first day of school senior year (therefore senior year has no impact on that honor). Then you find out if your child is in the top ten if he/she get invited to the âTop Ten Breakfastâ in the very end of September. Then in early October they have the breakfast (this year October 9th). At the breakfast the GC go up to the podium one at a time reading the merits of each top ten students starting with number 10 and working their way up to the Val. You do not know where your child is in that group until your GC goes up and calls their name (most GC have multiple kids in top ten so you sit on the edge of your seat until they call your childâs name and read a little bio about their accomplishments, colleges they are interested in, ect. Then they take a bunch of pictures and the students head back to class. As the kids are heading back to class they announce it over the loud speaker to the entire school. Itâs a really big deal in our high school mostly because all of the kids who were looked as âgeeksâ through most of high school are now looked at much differently. My D (and my S before her) never really seemed to fit in until the end of 11th grade and then certainly after being announced as being in the top ten. Almost overnight it became cool to be smart! She is so much happier now and her recent party invites seem to bear out the fact that it is finally cool to be smart!
@lvmjac1 I totally understand the not fitting in part. My son found "his people "when he joined academic team and science club and team. They list their rank on their transcripts that we see each year. Senior year is interesting because top 15 get a private parking space at the front of the school so you can see exactly whoâs higher than you in the ranking.
@carolinamom2boys we wish they would have listed it on transcripts every year. They used to tell you in 10th grade and then I guess you could check your status in 11th, etc., but they stopped that 4 years ago because too many students got too upset when they fell lost ground on the list. Our high school wants to get away from the entire top ten mentality and go towards a top quartile, top decile ranking system. That seems to be the trend in many of the districts in our area. Not truly a fan of that idea but as my D is my last child in the school system, whatever happens doesnât really affect us so I guess its not something I can realistically pursue.
Our school doesnât rank or release quartiles. For graduation they consider everyone with a 4.0 or higher a valedictorian of sorts.
At our school, we have several levels of âhonorsâ :cum laude, magma cum laude and summa cum laude, but there is only one valedictorian and one salutatorian.
@lvmjac1 : Iâm really surprised by that, both for having seen my sonâs room the first year, remembering my own room in college during sophomore year, and having toured many places with my daughters this year. Outside of my sonâs room in this, his second year, I have seen no room that would accommodate a recliner. This year he is in a rather large single, with a lofted bed and an archway separating his room into study section and living section. Totally lucked out, considering last year he was in half a closet.
Hmm.
My nieceâs room at Miami U of Oxford is huge by most standards. All of the schools my son had toured have had small dorm rooms.
Do you think there is a protocol for how many items you take in if youâre roomed with someone else? How does one handle the student who comes well-apportioned? What if both do?
Iâve never been through this before , but Iâve always read to contact your roommate to determine whoâs bringing what.
Good to know, @carolinamom2boys. The process at my sonâs school dictated a kind of shake-up period where the first housing situation was merely provisional, and then the final determination came after some weirdness where they played games and garnered points. So, no way to know there.
Thanks. Will have to have this closed-mouth child of mine show me any contact information the university sends when she is accepted.
DD decided to send out a couple of apps today. State flagship college and another state college. Both are super safeties. She wants at least one acceptance before lottery school result comes out.
She will have her busiest 17th birthday writing RD supplementary essays on the last day of the year. I and my wife teased her few times asking to invite her friends on her birthday.
DDâs school does not recognize any academic honor at school level. No val, no sal, no NHS or whatever. The school is very competitive and those academic honors at school level will generate negative impact on students body, I guess. School sent out e-mail stressing not to talk about college stuff with other students while it is already stressful.
Congratulations for all the acceptance.
S16 attended a short program this past summer at a university and stayed in dorms that were suite styleâŠhe absolutely loved it! Small living room/common area with an adjoining kitchenette of sorts, then two hallways off of that main area âŠeach hallway had two single rooms and a shared bathroom (with two sinks outside the bathroom area). My son thought it was amazing there were 5 sinks for four people (including the kitchen sink!). I know there are varying opinions about the living situations being conducive (or not) to getting to know other kids in dorm. My S was so taken by the suite style living arrangement that he says that may be one of his âsoftâ choices in the end, but not a hard and fast requirement. It certainly eliminates âwho is bringing whatâ since there is a microwave and fridge already, and each student has their own small room to contain their own personal belongings.
I am still weighing the pros and cons of S having his own space for studying, sleeping, and to get away from any negative roommate issues including âgirlfriend staying overâ controversyâŠvs. the possibility of S having less options of connecting with other freshman in dorm building. Not sure what my final thoughts are on the matterâŠ
My son is the oldest of our children and requested two to three roommates, if it came to multiples beyond just one additional person, and we were pleased at that. We thought heâd be with a horde of kids all kind of like him, and when the time came for him to discuss issues that come to the fro (EDIT: fore! ha!) in such close living quarters, that heâd have to devise a way to make his needs and discomforts known, and try to work it all out. He was psyched. Then the lonely single. We (mom and dad) were terribly disappointed, but he made it through.
Congratulations on all acceptances. I was thinking that it is a little premature to buy stuff for dorms yet, but I guess some of you already settled on schools. We will not know anything until mid December and even then we will need to see RD results. No shopping for dorms yet here.