@Themommymommy : I don’t think “up for adventure” is necessarily Southern. But my first guess would be that dating one of them might be…educational.
@Ballerina016 A deferral from Caltech is not bad at all. Tell her to take it as a good sign of good things to come. If Caltech wants her to stick around, my guess is that others will want to lock her in. Good luck!
Sorry about the deferral @Ballerina016 Wishing for good news soon for your D
Thank you @kittymom1102 I really hope for a good news on Wednesday. That one is the one she wants. Good luck to your son!
@Ballerina016 @kittymom1102 So sorry about the deferral. Caltech is a toughie and the first rejection is hard.
@Mysonsdad My gut tells me that having a year less of language, while having an extra year of science will not hurt your son’s chances. At most of the elite colleges we have visited, they say that they look at the total package of grades/rigor in order to see if the student can handle the level of work of the school. Then they move on to the rest of the app. If your son’s transcript shows ability, I don’t think they will even notice that language is a year short. The only dilemma is his inability to wave the college requirement. This rule is really stupid. My son is in AP French, and I don’t see a reason why someone needs to be a native speaker in order to take the class. Is the school trying to keep their scores up?
We are running into a similar situation here. My son is supposed to take calc 3 next semester at the CC but the class is not offered at the right time and there is no other option. He is worried about having to go down in math (taking stats instead of calc) or not having math for the second semester, but I told him to use the “other info” option on his application to explain the lack of calc. Your son can also do the same and just explain that he was not permitted in the class due to a strange native speaker policy and that he took science. I cannot see how this could hurt him, especially with 6 years of science!
@Ballerina2016, sorry to hear about the deferral. It seems this year has been brutal on EA’s and ED’s. S friends have either all been denied or deferred. The only one to get in was the “not nice” guy mentioned in an earlier post.
Congratulations to everyone who got good news
On another note, for those rejected from top colleges, did your kids get an email from Columbia and Yale asking them to apply about an hour after rejection?
@Mysonsdad i agree that it is dumb rule. At our school they stopped “honors” spanish starting in 11 th grade. once you finish Spanish 3 honors, you must do APSpanish Language and then AP Spanish lit. both my D’s got 5’s and we are in no way native speakers. In fact, when I was in HS, I got as far away from taking another language when I could. I just was not very good at it!
I need to preface this with the fact that my H and I are “older” parents, and also not very connected with social media. H does some FB, I only have a FB page that I established years ago when my oldest (S11) started on FB and I wanted to understand it and “friend” him to see what he was doing online. I now get on FB briefly a handful of times each year.
So, here is my question: I have a child who has not used social media for the college (ie: college FB page, instagram, twitter, etc.) at all to connect or get information either prior to or after applying. What is everyone’s experience with their DC and the social media connections at various colleges they have applied to? Is it beneficial?
We already realized (at the 11th hour) for one college that showing “interest” is quite important…and the fact that S16 did not demonstrate “interest” probably will cause him to receive a deferral or rejection in a week when EA decisions are announced. I suppose connecting via social media during the application process may have shown “interest”, but my son definitely did not have parents that modeled behavior in that regard.
Yet another dimension that I did not know about! I mistakenly thought by my 4th child I would really get this process…but I am not there yet!
Congrats to all the good news received, fingers crossed for everyone who received a deferrals and hugs and ice cream for those who received some not so good news!
We are waiting but I am planning ahead for the eventual good and bad that will come in two waves; first wave in the next few weeks (and then the second at the end of March). Dinner at D’s choice of restaurants for acceptance and deferrals, YoGo Wild (D’s favorite frozen yogurt) for rejections! And naturally hugs for all outcomes because I am a hugger. LOL.
@Mysonsdad I believe that along with transcripts, school send a school profile which explains what courses students have available to them and what ones they do not. I have seen our schools profile when my S14 was getting recruited and a coach wanted it emailed to him. It is a four page pamphlet documenting the courses available (regular, honors, AP, DE (and from what college the credits are from), etc), and how each course type (honors, AP, DE) is weighted. It contains many things about the school that helps the adcomms understand the particulars of the school. Therefore, I am sure that not being able to take a fourth year of language will not look negative for your S. That being said, I think the schools rule is dumb but I can say from experience that we have encountered many similar dumb rules in our high school (a few which have been primary in affecting my D’s rank…very frustrating…but it’s a battle that if you succeed in winning, you will in the long run definitely lose the war…we have seen in happen and it is very disheartening).
@4kids2graduate My son has no interest in FB except to read George Tekai. He once had an account to use Farmville but let that one go. He dies not use Instagram or anything else that would show interest through social media.
What he did do was make sure he clicked through every email from the colleges he was planning to apply to, he made sure to check in during the Colleges That Change Lives fair and ask for more info. He tried to create some sort of footprint on their website. I don’t know of this will be good enough for those schools that want student to show, interest but that is how he handled things.
@4kids2graduate If it came down to interest in social media being a big deal in the school’s eyes, I’d venture to say it’s not a good fit. My son isn’t into social media. He has a FB, which he begged for and got when he was 13. He literally still has his middle school baseball picture on there and never uses it. He has done his best to show interest where it is feasible - visiting, etc., but if he thought that a school would note or consider him following on social media, he would be turned off by that.
I’m an older parent too and I like social media. I personally am following the colleges he’s interested in on FB and Twitter. I have learned a lot from it and I pass on a fair amount to him. Even just seeing how finals week is at the schools is really interesting. One school had therapy dogs, massage chairs, coloring stations etc., while others had coffee and Dunkin Donuts or a breakfast served by staff. Definitely a wide range in atmosphere for finals, and for the holiday seasons.
I definitely understand worrying that you’ve missed some angle. I have literally lost sleep over this a few times. But, I don’t think this particular thing will be an issue and I hope he gets good news!!
D2 only applied to 2 schools. Both EA at LACs. She got her first acceptance last week, was all excited, then announced that she hopes she doesn’t have to go there. What? This is the safety! She then explained that she is willing to go, but hopes not, and followed by saying “I know what a safety is, Mother…” followed by an eye roll. It was hard not to laugh.
Boo to CalTech, @Ballerina016 @kittymom1102.
@mysonsdad: I believe colleges know when you have their supplement started or open on the CA. D began to receive a great deal of mail specifically from the colleges after she opened their supplements. It has increased in intensity over the past few weeks and she’s gotten lots of emails in the past few weeks and days too. I can see Yale and Columbia gambling that your S was applying early REA or ED somewhere and then hustling him after decisions were out. Anyone have a similar experience?
Congrats, @cakeisgreat.
@4kids2graduate, since you’re a savvy user of CC, I think you sell yourself short when you say you aren’t connected with social media. 
@4kids2graduate My son doesn’t use social media at all. He was only able to show “interest” by visiting the schools. He didn’t do much else - I’m the one doing all the following on FB and Twitter!
Hmmm, now I wonder what you’re all counting as an “older” parent. I realized that I consider myself a young parent, but my guess is that I’m actually average or even old. (gasp)
@EastGrad I am 50 and in the middle of our six kids. When my youngest D26 graduates, I will be beyond older and into a whole new category. Perhaps part of the reason I feel older is that my oldest has already graduated from college.
@EastGrad Age is just a number. I’m old chronologically , but developmentally I’m 20.
@CAMidwestMom, 50 is not that old. I am not there…quite yet…but I am telling you…and me…that it’s not that old.
@carolinamom2boys, you are developmentally “young at heart.”
@EastCoastGrad " I believe colleges know when you have their supplement started or open on the CA. D began to receive a great deal of mail specifically from the colleges after she opened their supplements…
My son started an application with one of his safeties in early October. I think it was one that is not Common App but has its own on line applications. He had three of those with VA public schools. In mid October an admissions officer called him on the phone one evening to encourage him to complete the application and apply for honors. They chatted for quite a while. I thought it was a little creepy that they can read it on their end before it is submitted.
I am pretty sure that schools can only see contact details, course choice and not the full application prior to submitting the CA. DS schools seem to track when an application is started, and then the promo emails start rolling in. Oddly, Columbia is not even on my son’s list but they send so many promotional emails that he calls them stalkers. The quantity may be more than DS12 received from Chicago; now Chicago seems tamed compared to Columbia.
Having been down the road once, I second (or third?) that having options is the most important. Any NOs along the way really hurt… especially the first one. However, as long as there are some YES the kids adjust and do seem to find a very good place.
This thread moves so fast that I can barely keep up with all the news. Congrats to all the happy results, and support and ice cream (or in our house sushi!) for all looking for the to be determined opportunity.
Son received his first offer this week with merit scholarship. He was ecstatic to have an option to consider. Stocking up on the sushi for later this week.