Thanks guys @Undercovermom1 @Waiting2exhale @happymochi @LKnomad @carolinamom2boys @Sophmore1 @mom2ji
great question about helping kids not lament the path not taken. One of the best pieces of advice Iâve ever received is that if a decision is incredibly hard, when there are so many options to choose from, then the ultimate decision is going to be a good one no matter what - if the options werenât all good, then the decision wouldnât be such a hard one. The important thing is to commit yourself to whatever decision you make, rather than continually wonder what might have happened if you had chosen differently.
My DS 16âs Spring Break starts tomorrow. He is so excited - has spent much of the semester jokingly complaining that the IB doesnât understand American school and that seniors arenât supposed to work this hard in the second half of their senior year. But everything is pretty much finished now - except exam review - and being on break should help a good chunk of the interminable fortnight ahead go more quickly. I am happy to see him happy.
Spring break starts next week. DD will finally take a driver license test. We want her to have her driver license before she goes to college. Most of her peers have been driving for years. She also will have her 17th birthday during spring break. We did not visit most of the schools she applied to if they were not in our state or part of our vacation destinations. So now it is the time to do admitted students visits. Unfortunately many of them schedule on the same weekends and with the short time between release of decision and admitted students days airfare is very expensive.
Also ready for the last decision so we can finalize!
But, just had a conversation with DSâŠ
Me: âwow, about 5 months from now youâll be heading off to college- are you excited?â
DS: âI guessâ
Me: âIâm excited for the new opportunities & experiences you will haveâŠâ
DS:
Me: âDonât think Iâm trying to get rid of you, Iâll miss you more than I can say.â
DS: <came to="" me="" &="" gave="" a="" huge="" hug=""> âIâm gonna miss you too, mom.â
Think with everything involved in this roller coaster ride, the whole transition may be a little harder on him than I thought. Going to have to make the most out of the next 5 months!!
@bookmom7 So sweet.
@bookmom7 - Awww! As the mom of two sons, I can definitely say there will be no dry eyes after reading that last post.
@baltimoreguy - Totally agree about committing to a decision. I think the premise is to make a decisionâŠand then make it the right one.
@bookmom7 - So sweet⊠Are any of his top
choices close to home?
@Ballerina016 : âSo now it is the time to do admitted students visits. Unfortunately many of them schedule on the same weekends and with the short time between release of decision and admitted students days airfare is very expensive.â
Too true.
@krnBoston Thanks for sharing. Thatâs exactly what we are experiencing. My S got more aid than estimated from NEU. Heâs also seriously considering Umass Amherst Honors at this time. Not sure where he will end up with.
@allboyz -Both possibilities are in-state- so I am very happy about that!
I have heard UMass Amherst has really high fees, so keep that in mind for comparison time.
@bookmom7, your post made me cry.
The costs listed are per semester
UMass has really low tuition, making up the cost with high fees. This is why the statewide scholarship which give free tuition isnât really worth as much as it sounds like it should be. As you can see from above, tuition and fees for a year is a bit over $14000. Only about $1700 of that is tuition. It has to do with state rules about what it takes to raise tuition vs. fees. I think the fees can be raised by the school as opposed to the state legislature.
@Sean67208 both are really good options. My D wouldnât look at Umass for engineering because she would only look at city schools - and she loves Northeastern. My S doesnât want to be in the city. Unfortunately when we visited UMass we were there on a weekend and couldnât get much engineering-specific info - so itâs been hard to get him interested. My D has friends at UMass who have had great experiences. Good luck.
@mom23travelers . . . oh my gosh I thought I was alone in this:
Iâve even imagined potential college sweethearts. :">
I think my son prefers Umass mainly because he loves food there.
I have a friend who canât stop raving about the food there. She says her daughter is a real foodie and loves the food - My D got tired of the food at NEU after her freshman year. Sheâs been off meal plan since her sophomore year.
I am thinking I will be greatly overpaying for any meal plan. All she eats is oatmeal or bagel in the morning, salad and chicken in the afternoon and cup of yogurt at night.
@Sean67208 and @krnBoston- Okay now I donât think my S '16 is totally crazy. He was at U Mass for a bit last summer and he raved about the food as wellâŠand he is picky and has been everywhere! Absolutely hated the food at MIT, but thatâs not so strange. He wasnât exactly fond of Boston either @krnBoston. No offense. But I see you said your S doesnât want to be in the city.
@mommdc- See, I knew there would be tears. I almost did the same!
We have arrived at a winnerâŠD16 just committed/deposited at Marquette University for their 6 year direct entry BS/DPT program.
Special shout out to @Cheeringsection who shined the light and guided us into a home port!
GO TEAM 2016!