@PAO2008 -I hear you. We also made the mistake of telling our S he could wait and let the rejections narrow down his list. What a scramble when they don’t happen! Is he on all of the school’s Class of 2020 Facebook pages? My kids tell me that can be very enlightening. Just tonight, S '16 was commenting on one where many of the original posters have exited this week, presumably because they got into other places. He is a bit concerned that this school may not be a common ‘first’ choice. He’s doing his research and I’m doing mine and it seems to always come together in the end. Anyway, I think there will definitely be a few “crazy”-in a good way-weeks ahead!
Awww, thanks @EastGrad ! What are we going to do without you…even for a week?!
Wow, @4kids2graduate , it feels like I could have written your post myself, content wise, but you said it so much more eloquently than I ever could! I struggle with my kids being identifiable as well. It is hard to know what to do when there are positives when others are dealing with disappointment, and yet I want to contribute to the collective. Everyone here is so generous and each data point is helpful. You never know how many others are just silently reading along, but I know it has to be a large number. (Totally agree with @AsleepAtTheWheel on that subject.) The end of your post reminded me of the book ‘Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be’ by Frank Bruni. Read that with S '16 on the way to visit his potential ED school last year. Have you read it, by chance? Very insightful.
@kittymom1102 - You said “We’ll see what happens next week. Although, at the end money will be the deciding factor.” I know your S is in at Columbia and maybe Cornell? Did you apply to the rest of the Ivies? I know you were recently over the moon, when your S came home with the sweatshirt, thinking about your S going to MIT. I’m assuming your reference was re: Stanford vs MIT? The reason I ask is if you are talking money, Stanford will come out ahead of MIT unless you can cover the loans at the latter with outside scholarships. Is that possible? Stanford does not package loans and, for reference, their aid will probably be comparable to what Vanderbilt offered, which is very good. However, we have found that Harvard and Yale give the best need-based packages, followed by Princeton. This seems to be fairly consistent but YMMV.
Another thought is we know many people who have chosen MIT over Stanford because it is unbeatable as a STEM experience in a unique environment in a great city, and they figure any difference in cost can be made up with well-paid summer opportunities and the doors available post-graduation. In this case, maybe the least expensive choice is not the obvious one or necessarily the best value. (Again, @sbjdorlo can also speak to that!) Stanford is fantastic but has a very different vibe due to location and the many non-tech students on campus. Our guys know a ton of students at MIT that couldn’t imagine themselves anywhere else, including a very close friend of S '13s. They visited Stanford and MIT together. In the end I think any relationship choice should come down to, which one can you not do without? I have never seen more angst from students than the admitted MITers, trying to figure out a way to make it happen, even with a cost differential. I have also heard many waitlisted or rejected students desperately looking to get the MIT experience somehow in grad school, but it will not be the same. It seems to be such a one of a kind, almost rabid, be-all-end-all 4 years for the right kids. Would your S be devastated to miss that or could he be just as happy at say, Harvard (still Boston) if the money is significantly better? Good luck on Ivy Day and please let me know if I can help in any way.
