DS applied to at least 16 schools; accepted at 9; rejected from 1; MAC of varying amounts from most - some are still open. Waiting on 4 more admission decisions, 1 scholarship decision and 2 honors program decisions. Plan to visit any he feels are top contenders in April & then hopefully decide and move along with next steps - but no absolute favorite as of today.
D is 3/3 but still waiting on an honors program decision. 5 more essays to write for scholarships.
8 short essays to write for roommate matching at an admitted students event. :!! Number done: 0.
I know there are parents of band kids on this thread, any considering Marching Band in college?
If my D does not get Honors she wants to go out for marching band, she things she will be able to find her tribe there.
D17 is a band kid – pit leader this year – and she gave it serious consideration, but Honors will take up enough time (expecially if she ends up at UMD) that it’s looking unlikely. I do think your D is on the right track, though. Not only would she find her tribe, but she’d probably get to meet them before school starts and she’d know people from a lot of different majors.
S17 will definitely do band in college. It is a key part of his decision making process. He has been offered honors in about half of the schools he has been accepted (9 of 10 with 1 outstanding).
Results so far: S accepted to 7, still waiting for 3. Big Mac from #4 school on his list moved it up to the top, where it really does belong, based on the US New ranking:) A couple of Big Macs from our in state schools, but he is determined to go out of state.
Still kinda waiting to hear from his originally #1 school on merit $$.
Speaking of that, what do you all think is the right time to try to negotiate and see if they match merit $$ S was offered from other school? And how do we go about it?
This is putting the cart before the horse, but if you’re familiar with UCLA and USC, do you think USC is worth a premium over UCLA? If so, why? Assume a $15K difference.
@eandesmom your list on the other thread is AMAZING!!! Cheers to you for putting all of that work in it will really benefit others =D> =D>
youcee, I think it very well may be. Your child will not be as effected by impacted majors or inability to get classes needed particularly when they are sequential. However if your child loves them both equally then I guess no and save the money for his future. Is there a big difference in the quality of the major at either school?
@yousee Both are amazing schools… USC will do a much better job getting your son graduated in 4 years. If he has a lot of AP’s, he will be fine at UCLA… they are very generous with AP credit - the accept 3’s. The privates do a much better job hand holding… UCLA more sink or swim.
I haven’t had a chance to post lately, but I too want to say that your parenting stories are inspiring @Mom2aphysicsgeek, @smcirish and others. We could all hope to have the capacity to provide exactly what our own kids need.
As far as results, S only applied to one reach school, so he was 9/10 with a WL at the reach. He’s following the money to Alabama.
@CaucAsianDad S did find his people among the band in HS, but he is not planning to the join the Million Dollar Band at Bama – too many practice hours for an honors/engineering kid! He does hope to still join some musical group, but it may have to be something social as it sounded to him like all the school bands choose from among those who try out for MDB. One of many details he needs to look into in the near future.
Welcome back @IABooks! Don’t be a stranger.
Too much fun is happening in FB @STEM2017, so some can’t keep up with both 
DONE here.
7/7 admissions for engineering. We were hopeful for the biggest of big MAC and came within breathing distance of it (D was a finalist for the Chancellor’s scholarship at Pitt) but alas, it was not meant to be. They offered decent MAC though and that was always the line in the sand for the budget: you can go OOS but we aren’t paying our EFC AND you have to get costs down to at or below our state school costs. Pitt actually just came through today with some additional MAC (after Cost Analysis submission) and it makes it more breathable for sure! YAY…goal accomplished.
She has committed to Pitt, has scheduled her Pittstart and is chatting up other froomies (future roomies) so she is good to go. I am delighted that we don’t have to do dorm move-in when it’s 105 degrees out-although I’m sure some freakish warm front will hit Pittsburgh right before move-in with our luck!
Wow, @jmek15 and @RightCoaster – thank you for the detailed Boston info! Way better than any list from Time Out! Am saving it all. I have found that my preferences for city life vs suburbs life have shifted back and forth over the years. Thinking empty nesthood will allow me time to appreciate once again the joys of exploring a more urban spot. Sad about senior year coming to an end but at least there is that to look forward to. Thank you both again for taking the time to post all that 
@letsshare @Calimom3 He will be in mechanical engineering, so I can’t imagine they’ll deny a sequential course since most of the required ones are offered once a year. I’ll ask about that, but based on our other son’s experience at a UC I think that won’t be an issue. He should be out of the first 3-4 math classes and their English Composition class that is required, so he’ll have a good head start on units going in. As far as the rankings for that program between the 2 schools, I haven’t seen one where UCLA isn’t ahead for engineering/mechanical eng. I do agree that SC may provide more mentoring, especially for scholarship students (at least that’s my understanding), and I’ve heard from multiple sources the Trojan alumni network is real. I was in a sink or swim environment in college (and loved it), but I can see a premium for a little more personal attention. But at some point there is a price limit. If the cost difference was half of what I expect it to be, I’d probably just say pick your favorite.
@Dave_N @RightCoaster @Ynotgo thank you!!!
Band…
Most likely yes at any school but not marching…jazz!
@youcee one thing the USC AO said that stuck with me is that no student will be in a situation where they can’t get into a class that they need to graduate on time. She was quite explicit that USC has the money to provide this assurance to students. I have no experience with UCLA, but have seen headlines that indicate this may not be the case there. Still, 15k a year is a lot of money and it’s a personal decision. Full disclosure we had a similar choice and went with USC and have been very happy.
I guess as long as you are not changing major in the middle and plan out classes ahead, you should be OK with UCs.