That’s right! Cal Poly said no LORs and no essay! My son was thrilled.
@Ynotgo I just checked and it seems they all only ask for GC and/or 1 teacher rec. My son said he’s going to ask his english teacher that likes him and his biz teacher. I guess he can send in the letter he likes the best.
Agree, would love it if a couple of our local area schools pooled Naviance data, as our sample size is so small and especially for some of the more selective schools, nobody who is at my Ds stats level ever even applied so the info is kind of useless. Will be fine for most match/safety picks, but not much data for the reaches.
@2muchquan Good points about the brag sheet. I guess my D is going to have to start “selling” herself as a candidate when it comes to the actual college applications, so might as well get used to it!
Hm, would it be considered bad form to just go ahead and ask the GC which teacher between AP Calc and AP Chem write better LORs in her view?
In regards to Naviance, I’d even be happy if I could just ask the “system” to let me have access to some random unnamed schools. I wouldn’t need to see the town/city. I could even be happy with data from “new england” or “west coast” as an example.
I have never seen Naviance. We apply via the wing and a prayer method. 
Vanderbilt does not know how to take no for an answer, at least in regards to stuff cluttering up my snail mail box. D17 does not talk about the ones in her email, though.
Last night (somewhat breaking my no college talk rule) I said that she might get a lot of emails from colleges she hasn’t heard of yet because I had my list from the BOD (binder of destiny, hereon out referred to as BOD) up and I requested info be sent from all of them.
So, LOR’s-some of the colleges want you to get the teacher’s email and they send them a portal link. Some want other things that take the student out of the loop entirely. Does it make sense to ask for an LOR before you’ve even decided which schools to apply to? Do you just get one and let it sit there and make copies? I don’t want D17 to ask and then have to ask again in three months when it turns out she needs something different. We don’t have Naviance at our school.
Meningitis-ugh, yeah. I had D17 get her booster before she left for summer camp last year. Which reminds me, I need to check and see if D18 (15) needs it this year or whether she isn’t old enough yet. Had a friend nearly die of it as a teenager, so yeah, that’s a must for us.
Speaking of younger D, she’s gotten all of her grades back up and looks pretty solid to stay in the IB program (she’s not doing full IB-too hard for her, but is taking some classes). We’re breathing a cautious sigh of relief. Maybe not a full sigh-they still both have finals next week.
They’re both super cranky right now too-came down the stairs this morning yelling at each other, then at me. Yay. How does my husband manage to get off scot-free when he’s in the same room! It’s witchcraft.
@MotherOfDragons Good news on D18! I’ve been spending some time going back through all the schools on my WBOD (haven’t quite finished). What a pain in the arse to figure out what exactly is needed for application time. I wouldn’t ask teachers for a LOR until you are sure you will need it. I’m re-thinking my idea of asking for 3, and save the 3rd for those situations where I might need a special LOR (like the example you gave above, where the school asks for a teacher e-mail.).
I think really what you are doing is giving teachers a ‘heads up’ that you will/may need a LOR next fall. I think the majority may not do a whole lot with the information until the fall, but then they have a list they can get started with (after you remind them 
). With some early deadlines at some schools, it’s good to get in their queue. Also, they have the opportunity to tell you ‘no’, because of XYZ, and give you time to ask someone else.
I’m not sure what a brag sheet is or how to get one. I looked on Naviance and the closest thing I see is the “About Me” tab, which has a number of different sections. Help!
For colleges on D’s list the most I’ve seen required in terms of LoR’s is GC, STEM teacher and other teacher. I feel pretty good about these. D’s adviser, who she’s been with since 9th grade and who knows her better than anyone in the school will be co-writing the GC LoR (GC doesn’t really know D). She’s been with the same English teacher for two years (just told me how much she’s going to miss this teacher next year) who she knows her really well and who thinks very highly of D. Her STEM LoR will be from her Computer Integrated Manufacturing teacher. He was telling me at conference that their new “flipped classroom” is going great for D because she can start new projects without having to wait for the rest of the class.
Coincidentally, these teachers are the top two LoR writers at the school. I guess that’s good in terms of well-written LoR’s, but bad in terms of these teachers being very busy. I’m going to have her talk to each of them this week just to do the initial asking about whether they’ll write one and then ask what the next steps are.
I don’t think any of her schools require a community mentor. But if they do I’m sure one of the coaches at her Brazilian Jiu-jitsu - Muay Thai - Crossfit studio would be willing. It might be the first and only LoR most of her colleges would ever get from a professional MMA fighter!
A good reason to ask a teacher for an LOR now is to give them a heads up (as stated already) and so they know how many kids they’ll be having to write for. I can imagine that some “good” teachers may get so many requests that they have to say no to some. And the “brag sheet” is just a resume with details so the teacher can see what the kid does in and outside of school. Are they well rounded, have an outside job and still are at the top of the class, etc.
On the topic of LORs, can anyone explain protocol with regard to reading/accessing a completed letter of recommendation? I’ve looked around CC but couldn’t find any info.
Will my son have a chance to read the letter before it is sent?
Is it inappropriate to ask to read it before it is sent?
I did read about the section of the Common App where you waive the right to read the rec’s, but I was curious as to what most people do and what is best. This will be our first time doing this, so help is appreciated.
Thanks
At S’s school, LORs are confidential. The counselor reads them to make sure they won’t kill a students chance of getting accepted, but the student waives their rights.
Yes, I’ve heard/read somewhere that colleges don’t like it when students have access to the LOR. They feel the teacher will not be honest in this case.
I was unaware that the counselor could review the recs of teachers. Interesting.
I think a counselor review is a very good practice, especially in our case where his counselor knows him well and will look out for errors or problems.
@payn4ward
I bet he couldn’t skip either.
@HiToWaMom
They are related but I do not understand how. I was told (by more than one gifted teacher) that some gifted kids will show very strong gifts in selected areas and be average and others. Not skipping, not able to ride a bike while young and activities that take coordinated motor skills are some of the signs they see.
Another sign is being overly cautious (they see all possibilities good and bad) and easy to cry. They appear to have inappropriate emotions, but actually they just have a higher awareness of what is happening, or may happen, and they react to what seems like nothing to other kids.
Back from meeting with GC. She gave general advice and kind of hinted which teachers to ask for LOR. Also, adviced taking professional i.e. consultants help if targeting Ivies. I didn’t tell her about our CCC She thinks taking ACT again to try for 36C (current score is 35C) is a good idea since S took only once and also thinks he can do SAT if it helps with one BS/MD program which requires SAT. I am not sure on retaking ACT with 35C and 31 essay score. Also, even though our district has Naviance, it is not setup fully to use it for college apps!
Wow @srk, I don’t think that your S needs to retake the ACT with a 35C and 31 essay (especially in light of the issues with so many essays being low scoring). He might be better advised to take the SAT if one or more target schools ask for that test specifically. From what I have heard and read, it is hard to get that one point bump and may not be worth the stress and time spent to do it. Congrats to your S.
I think it is unusual for a kid to get to see their LoR. They are supposed to waive the right to see them in the Common App. If not using the Common App, teachers get a web page or email address to submit their letter. Even for the freshman summer program S did, his teachers gave him sealed envelopes on the school letterhead for him to mail.
@srk2017, if there are schools that will treat a 35C differently from a 36C, I would like to know which one(s) those are. It just seems it’s so easy to say “taking it again is a good idea” when it is not the GC sitting through 4 hours of testing. It also doesn’t make sense given what I learned from colleges during our spring break tour (we included Harvey Mudd and Caltech, so no Ivies, but very selective schools). They spend so little time going over test scores vs the time our kids spend taking them. A 35C with a 31 essay score should get you through whatever “gate” any college has. They are onto reviewing other things at that point. If you need the SAT for a specific program, that is a different issue. Congrats to your S for an amazing job!
Think of it. The diff between a 35C and 36C could be 1 point on the Science section.
Not sure CCC would agree with that opinion to retake.
@Ynotgo , D is getting that B vaccine on Friday. She got the A vaccine last summer. I think too it is better safe than sorry.
What if you want to ask your coach or other non-teacher people for rec? How can you do that in Naviance or you have to do it separately?