LOL, just after I typed my response about the miserable Chicago winter I checked the mail and there was a letter from U Chicago for my son. Ha. Into the trash it goes! ( he’d never get in anyways)
Surprised that I read there is no application fee there? So they just want more random apps to reject more people?
D has not received any fee waivers. I’m really glad we set up a college-only email with access for both of us. I have ruthlessly unsubscribed from every school I know D isn’t interested in and we don’t get very much junk anymore. @STEM2017, I love your reply about being “invited” to apply. Please post the response if you get one!
I wish I’d saved it, but we got perhaps an even more ridiculous “offer” from one school. It was back in the spring and said something to the effect of “Our university loves you so much that I am sending you an announcement about an offer you will receive in July. You have been specially selected to fill out the “Super Secret Special Snowflake” version of our application! I will be sending the official application in July. We look forward to reading your application!”
Yep, sounded a bit suspicious. How is this application different. The only thing I could think of was a fee waiver. I went to their site and looked up “Super Secret Special Snowflake application” and couldn’t even believe it. They pre-fill it with the information that you give them when you fill out their request for more information. Honestly that just seems beyond the pale. The school was very likely coming off D’s list anyway and after this it did. I wish I’d sent a reply now.
@eandesmom, bah, I did not know all the essays required by Oregon State as it’s such a recent add to the list. I’ll certainly add it to my over analysis!
@CT1417, D and I just visited Rochester. I know that RIT has one tunnel system that connects most academic buildings and another that connects dorms (but not suites and apartments that are further away). I know UofR has tunnels and iirc they connect most of the academic buildings, but nothing for the dorms.
@oneundecided, thanks for the info about VT. I’m wondering if it’s even worth applying after seeing your D’s stats. And yes, it sounds like their loss! Their renewable energy program sounds amazing and it’s not far from my sister. On the negative side she doesn’t want a big U.
@RightCoaster Yup. USNWR loves that.
So D and H (and Grandpa) did their first day of touring yesterday.
D absolutely loves Boston. H thought Northeastern did an excellent job of presenting. They did the general tour at 9 am and the computer science tour at 11 am. Both were informative and well done, according to H. D’s snapchat story was hilarious-there’s a sticker on one of the dorm walls that says “Matt, step away from the circuit breaker”.
Then after lunch over the Charles River to MIT. H was less impressed with the tour; he thought they weren’t trying very hard (no surprise there, there’s no incentive). D loved MIT (what’s not to love), but recognizes it’s a lottery school/super reach for her. She got a kick out of the architecture and liked the green spaces.
Grandpa didn’t recognize his alma mater (NEU). No, he’s not senile, there has been a lot of building going on lately. He’s enjoying the heck out of the Rationals Tour. They were exhausted last night by the time they got back to the hotel because they walked everywhere. H says parking around MIT is a **** show, and to give yourself a ton of extra time to find a parking spot.
I’m down to one class now-my photography final presentation was today :). I just have two more javascript projects and a power point in CS and I’m done in two weeks with that class. I just submitted my graduation course of study for my final year and it was approved! Woo! Hopefully I’ll be graduated next spring. I spent all morning chasing the dean of my department around campus to get her to sign a drop/add class, lol. I am nothing if not tenacious.
So much to catch up on here. My S17 visited the U of Delaware last weekend, and the tour/info session was so good that it moved the school way up on his list. They had professors and students from almost every engineering major there to meet with students–in the middle of the summer! Very impressive.
Congrats @MotherOfDragons on almost being done with CS! Impressive.
@curiositycat333 I hate Chicago winters, but I will stick up for them a bit 
Boston actually gets more snow than Chicago, on average. I think most of it is due to those large storms you describe. We get more small events. And the wind can be brutal, but rarely blows in off the lake. When it does…yikes! But, it can get brutally cold even without the wind.
@RightCoaster The only ski ‘hills’ in the Midwest are old landfills that have been turfed over. Can you tell we’re moving as soon as the kids are out of HS?
@longwood U Del is climbing the ladder on our list too! We’ll visit in the fall. Any word on OOS merit-aid from them? Did you look into the honors program?
D and H visited Penn State and were disappointed. It moved way down. It was originally not a top contender because so many from her school attend and also the high cost for an in-state student with no/little merit $. We all recognize the power of the “brand” and the alumni network - as well as the top notch business school. We thought once she arrived on campus she would be love it… below are her notes and thoughts:
The tour and the school seriously lacked enthusiasm - which is shocking. She felt like cattle on parade and that the guides went on script the entire time. She didn’t feel that anyone quite cared that they were there. She said the tour guides did nothing to engage the prospective students or get them involved in the discussion beyond the initial introductions which were rushed. The guides seemed to love their school but did not connect with the people on tour. The tour was long (90 minutes) that raced through buildings but didn’t really touch on anything. Nothing was memorable - there was no “wow” - there was nothing that stood out - it was uninspired. The admissions presentation was hot, overcrowded, and “flat”. They did not feel that PSU was presented in a positive light. Finally, the tour dropped off at the cafeteria where they had lunch vouchers but then they were on their own to find their way back to the parking lot – it was a long, hot walk back to the parking lot (behind the backs of buildings and stadiums - not attractive view of the school or campus) that was not the best ending of a tour. It was kind of like we’re done so feel free to eat and then your on your own… it was a poor ending. Other families looked miserable, some going the wrong way - unsure of the way back to their cars. People in the parking lot were grumbling about the lack of follow through at the end of the tour. It was disappointing.
Just a thought after having been on more college tours than I care to think about…making a decision based on a tour guide and tours is really missing the bigger picture. Some tour guides are just going to treat it like a job (bc that is what it is.) Some tours are just poorly planned, but the school itself might be a good choice. Over the yrs, general tours have moved to the absolute bottom of our list for evaluating a school.
If at all possible, set up dept meetings with the dean and/or UG advisor, sit in on a class, talk to at least 1 professor in the area of interest, see if you can meet students in your major. If class is in session, walk through your major’s building about 10 minutes before class change. Usually a lot of students will be sitting out in the hall waiting to go in. Ask if they like the professors, feel supported in their studies, etc.
For us, those dept visits have revealed far more about the schools than tours and really influence my kids’ POV.
Good advice, @Mom2aphysicsgeek . This tour is mostly to rule out schools or areas of the country she just can’t see herself living in/at.
It’s one of the reasons she’s not applying to Duke-she spent 3 summers on campus there, and just doesn’t see herself there. It’s not that the education wouldn’t be excellent, it’s just that the campus and the town isn’t what she’s looking for. Same with Davidson and UGA-she’s spent enough time on those campuses to know it’s not a good fit for her.
I see more flights back to Boston later this year and early next year (and yay hopefully I’ll get to go) to do the things you mentioned above for schools that accept her.
@STEM2017 I didn’t go on the U Del visit, but my DH said that they really liked the honors college presentation. Honors students are from across the university and housed in one dorm, which appeals to S. There is some information on merit on the Delaware page here at CC–I’m still working my way through it.
S likes the group project focus, research and internships, and focus on undergraduate education. Also, Delaware does not have either direct admit-to-major or FYE.
@2muchquan OK… I looked it up… Boston 43.8" vs. Chicago 37.1" of average snow over the past 30 years. Seems the same to me… We get 0" of annual snow fall a year. 
And if I use the same site the average winter temperature of the two cities is about the same. Odd… I’ve always though of Chicago as a lot colder. Maybe it’s just my memories as a kid.
I agree about the tours @Mom2aphysicsgeek but my D has “felt the love” from several tours and this one feel very short. H talked about seeing students in and out of classes (they have a very active summer term with nearly 10K people on campus) and a lack of friendliness. FWIW - she did try to set up a meeting/tour with the honors college and also with an adviser but they were not able to fit her in when she was there. She did contact quite a bit ago and they just directed her to the regular tour and the undergraduate admissions dept. She had successfully scheduled classroom visits, department visits, honors college visits, and one on ones with students for her other tours – she was not successful at scheduling these for PSU.
H was also not impressed - H was a bit put off that there was no water offered for a summer tour – after touring so many different schools this was the first that did not offer water bottles and it was a hot and humid day. If they are cost cutting or do not offer water bottles - they could note that in their tour reminders. Since we were offered them at literally every other tour we have been on, it was just expected. He also noted that there were no folders/pens for taking notes. He noted that while we made the tour reservation a while ago, they were overwhelmed by the number of people - with not enough seats and no one could see/hear parts of the admission presentations that were videos on large screens - but with so many people packed in the room visibility was tough (they were only halfway back - having arrived 30 minutes early). Not deal breakers for a college but things that impacted their tour and their overall impressions of the school.
She is keeping PSU on her list but it is pretty far down. She just didn’t feel the hype
@MotherOfDragons With D12… we did a summer tour of a few schools. More tours after she got accepted of other schools. And finally a spring break trip on her own across the country, to make 100% sure she liked her decision before final decisions were decided. Lots of flying but it was worth it.
Regarding Chicago winters…
I lived in Chicago for 10 years, following my then H who was at Northwestern for Med School. As a PNW native it was a brutal transition. It is grey. Grey. Grey! In the winter. Yes it’s cold. So cold in fact that 1) wine and champagne can actually explode and re-freeze in a car trunk if left outside overnight and 2) depending on the heating status of your apartment you may find yourself encased in ice over your windows, igloo style. It is flat. So very very flat. No evergreens but the lake teases the coastal resident reminding them of oceans and sounds far away.
All that said. I loved, LOVED Chicago. I am incredibly grateful to have lived there for the time I did and wouldn’t change a thing. It is a great town for such a big city. I love going back. Personally I found the summers more difficult than the bitter cold (and WIND) of the winters. But fall, oh fall is magical! Especially as you move out of the city, or travel around the general area. No mountains, no skiing but there is some nice camping not all that far away (ok a few hours but still, doable). As a young adult, the food, the music, yes the bar scene, it was a great great place to be. At the end of the day it isn’t where I wanted to raise my kids but I am glad I went, S17 was born there and am always happy to go back on the rare occasion work calls me there.
@snoozn we received a special snowflake application “notification” like that, for a school not even on S’s list. It is a school that in all fairness could be, if they had a program that worked but that was a turn off to be sure.
@novicemom23kids , did you go to Honors College tour? D didn’t want to go on any tours until admissions so we didn’t go to the one in June. I think you might have different experience if you do. Penn State is one of the largest universities in the country, so of course it may not be very personal, but don’t disregard it right away. It is a solid school with reputations in almost all the majors.
Re tunnels at colleges - apparently Northeastern has some too - a plus for Boston. Glad to hear RIT does too!
Upon further review of the mail today it was like a college brochure bonanza. Chicago, Hamilton, Colby, Bates, Middlebury, BU, Trinity, UVM, Bowdoin. Interesting mix, my kid stands hardly a chance at most of them and he isn’t really interested in LACs at the moment. I wonder if those schools just buy mailing lists from kids in certain zip codes or from certain high schools? Seems like such a waste of paper and money to send all of these mailings to kids who aren’t even considering going there.
@2muchquan Regarding relocating: We are on an official 3 year plan to move out of MA, once Son19 graduates. Probably going to end up in VT. I tried to convince the kids to move a couple of years back, but they just couldn’t get into it. I think it would’ve been great for them. I’m looking forward to smaller town living away from hustle and bustle. Boston area is too stressful for my liking.
The Rational Tour just finished at WPI. “Nice, but more of a match/safety, not as exciting as yesterday.” I’ll get more deets when she gets home.
With so many of you touring colleges, I don’t want to miss that fun, so scheduled our one and only college tour (UCSD) DS is competing in another science tournament @ UCSD in two weeks!!!