@DavidPuddy : was 660 in Physics? Our son did as expected for Math2 (great, but not the amazing 800), but his Physics made no sense. However, he only has had Physics 1 AP (and he got a 4 on that too, but he was really tired with all the exams and they way they were scheduled). Sooo, I’ve been wondering if something was up with The Subject Physics exam.
DD’s rooms will remain “theirs” until graduation from college and they launch permanently. We have recently been talking about moving after DD’18 starts college…she seemed rather distressed about it. "But what will happen to all my stuff?"and “Will I get a room in the ‘new’ house?”. It may have been a bridge to far for her at this point, lol.
Application to U of South Carolina was submitted today. 3 down!
@DiotimaDM congratulations! Now you can focus on a terrific senior year!
@MACmiracle UAB has a fabulous neuroscience and other health related departments. Lots of great research opportunities. Some of UAB’s other departments aren’t as strong. Also, some of the students at UAB commute. pros and cons with everything, but for a kid who knows they want to do neuroscience, it’s a fabulous opportunity. PM me if you have any questions.
@melvin123 Thank you!
You once compared Birmingham to Morristown for me, when I was wondering how urban Birmingham was compared to cities in the northeast. Not long after I had to go to Morristown as part of some volunteer work we do, and I walked around the downtown area, remembering what you said as I took in the surroundings. 
We visited what should have been a rural school last week. It was in a very small town, but the noise of traffic was surprisingly loud and constant. And freight trains ran through campus carrying smelly cargo. Since that didn’t keep D from liking the school, Birmingham might just work…as long as there are some nature trails and outdoor stuff within a reasonable distance.
@labegg question about University of South Carolina. I’ve noticed USC popping up on many lists. Can you talk about it? What are it’s pluses and minuses? Is it one of the hidden gems?
The surest way for me to get under D15’s skin when she went away for college was to discuss plans to turn her “princess suite” of a room into the guest quarters. Irked her to no end. It remains her room, and she occupies it this summer. But while she is away at USC, S18 takes it over because he likes her bed better than his own. She has a queen, while he has a twin (as I said, she is the princess). Once S18 is at college his room will remain his as well until he graduates and is on his own, unless S22 wants to move into it. I suspect S22 will be casting a coveting eye on his sister’s suite though. We have no plans to downsize later. We built this house about 6 years ago as our last residence, and we love our neighborhood. Our bedroom is downstairs and eventually the upstairs will be guestrooms and maybe a movie room. and I suspect we will rarely go up there.
@ChattaChia I know you didnt ask me, but one thing that is attractive about USC is that good merit is available to high stats (but not necessarily tippy top stats) OOS kids. S18 likes it because he has a realistic shot at admission to the Honors College, and there is a 3+3 program that lets an Honors College student who maintains a specific GPA and an achievable LSAT score get a bachelors degree and a law degree from USC Law School in 6 years rather than 7. For us, it’s within a days driving distance. And the weather doesn’t hurt.
Chiming in here about USC as well. D visited and really liked the campus and vibe - pretty laid back. She’s also interested in the Honors College (very highly regarded) and the likelihood for very good merit.
D18 also applied to USC (Carolina) last week - has a good business school and excellent merit awards for OOS. Their International Business Program is actually rated #1 in the country.
I has a DS18 and a DS30. The children are 12 years apart.
I have five, all within a six year span. Now is the time for launch prep!
Thanks for the intel on USCar. I’m putting it on the preliminary list for S20.
@Mom2Son
His was MATH II. Expected to do very well, did not. It is a head scratcher.
Going to chime in on South Carolina as well…their Honors College is ranked consistently as one of the best in the country. My D18 doesn’t want to go more than 6 hours radius so it’s out for us but I’d definitely consider it otherwise. My friend’s D16 is there and absolutely loves it. There is a lot of school spirit, beautiful campus and as previously mentioned several of their programs are ranked very high nationally.
What an offer! Initial odds look to ME like OU at about 30% likelihood. Maybe I’ll make a big board of all the choices and update the odds weekly, haha.
@ShrimpBurrito may also want to add College of Charleston to the list as well. Seems to get lots of love here on CC and it makes the “Most Beautiful College List” frequently. They shared that OOS merit awards start with a 29 ACT and go up from there. Also said they plan to list minimum merit awards an applicant can expect when their app opens in early August.
We are going to USC-Carolina in a few weeks to tour with S18. I will report back! If College of Charleston had a music program, we would check that out as well. Great school.
@DavidPuddy Okay, I’ll play! Here’s my big board for D, for today:
UBC 40%
McGill 30%
Toronto 10%
USC (Cal) 10%
ASU 5%
Edinburgh/Trinity/Chicago/OU/Emory/wildcard 5%
I need more percentage points.
@ChattaChia well,as you can see USC is well regarded. But our reasons for applying are probably less cerebral. Size, location, weather, reputation, DD’s stats fall within the 25-75 range. Honestly, DD is planning a psychology major which will mean grad school is in her future. Let’s face it she can get a degree is psychology from just about anywhere, most school have a decent psychology program. But, specifically, USC because of undergraduate research opportunities that are clearly spelled out and an emphasis on cognitive neuroscience, behavioral neuroscience, things that DD is possibly interested in. I looked at the $ briefly and ran the NPC for my family and unfortunately there will likely not be merit money for DD and her stat range. The merit doesn’t really kick in until you hit the 28 ACT mark, DD is a 27 and will take again to she if she can cross the plateau, but I am not counting on it.
We are headed to Auburn, Clemson, High Point, USC and College of Charleston on Sunday for our big college visits. I will post when we visit. You can see DD has a specific weather, location preference.
Back to report that my D finally got her ACT score from the June test!
She got a 32 composite. Looks like that might be more highly regarded than her 1430 Superscore SAT?
One more chance on both tests.