Parents of the HS Class of 2018 (Part 1)

Parents of HS Class of 20xx
5061

@DavidPuddy That really is disappointing. (We haven’t received anything in the mail yet–I’ll be on the lookout.) D doesn’t want to go to OU but will apply, just in case there’s a family emergency and she needs to be close to home.

Seeing that NMF benefits reduction is a trend, I am a tad nervous about ASU possibly changing their NMF package. I have communicated with an admissions officer there who has said they are restructuring their visit program for NMFs. Hopefully that will be the extent of their changes. Does anyone know more?

A drastic change to ASU’s NMF benefits would leave us without a true safety. :-S D’s thoughts are all over the place right now (even within the context of a single conversation, she’ll swing from one extreme to another), so flying without a safety is a scary thought! She still hasn’t started any essays. I’m trying really hard not to nag, but the planner in me is having a hard time here! ~X(

5062

@sushiritto The internship sounds amazing. What a great opportunity. They really do a lot in 2 weeks!

5063

I’m so technically challenged. I’ve noticed that some people on this site comment about prior posts that people have made. How do you efficiently look that up? In some ways I think it’s a little creepy because you can get an awful lot of information about someone, but in other ways it can be really helpful. For instance, I wanted to look up someone’s kid’s stats so I could maybe throw out a school suggestion.

5064

@melvin123, if you click on someone’s name it will take you to a page where you can get to the threads they’ve posted and replies they’ve made. It’s on the top left of a person’s page.

5065

@melvin123 I get you about the creepy part, and I felt that a little the first time it happened to me. It can be uncomfortable when someone calls you on an inconsistency when it’s really just changes of ideas that are part of the learning process. But for them it’s just part of getting a clear picture.

5066

@suzy100 well, I still am miserable with computers, but you clearly made my day. I searched you as an example, but was only able to get to your most recent 4 threads, nothing beyond that. But OMG, for everyone else who has never seen this, I’m posting a link to a CC thread that suzy100 had requested a while ago.

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/470497-clam-fart-oh-my-god-what-did-i-do.html

Thanks for the laugh! (But I still can’t get beyond 4 threads).

5067

@S18D20mom Thank you. It’ll be a wonderful experience for her. And I’m sure she’ll thank me for it. :^o =)) Sorry, I nearly fell out of my chair.

I already realize that she can’t become a doctor. Her writing is too neat. ;))

5068

S has his two-part EMR final tomorrow and Thursday. It was originally supposed to be all on Tuesday, but someone missed one of the mandatory weekend sessions so they had to add a day to the schedule because certification requires a certain number of hours.

The instructor made S the captain of his team, so that means S gives the orders during the simulation part of the exam. As I’ve mentioned, if the team fails, each individual fails. Before today, S thought he had the best overall team in the class, but some team tensions have cropped up that have given S pause.

S is the youngest person in the class, the only minor, and his team includes a 30-something former military guy. That guy is not at all pleased to have a 17 year old as team lead. Dude has sort of bragged that he could have been a cop but they wouldn’t pass him through interviews because of two DUIs.

The student who missed the mandatory session and is responsible for everyone getting a day added to their schedule is also on S’s team. The rest of the class is pissed (rightfully so) at this guy. In the team texts that resulted after missed-the-class guy missed the class, angry guy told MTC guy that he’d better watch his back. S is pretty sure that angry guy was joking, and the comment was part of the ration of crap MTC guy pretty much deserves, but still.

The instructor watched S’s team’s final practice simulation and told S to make missed-the-class guy the patient, which means dude is strapped to a backboard and can’t talk. This will keep MTC guy from stepping over the patient during the sim, which is a habit MTC guy hasn’t broken yet, and hopefully it will keep MTC guy from pissing off angry guy any further, plus, even angry guy wouldn’t go after a person strapped to a board. The instructor also told S to put angry guy in charge of gear, which is the smallest role available after being the patient, but it also means that S outranks angry guy and will have to give him orders to fetch and carry, hand him stuff, etc.

S is worried that angry dude is angry enough to try to tank the team. S (privately) asked the instructor what he should do if angry dude gets out of line, and the instructor said that 1) S is within his rights as captain to send any team member back to the ambulance* and tell them to stay there, but 2) the instructor will keep an eye on angry dude.

While I don’t think anything will go too pear-shaped, I confess that I’m a little worried. On the other hand, S is learning some excellent leadership skills, including how to manage difficult personalities in stressful situations.

I will post an update tomorrow.

*It’s a pretend ambulance.

5069

I’m right with you @ShrimpBurrito on the trying not to nag, biting right through my tongue with the effort! 8-}
My D is also not working on essays yet. I keep reminding myself it’s fine, because it is, but oh man it’s crazy making!! I finally told her I expected her to have her list mostly figured out and be ready to start essays on August 1 when the apps open. I’m trying to leave her alone beyond that. She seemed ok with that but not thrilled with how quickly summer is moving.

Good luck to your S @DiotimaDM ! Sounds stressful! I hope making it through the situation will give him confidence that he can handle tough situations, however it turns out. Fingers crossed for him!!

5070

Just got back from some Midwest travels. UW Madison failed to impress. Northwestern, however, moved WAY up the depth chart. Beautiful campus, great tour guide, S18 felt comfy and familiar there.

5071

@melvin123, I look for that thread whenever I need a really good laugh. :slight_smile:

OK, here is something quirky about the “Thread” number on a person’s page. For whatever reason - no idea why, it makes no sense - if you “flag” a post (I admit I do my fair share of reporting t-r-o-l-l posts), it counts it toward the count for “Threads.” So I really have very few threads, even though it looks like I have more.

5072

@sushiritto, D21’s father is an MD, he and she have the same “Dr. handwriting”…

5073

@sushiritto sorry to jump on a soap box, but I saw you mentioned that your D is very good at math but didn’t want to do engineering or computer science and wasn’t sure if/how to use it. I understand completely (though I personally went comp sci) and have had similar situations with our two sons. Just wanted to say there are tons and tons of careers that can involve math and I feel like it’s one of those fields that needs advocating for as it’s often seen as too geeky, male dominated, etc. It often just takes encouragement to have the confidence to make the leap.

S15 wouldn’t touch engineering but really liked the idea of modeling (mathematical that is!) and so looked into applied mathematics initially and ended up in an actuarial science program. He loves it. He gets excited now talking about insurance… yeah, it takes all kinds really. Don’t judge! :slight_smile:

S18 is still trying to figure out how to cross chemistry, bio, math and physics into a career (I think he is leaning towards professional student). He’s also shied away from things like engineering and isn’t sure comp sci is what he wants to do for a career… so we are now going through the same process again.

I often wish there were as many career options in pure science fields as there are in math… but I digress.

There are several sites out there for careers that use math (google “we use math” or “awm math”). Even better, schools post very detailed course guides or academic plans for various majors, which is how we’ve found the best info for programs and majors that match up well with our nerds… I mean kids… and we have also used them to find the careers and courses that didn’t match their interests at all.

Anyway, best of luck on your D’s search!

5074

@NamePoster Thank you for your thoughts. Preaching to the choir here. We actually had/have a few college professors in our extended family, including one who taught math. No judging here at all. I’m listening to her. I hope she’ll find a career where she can use her math skills. She also likes Chemistry. But I’m not pushing her in any direction though it’s obvious she’s not a computer-oriented person. It’s a means to end for her. She’s interested in the law and medicine at the moment. I just want her to be happy. And I will google careers in math. Thanks.

Just an FYI, if anyone is interested, but D has been assigned rounds from 9-1 on Sunday. She will be shadowing. So much for sleeping in. There are 30 kids in the session/program from all around the world. The countries I heard at the dinner table tonight were Korea and Ghana.

5075

@sushiritto I’ll echo what @NamePoster said - look into actuarial science.

My oldest niece, always super strong in math, did undergraduate work in math and physics. She did graduate school at Georgetown, and is now being paid by her firm to study and take the actuarial tests. I think she is on her fourth one. She telecommutes a couple days a week, and all in all has a sweet working situation. About the only thing she doesn’t like is that she doesn’t get a lot of human contact in her job, but she finds that outside of work.

And yes, she will talk your ear off about insurance and probability programs. =))

5076

@DiotimaDM good luck to your S, it sounds crazy, but defnitely good experience.

@ShrimpBurrito and @1822mom I’m right there with you. D hasn’t really started anything yet for essays. She kind of has a list of where she wants to apply, but even that isn’t really said and done yet. I know once school starts (in 2 weeks!) things will just get crazier for her. She would really like to visit a couple other schools, but we seriously have no time with Marching band and competitive cheer season. Her plan is now to just apply to ones she thinks she might like and try and visit later.

5077

@DiotimaDM , that class in general and the final exercise sounds like a great growth experience for your son. When I was 18 I had my Water Safety Instructor license and taught lifeguarding at summer camp. When I went to college freshman year the college swim coach learned about my license and hired me to teach a private lifeguarding course to other college students. I found myself teaching a class of 25 on my own, including seniors, older members of my fraternity, and swim/water polo team members. I learned a lot about asserting authority and making others think I knew what I was doing!

5078

S18 may apply to another college: Bellarmine in Kentucky. The major is not a perfect fit, but he wants another Catholic college in play, and the financial aid is good (according to the NPC). If he applies to a Catholic college, S18 can compete for Knights of Columbus scholarships too.

5079

DD visited Puget Sound yesterday (with a relative) and was kind of meh on it, it sounds like. I really want her to like that school for geographical and monetary reasons. I’ll have to get more details when she gets back. They are visiting Whitman today. Sounds like they love Walla Walla based on a couple hours exploring last night.

5080

@apraxiamom , Bellarmine was once recommended to me by @LOUKYDAD . I remember liking what I saw.

I don’t know if you’d be interested in looking at St. Vincent College in Latrobe in western Pa, not to far from Pittsburgh, so more of a Midwest than East Coast vibe. They have a low starting price and good scholarships, including a full-ride and several full-tuition that he would be very competitive for. I’ve heard of a good philosophy prof there. know a couple families with kids who have gone. I think one went on to grad school at an ivy and the other has a job he loves with an international firm.