@gclsports I missed the whole “run of the mill high school seniors” remark, in whatever thread it was posted, but I wish that someone would say that to my face about my D. I’d love for them to say that to my D’s face. Puh-leeze. 8-|
Their S stinks too. :))
Anyone else find it interesting so many kids in this thread have already submitted apps, taken the SAT/ACT/Subject Tests multiple times, have extracurricular and academic accomplishments out the wazzou, but are fearful of or not interested in driving? NYC residents excepted, prior generations would be amazed, considering driving was such a hallmark of independence.
I try to stay in this thread and very few others. I lurk, sometimes but I try to keep myself from commenting. Other threads have this potential to rile me up, and I really don’t have the time or energy for that.
I hear you re: non-NMSF kids who are great students and who are absolutely NOT run of the mill. That sort of statement is arrogant and elitist and is exactly the sort of thing that gets me riled up. There are great students out there across the entire spectrum of GPAs and test scores. Yes, even F students can be great students. Example: I used to teach Special Ed. One of my students was a young woman who could barely make it to class, and on days she did, she might not stay the whole period. She almost never spoke, except to me, privately. She liked to read. She liked fashion. She also had a sealed file that required one to visit the District Office to view it, on-site only, no copies allowed, sign in and sign out. What that means is that something unspeakably horrible happened to her, and nothing I will discuss here. When things were good, she got As and Bs. When things were bad, which was most of the time, she got Fs. She was a great student.
I have had plenty of great students, both Special Ed. and not, who were A, B and C students. Hang in there!
For top schools my daughter will include an outside reference letter - CEO of a group my daughter has been very active with. Her school uses Naviance.
My question is does the outside CEO letter go directly to the schools applied to by the CEO or can it be bundled with the Naviance bundle of school letters? If directly to applied to schools, we have to carefully consider how often we want bother a very busy CEO… Does anyone here know if your outside letters can be cycled thru Naviance, so it only needs to be sent once to be uploaded into Naviance? Or does it need sent to every school applied to - which is how I read it now…
I missed that “run of the mill” comment too - anyone care to point to it?
Oh boy, I missed the “run of the mill” comment as well. Must have been on another thread?
It was in the National Merit Scholarship forum.
Ugh @1518mom I’m sorry. That’s really awful!
@PAclgmom congrats on common app completion! We are on the same path as far as sweet-spot for merit LAC schools I think. My D is likely to revise her essay 20 times before it’s done, but she’s only on rev. 2 now so we’ve got a bit before we can hit submit on those!
@SnowflakeDogMom My D was terrified to drive. I think she only went through the process because I finally made her and all her friends were also finally doing it. She went from “That was completely terrifying I’m never doing it again” after her first lesson (I swear she drove about 10mph those first few days) to “I love driving. Can I drive?” in about six months. I’m not sure what changed, but I think once she started doing it, and gained confidence in her ability, she became really excited about it. Now that she has her license, we’re a little bit back at square one, because she really doesn’t like driving by herself, but she’s done it a few times, and she’s, again, gaining confidence. 
Congrats @glido on Common App completion! That’s D’s goal for this week (except the essay, that’s going to drag itself out I fear)
Hugs @RoonilWazlib99 ! It’ll be ok. I think my D’s essay is in trouble too. I may also have to do what you are doing but, sometimes I am just not even sure if she would benefit from it. She has been pretty stubborn. Of course, sometimes I also think I’m really too close to it to even be able to tell if it’s decent or not, but the last draft still read like it was more about what happened and less about her. :-<
And have I mentioned that Ds IB coordinator, who acts as her counselor, is very pregnant? As in, she will definitely be going out this fall, but I don’t know when. I told D to talk to her this week to find out what she needs to do for counselor letter, transcripts, and teacher letters. :!!
Ugh @gclsports that sounds unpleasant. I have learned that a thick skin is very necessary when reading CC, so if I’m feeling at all sensitive, I find it best to just avoid because they pop out when you least expect them! But mostly I roll with it, I grab my popcorn, roll my eyes at the crazy, the rude, the snobbery. I laugh at them posting their obnoxiousness for all the world to see. How embarrassing! It honestly lightens my stress to know there are people out there crazier than me 
But I don’t mix myself up in any of it, because it’s like the wild west out there sometimes! 3:-O
Edited to add: Just saw the thread in question, and umm yeah. That was over the top. Your response was spot on. =D>
Mine got her driver’s license as early as she possibly could and we are counting on using driving as one of her EC’s! :-S
@bearcatfan here it is.
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/national-merit-scholarships/2015369-fancy-college-mailings.html
@1822mom - Your post reminded me of one more thing - S’s school’s IB coordinator left at he end of last year and there is someone completely new to that role as well. Wahhhhhh!
@my2caligirls I’m glad to hear you say that. I’m trying to gently persuade D to put driving as an EC as well (under the umbrella of “family responsibilities”). With five kids at four different schools plus after-school activities, we NEED our teens to drive, not only him/herself, but younger siblings.
I forget where I got this idea, but as each kid gets his/her license, we draw up a contract, signed by kid driver and parents. The contract lays out the terms. We supply a car for them to drive. It’s in our name. We pay for gas and other expenses, but then the kid and his/her car are at our disposal. They will pick up brother at school or tennis, or stop by Target to get batteries or whatever, with no pushback. So far it’s been working very well. D18 will go away to college soon after S20 gets his license, so he will get D’s hand-me-down and we can keep the number of active teen drivers at two.
I’ll put myself out there as someone willing to read essays and give my two cents.
I read @DavidPuddy Jr’s and a few others not on here. I’m currently slogging through essays required of a family friend who wants to enter a doctor of physical therapy program.
More than 30 years as a reporter and columnist (but don’t hold that against me, lol). I really subscribe to the hack the college essay philosophy (he put it into the exact words I was trying to convey to my own daughter).
@RoonilWazlib99 Essays? Yes, my son wrote an essay dealing with the rise of AIs. Scientifically, it’s interesting but it says very little about him except to say that he’s really into science. I know one of his teachers is working with a small group each week to help them improve their essays before submitting them to schools. At this point, it’s better coming from her than from me. I had no idea how stressful this time could be for seniors and their parents. I may be a drinker before it’s over.
Shout out to USPS, working hard to get back to normal after Harvey delays! My informed delivery email showed just a single postcard from USC, but when I opened the mailbox it was stuffed full! Eight college things for S, magazine for H, and multiple letters for H and me. I’ve never been so happy to see college marketing.
@AmyBeth68 …she did not she ended up at Marquette University in Wisconsin after she was offered a place in their direct entry Doctor of Physical Therapy program. She loves it there and is very happy. She probably would have gone to Pitt had she not gotten into the DPT program.
@gclsports…there seems to be quite a run on elitist condescension on CC of late. I admit to being put off by some comments on another thred and let loose with some not so subtle snark. One day I will learn to channel my inner Idina Menzel/Elsa and “Let is Go”, but yesterday I must have been feeling more like Pat Carroll/Ursula from “The Little Mermaid”.
Good Evening, I have recently started following this post and can’t yet decide if it is helping with my stress or making me more stressed as I navigate the application process as a parent. My DS has almost completed both the common and coalition apps and has yet to begin his essays, which is a stressor since the plan was to have him complete everything in Sept. Am I now to understand that students who apply early have a better chance at receiving merit scholarships @LMHS73? Yikes! Please say it isn’t so! This is my first and only child so all of this is new to our family and we only have one time to get it right! :-S Thanks in advance for the feedback and/or words of encouragement!
@Archschool. I don’t think there is any reason for you to stress just yet! It is still the beginning of September and there is still plenty of time for your DS to get his essays completed!
Yes, there are some schools that have a November 1 deadline for full merit consideration, maybe a few more that target Oct 15 (but very few). I think if you keep November 1st in mind as the hard deadline for most schools, you will have the application completed in plenty of time to receive full consideration for scholarships1!
@ArchSchool This process can feel so overwhelming, my daughter hasn’t even started school yet here in New Jersey and therefore can’t get her transcripts or letters for her common app. Don’t feel like your DS is behind…if he has his apps nearly complete minus the essays he’s still way ahead of the game in my opinion!!! I know it can feel stressful reading about kids already accepted, etc etc. This is a fantastic group of parents, really supportive and at all different places in the college application process. Feel free to ask any questions, you’ll get a ton of great advice!!! Welcome by the way!!!