Totally agree with @melvin123 on this. I think people like to focus on essays because it’s something that can be worked on and improved after the die is pretty much cast for test scores and transcripts, but they can only really help you if they are telling a truly extraordinary story. On the other hand, they probably hurt you if truly poor, sloppy, etc.
I also think there is a ton of stuff on essays on the internet from people seeking to make money off of scaring parents into buying consulting services.
I just go check the balance online on that day in all accounts. But if it’s only a bit of interest that would be different on the statement, you could probably use the latest statement.
I know for me I want to fulfill the “assets as of day” part as closely as possible. I keep a printout of the online account snapshot in case of verification.
The state deadlines are for consideration of state grants. Those states that have the “asap after Oct 1” recommendation are saying that they have limited funds so it is best to file early.
Schools also have deadlines. Some require FAFSA for merit or need based institutional grants.
What @pantha33m said made me think I should give some additional context because you might think, oh, but that doesn’t apply for my kid because we are only looking at top tier schools. Those are the schools that my D’s GC was talking about. Sure, there is no doubt that there are a ton of “average excellent students” and the essay is one of the few ways left to stand out from the pack, but her GC said that even though kids slave over these, in the end so few actually stand out and the kids all get into these top tier schools anyway on the basis of their grades, scores and activities. She finds that if the kids spend too much time on them, they are taking away the time from somewhere else that would be more productive for them.
Thanks @melvin123
I’ve been bugging my kid to at least finish the common app essay. He has now decided to write a different one. Joy. I keep thinking “there are only 2 kinds of essays, complete and incomplete.”
@melvin123 I don’t think you are too far off the mark! I suspect that is exactly how ACs remember our kids. I am guessing my 2016 was remembered as the Oboe playing LAX girl and 2018 is the Texas Cheerleader. For better or worse, I suspect those monikers can help ypu swim or sink, depending on the AO…
^^ These sound like the nicknames they give the teams on The Amazing Race… (yeah, I still watch the show. We want our kids to drive stick - eventually - so that they don’t end up messing up their driving stages in a far off country).
It does help in recalling specifics in a soup of stories and faces.
Btw, we ran into an application where one could submit a photo if one wanted… I think it was only one of our 15, but I was curious how common this was. It just seems to be another way to help make an application real, but it could also be considered promote some visual stereotypes. My S declined, even though he’s pulled off some pretty good portraits of late, at least to these biased eyes.
One of D’s teachers wrote her a recommendation letter & gave a copy to D. She showed it to me yesterday, and I’d have to say that it’s the best rec letter I’ve ever read.
It was very obvious that this teacher knows my D well, because (just like hearing your kid’s voice in their own essays) I could recognize many of the traits this teacher was describing about my daughter. It was obvious that she put a great deal of time and effort into writing this letter & I felt compelled to email her and to thank her for taking the time do to all of that!!
Shame on me, because I have to admit that I’ve always wondered if the teachers (with so much other stuff on their plates) were just plugging the kids’ names into some generic letter just to save time.
I’m trying to treat everything (transcripts, tests scores, essays, apps, etc.) all as equally important. No stone is being unturned here.
I think my D’s weak(est) point could be EC’s. She has plenty EC’s like a sports, jobs, volunteering, service trip(s), internship, etc., but she hasn’t won a national robotics contest, played a musical instrument at Radio City Music Hall, started a non-profit or cured a disease.
I believe D has her final list of schools, 22 in all, with 6 being UC schools, plus SLO. Now, if her “REA school” comes thru, and the “odds are ever against her”, then that list will likely be pared down dramatically, which would be great from a work standpoint.
Puh-leeze REA school, come through! :-SS
Don’t most ED/EA/REA schools reject/accept/defer by around 12/15?
@MACmiracle, I share the same issue with you in that I drive an older car, but have an emergency fund of sorts to replace the car when its time is up. That money would similarly be used if the A/C dies, or the roof needs repair, or the fridge breaks, etc.,etc. A good strategy and a reasonable way to live until it’s time to fill-out FAFSA & CSS forms and then it seems like (on paper) you’re just swimming in all of this extra cash - OH-WELL…
I was going to post the other day to brag about the fact that my car just went over 150,000 miles (that used to really be something to be proud of) but then I read that your vehicle has 220,000 and didn’t feel as good about myself.
Yeah, I’m not worthy either. I do have a 180K and 160K but also a 25K that we bought recently because I was afraid the other cars might have “a bad day” from time to time.
@melvin123 Not at all! I’ve been telling my daughter she is pointy, but I don’t think she really got that until she was writing out her ECs and said, wow, everything is singing or musical theater! Her work experience: assistant teaching a Broadway class. Her volunteer service: Musical directing a middle school show. etc.
I heard a story about a student who wrote an essay that involved a motorcycle. She met her AO some time during her sophomore year and the AO said, “You are motorcycle girl! So glad to finally meet you!”
@sushiritto I totally hear you about the REA school. It’s likely that we are ED over here. My D’s GC also said that if my D applies ED and doesn’t get in there, then it’s time to revise the list because some of her other picks fall into the category of 22% ED admission and under 5% regular admission. I don’t think REA gives you the same boost as ED, so I don’t know if that same concept would apply for your D.
I wish getting into REA school would change things later, but it probably won’t unless we get a huge amount of unexpected financial aid. But he tells me he is applying REA even though it takes other EAs off the table (until RD anyway).
@LMHS73 and @chippedtoof I am really not worthy. Just good fortune. We got it used when it was under 100k miles. We only paid $5000, too. Who knew it would last this long.
The lock doesn’t work on the passenger side so if the driver’s side door lock breaks (or someone puts gum in the lock like I think happened to the other door) , I will have to open the back and climb through every time I use it, which would be uncomfortable and sweaty but also dangerous because the hatch doesn’t stay up.
Both back side doors don’t shut properly so I have to bang them shut with my bottom (I hurt my hip bones doing it so I use the part with the most padding now). People really don’t notice me doing it in my driveway or suburban parking lots, but it’s a little awkward in the city or in front of valet parking guys, though it gives them a chuckle.
Maybe I should just I print this out and send it in to the FA offices of every college D is considering and hope for a break on that savings account.
To get an totally updated daily bank balance from a foreign country, where there is a time zone and language barrier, is going to be so hard. (This is an inherited asset). I could have my mother-in-law call, but the accounts are in my husband’s and Dad’s names so I don’t know if they’ll give her a daily balance.
We usually only get quarterly mailed statements, and they take a while to get here. Could I simply overestimate balances? (Interest doesn’t vary much).
@Astro77 I would feel comfortable giving a reasonable estimate in that situation.
I will have something similar to deal with and will probably have do that, too, though I’ll ask H to check any balance he can as close to the date as possible.
Again, I would hope the powers that be would understand that we are doing our best in good faith even if the numbers are slightly off.
@Astro77, if you can’t get the daily balance, you should be ok. You might ask the school how you should handle that.
The INCOME is reported from 2016.
The ASSETS are reported as of the day you press ‘submit’ on the FAFSA.
Also I forget who said they just filed their taxes. When you get ready to do the FAFSA and want to use the IRS data retrieval tool to import the tax information, it’s possible that it won’t be ready to be imported yet.
My vehicle I think has 130,000 miles but I fear it will fall apart from rust before it would get anywhere near that kind of mileage.
I love these cars! Their unique personalities make them hard to let go. My first car had no AC, crappy radio and did not want to turn off when the engine wasn’t warm. If I was in a rush and parked after a short drive (i.e. no warmup) I’d have to walk away while the engine “dieseled” and shook the whole car. It would give up after 15-20 seconds, unleashing what sounded like an automotive sigh or grunt. Totally embarrassing. But I sure was sad when we sold it for $200 to a neighbor who eventually drove it to Illinois… I always felt that I would have liked to have those miles for $200…
@mommdc, you could always do what my sister did. When her whole trunk fell off due to rust, she got some wire and wired it on! (And then drove the car to the dealership as a trade-in).
