Congratulations, @zomaya99! Hoping for good news to all waiting on merit for Pitt!
S is re-taking the SAT today. We had another financial talk last night. If the finances don’t pan out after all, (not enough scholarship or too large student loans), S will need to make other choices. Local college or military. He’s aware of the financial picture (we parents cannot take out loans until 2019 due to our finances). He grumbled a bit about local college (which would require an additional SAT subject test due to his homeschool status). I told him his grades and senior year effort would not be wasted: I’m sure he’d test out of some classes. And he’d graduate with little to no debt (would qualify for HOPE sophomore year and beyond). THAT would free him up to travel, etc., without worrying about student loans or a requisite salary to pay them back.
S’s response? “Stop making so much sense!”
:))
@zomaya99 Congrats to you D on the fantastic Pitt scholarship!
I’m so happy for all of you who have heard/are hearing good news. We are in the waiting game till mid-December and its so hard. My anxiety is high, because there is nothing we can do but wait and wonder. Son still has to write the remaining 7 applications “just in case” which is also hard.
@apraxiamom - You may want to have your son check out CLEP tests. They seem to have a better chance of getting credit at schools than the subject tests. My friend who has homeschooled all her kids has had a lot of success getting a ton of college credits that way.
Think we might be trimming a few schools off the list. May drop 3 LACs as he is thinking bigger is better
Interview went well yesterday, but it was a long day with the driving.
Turns out they had PLENTY for parents to do … while the kids interviewed we had an informal session with some professors and admissions folks who answered a lot of questions. Of course, my big mouth asked the question we all wanted to know - what role the interview played in admissions. 
Then we played in the SIM lab, which was fun.
Overall, they sold themselves much better than they did during the close up we attended in the summer. They said some things I liked, and I felt better about the campus and the program overall. Now we wait until end of January. :-SS
I think my daughter was accepted to The University of Delaware…her portal had streamers and confetti and a link to pay the deposit HOWEVER…no official acceptance letter, nothing about her major, no indication if she got into the Honors Program. Very disappointing to say the least. Others had official letters etc. There was one other girl in the same boat. Not sure if they are still reviewing her Honors application or what but it’s very bizarre :(. Still nice to have another acceptance in hand.
@Bearcatfan sounds like it was a good day!!! Glad it worked out…now the waiting. I feel like that’s all we do around here haha!!!
Congratulations to all on the exciting acceptances and merit awards! And @bearcatfan , great to hear that you were happy about the visit/interview.
Is anyone seeing portals get updated by the school systems with new news on the weekend or should I not bother checking?
@kayak24 I’m sure it depends on the school, but I have been checking S’s portals and not seen anything post over a weekend yet. Not sure why I keep checking them!
Same here… I think it’s the definition of insanity lol. And still I check…
@AmyBeth68 I think that stinks that they can’t at least make it completely clear that it is an acceptance. Geesh! Makes me wish they all still came in the mail.
As for overnight visits I haven’t heard that they are not good. Anyone want to fill me in? D only did one, at one of her top choices. It went from high on the list to top of the list. I figured in the spring she will do overnights at the final contenders. But it has potential to be a time and financial expense so don’t want to do it if not helpful.
Thoughts?
@swtaffy904 I think overnights are fantastic! My older D did one and it cemented her top choice and that’s where she is currently attending. Unfortunately none of my D18’s top schools offer overnight visits…I guess they are all just to large.
If the email comes to your student, then how does the parent check the portal? Did your child give you the portal info? I have no access to the portals and I doubt my fiercely independent D would give access to me. :((
D’s Canadian schools will send out acceptances any time between late November and June. :-w How often do I bug her to check those portals?
Yes, @sushiritto , I log onto the portals through my D’s email (which comes to my iPad). She’s fine with me keeping an eye on things as an alternative to me torturing her with questions. 
Agree with @AmyBeth68 , overnights can be a great way to confirm top choices. My D was similar in that she did an overnight in November her senior year and knew for sure that was the one for her. Many month’s before that she thought it was the school so no change of heart. We have heard a few examples where an overnight does not go well. If that happens with my S, I’m not sure how he will respond. He is such the type to love the school that loves you back and as of now he is thinking one or two overnights…yikes!!!
Were planning on doing 3 overnights at the top three choices. I understand what people say about overnights but if you can take the host person out of the equation it could be beneficial. It’s kind of like getting a bad tour guide on one of your visits it puts a bad taste on the college.
As for portals, I have all of the sign on in a little book. I check them once a week usually on Friday. However, I don’t expect anymore acceptance letters until mid December.
I don’t have access to portals. No way she would give it up. I just suggested a weekly log in to portal of each school she has applied to. She hasn’t checked since last time I bugged her.
As for bad host for overnight visit that is frightening. I am not sure my D could se beyond the tour guide if it wasn’t a match. We were lucky her one overnight thus far and the host was a great match for D. My D is artsy and if she wound up with a sporty group it may turn her off. She needs to feel like she will fit in. Sorry, not trying to offend parents of sporty kids…
Can’t worry about that now. She needs to get accepted to some schools first
@sushiritto S has a special gmail account for all things college-related. All of his apps (and therefore all of his portals) are associated with that email. He also uses the same password for as many of the portals as possible. He, H and I all have access to it. I doubt H has actually ever logged into that gmail, and I know H has never logged into any of the portals. But I get on them regularly so there are two pairs of eyes keeping up with to-do lists and deadlines. Although S too is quite independent, it doesn’t hurt to have a second person making sure everything’s on track when the consequences of not turning things in or missing a deadline means kid doesn’t get in or doesn’t get financial aid. S will complete all the tasks and handle any necessary communications with the schools or with his GC.