@swtaffy904 It took all of my power not to ask, “Did you watch the team video?” “Do you remember why you want to go to this school?” As it is, I just got a text, “Left my questions in the printer. I’ll print them out at school.” AAAAAAAH!
Ah, you all are making me laugh this morning! I’m all for the random roommate. It feels there’s less pressure, lower expectations with that. That said, please keep us updated on the roommate quest, @2018/2022mom!
Speaking of AP tests… Looking at Ole Miss since it’s our front runner right now. For Chemistry they give credit for the lecture but not the lab. Does anyone know how that would work? Would he take the lab standalone? Would that be advisable? I trying to decide if it would be worth it for him to take the AP test or just take the lecture and lab when he gets there.
@TexasMom18, in my own experience at PSU, the lecture and lab were two separate classes with separate instructors and grades. It was not required to take the lab and lecture concurrently and in my experience (I think four chem labs and two physics labs) the lab and lecture topics didn’t always line up. So from a practical standpoint I wouldn’t think it would be an issue for your son to take just the lab course if he already knows the concepts from his high school class.
I am not looking forward to DS choosing roommates. In fact, I think it is the part of the process he is most nervous about. He and a close friend since 3rd grade have already selected a room together at their safety school, although both of them are not sure they will attend there – I think that would be the biggest relief for him if they ended up there. I know some people suggest not rooming with a friend…but in this case they have been friends for a long time and have similar personalities…but they aren’t best friends and don’t really hang out that much in high school. DH had a horrible potluck roommate situation in college and I lived at home for 2 years and then got an apartment with friends so we don’t have a positive “potluck” story to share. DS has gotten some emails from potential roommates at other schools but since he is undecided he has just responded back letting them know that he has not yet decided on a school. They ask for his social media contact info so I know they want to scope out if he is normal or not. DS has an Instagram that he probably hasn’t posted on since 9th grade, and a twitter account with some random retweets or birthday shoutouts…so his social media presence leaves a lot to be desired.
Housing app opens Thursday for UC.
Three girls want a suite, and apparently they can “join” their application together and then the person with the best picking time links them all at selection time. It’s a bit murky how it all works. They have several weeks to find a fourth.
Actually, one of the girls is the daughter of a fellow mom I met on College Confidential - turns out we live within an hour of each other! The third is a friend of that girl. So you never know who you will meet here. 
I am fine with whatever they choose, but I lived in traditional dorm housing all four years and got to know a lot of people that way. You got to know people VERY well when you had to share a communal bathroom - even the opposite gender who sometimes wandered into the wrong one =))
@2018/2022Mom - Not gonna lie, your post totally made me laugh. I think many of us share your vision of our ideal situation for our kids. I’m looking forward to updates.
The romance of the roommate is tricky, so many of DD’s friends have had awful experiences with their roomies, I think like so many other things, its the toss of the dice.
When DS went to college, I don’t think he and his roomie spoke two words to each other the whole year. They didn’t dislike each other at all, they had absolutely nothing in common and they co-existed in peace. This was not a bad thing, it was actually ideal, no drama.
Re: school shootings - The topic came up recently, and I learned that S has identified makeshift weapons in each of his classrooms in the event that a shooter gets in and the students need to fight. 
For theatre, he’s identified several escape routes and hiding places. As long as the shooter isn’t a theatre kid, the theater is the safest place on campus for kids to shelter. It has tons of nooks and crannies for kids to hide in, and how awful is it that anyone - student or adult - has to think that way?
DD’s merit award gives her housing all years - from what I have been reading, in the later years the university has off campus apartment complexes complete with RA’s that give the students a less dorm like experience. Her dorm has all private bedrooms and only two share a double sinked bathroom - so, the dorms are quite nice by dorm standards as they stand.
@DiotimaDM its just awful that our kids have to think of these things
BUT
I am glad they are thinking, assessing their situations and being aware of their surroundings. I have pounded that into my kids heads since they were young. Know where you are, how to get out and what is going on around you.
@suzy100 ,
This was the deadline set by the state Virtual school which provides his online classes. He’s taking 2 tests, at 94 each. Hope this helps!
@GertrudeMcFuzz Re: UNM - You’re somewhere in SoCal, right?
Here are my thoughts on visiting UNM if you decide to go.
The driving route is Phoenix → Flagstaff → Albuquerque. For us it’s about 10 hours, so one long day driving. If you go over Spring Break, you can visit places like the Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest, the meteor crater, Petroglyph Nat’l Monument, Acoma Pueblo, etc. There’s a lot of film activity being coordinated out of Santa Fe, so a night in Santa Fe is an option too. Call the film school first so you know what to see. They have good relationships with Santa Fe.
There are two official tours - the walking tour of campus and the housing tour. You have to make separate appointments for each. You can also make appointments with the Honors College and the Film department, but you have to make the calls yourself. If your appointments are tightly scheduled, you can do it all in one (very full) day.
Your D already applied and was accepted, right? I don’t want to sound like I’m pushing the school, because UCF sounds like a great option. I can’t compare the two film schools directly, so not knowing that, I’d say that ABQ’s prime advantages would be proximity - it’s a lot closer than Florida - and whether your D would find the Southwestern culture / climate to be a better fit for her individual tastes than Florida.
UNM is majority Hispanic, and it’s 20k students vs 60k at UCF. That’s a big difference, but 20k is still a big school to me.
Distance is the primary reason that my S didn’t consider UCF. For him, it’s far enough away that he didn’t even look to see if it had his preferred programs.
If you / your D think you’ve got things covered with your match / reach schools and UCF as a safety, no problem. If you’d like a second, closer safety with a good film school, UNM fits the bill.
Best wishes to your D wherever she ends up!
@TexasMom18 re: Ole Miss. I have D16 there. The science labs and lectures are completely separate. It is fine to take the lab on its own especially if you already have a solid background of the topic. My daughter has done this on a couple occasions for various reasons. For example she took Organic Chemistry at our local university while home last summer, but the local university would not let her take the lab concurrently with the lecture, so she then took the stand alone lab at Ole Miss last fall and did fine.
@DiotimaDM - thank you so much! D is not talking much about her preferences at this point. I think a UNM visit will happen if, for some reason, she feels like she needs one more choice. She did like UCF though, & is OK with going that far. Especially after all the fun we had at Harry Potter World!
I just learned the results of a scholarship competition we’ve been waiting on will be released today. I really don’t expect anything but I am hoping for the best for D’s sake since she likes it so much. It would be nice for her to be a winner and for all of us go out for sushi to celebrate, but I think we’ll probably be staying home and eating vegetarian chili instead. Of course, she’s wonderful and I love her and think she really deserves to win.
@GertrudeMcFuzz Cool! If you go, here’s what I know about hotels and restaurants:
Baymont Inn & Suites Airport: $50 - $60/night. Decent value for the money, but I wouldn’t stay there again. Dodgy-looking area, room was a bit run down. Lobby and breakfast area were bright, comfortable and tidy, and the free breakfast had hot items (eggs, sausage, waffles, oatmeal) in addition to standard continental fare.
Days Inn & Suites Airport: $60 - 80/night. Nicer surroundings than the above, nicer rooms, several restaurants nearby. You can book it on Hotwire for closer to $60/night. It’s $80 - $100 booking directly or through Expedia. Free breakfast includes hot items like the above, and there’s posole (soup) available in the evenings with a slice of bread for a light dinner / snack. This is where we stay when we’re not splurging.
Embassy Suites Albuquerque: $120 - $150/night. Excellent in every way. Super nice rooms, some with knockout views, and the ample breakfast buffet has higher end items (e.g. bacon, Belgian waffles with strawberries, eggs Benedict) and omelettes made to order. This is where we stay when we splurge. (Ahem, Hilton points.)
Sheraton Airport - Good reviews but I’ve never stayed there.
Restaurants:
Standard Diner: A Diners, Drive-ins and Dives place. We had the signature meatloaf, which was very good. Menu available online. If you want a place with more local flair, check the UNM sub-forum where I asked about places to eat.
Frontier Restaurant: The big yellow barn across from campus. Tasty, fast causal food with a Southwestern flair at inexpensive prices. Very popular with students, so try it for a slice of campus life. Cinnamon rolls the size of your head (split one). You order at the counter, find a seat and wait for them to call your number. It won’t win any awards for ambiance or plating, and it can be loud at busy times. S liked it enough that he wants to go back on our next trip. Menu available online.
@MACmiracle I’m rooting for her!
We’re pulling for you and your D, @MACmiracle!
@MACmiracle fingers crossed! We still have a couple of weeks to hear back on a big one for my DS and it seems like forever.
I can’t wait for March but worry it will be really emotional. Some of his highest reaches come in last and may end up with his last few being declines, which would be a bummer. @suzy100 drinks by the pool sound awesome!
Last night asked DS18 - do you want to go to honors day on 3/9? Response - Nope, I don’t want to miss Friday at school. Guess that tells me this school is not exactly on the top of his list! You know, that list that he won’t share where it’s clear what schools are his favorites?! :))
Sorry about what seems like a really lame question, but I can’t easily find the deadline for non-homeschool students to register for Spring 2018 AP tests.
My son either will take zero AP tests (if he goes to a CA state school, for which he has maxed out AP credits) or four-five AP tests (if he goes to OOS school because he needs to try for more 4s and 5s.)
I 'd rather not pay for the AP tests if he’s not going to take them and I’m hoping maybe the registration deadline is after the admissions notification date. . . . I have not added up all the $$ we have spent on applications, tests, sending test scores (not even getting into the major expenses of college visits across the country), but I would be happy to save $500.
Anyway, I figure of anyone can tell me the registration deadline off the top of their head, that person would be found here. TIA