@glido congrats! But didn’t she already decide on UCLA? With ROTC?
@Booajo : Yea - we thought so - but then she got the call from USAFA. So you can imagine what it’s been like around the house! We have two visits scheduled.
Just when I thought we were done . . . . we got sucked back in! ~X(
Why can’t schools create a Net Price Calculator that is actually accurate for all but the most rare applicants and binding on the schools? And then doing a binding read on the rare applicants for whom the NPC doesn’t work? If kids knew the real cost of the schools, more kids could commit to ED. And you wouldn’t have the heartache of families having to turn down a school that their kid got into because the money didn’t work out as they thought. Seriously, NPCs don’t work well if parents are divorced? That’s probably about half of the applicants. And don’t work for families owning small businesses? - Most of those computations shouldn’t be that hard. Seems like a more sophisticated computer program should handle these issues.
Can you imagine if rather than buy an education, our DDs and DSs were buying cars? Q: "How much is that sedan? A: " Well, let me take a look at your parents’ tax return before I answer that question.’’
Congrats to everyone reporting good news on college admittances and military academy appointments!!
Sending out good thoughts to those dealing with disappointments.
@suzy100; I hope you’re feeling better!!
Thanks for the well wishes. I’m fine. I’ll just never eat a certain food again as long as I live. 
@txsparty Congrats on Naval Academy. Our friend’s daughter is heading there for volleyball. My D20 has also gotten interest letters from them for track so I would love to hear about your official visit.
S18 made finalist for local scholarship and has interview next Tuesday. Winners announced April 16-23–what?! I’m not sure I can hold out any longer but this scholarship would make #1 in range so guess what, we’ll be waiting…
We were supposed to visit UTD next Tuesday, so due to the interview we are moving it up to this Thursday. This is going to be a big determiner as UTD is not really on son’s radar. Financially it is hands down the best option. Academically it is a great choice as well. The big factor will be fit - too urban? too nerdy? (and that is not meant to be offensive), lack of college town and social life? Because of last minute change and the fact that Friday is a holiday, the campus tour is at capacity. We were able to get a housing tour, but we will be doing a walking tour on our own. Trying to decide whether to visit the departments there as well. @scoutsmom and @traveler98 do you have any advice for things to be sure to see? I went to grad school there 25 years ago but most of my classes were at the Callier Center in Dallas.
DD waitlisted at Vanderbilt. I am so proud of her. In talking to her I don’t think she understands what an accomplishment that is.
Just glad for her psyche not a reject.
Ivy day tomorrow.
@burghdad you both have much to be proud of!
@burghdad my S18 also waitlisted at Vanderbilt. He is pleased and definitely sees it as a victory. I’m a bit annoyed as I’d like to be able to make some decisions. I think USC is higher for him anyway; bigger decision for him is whether he wants to consider loans. About 50% of his options would be Loan-free.
Best of luck with the acceptances coming-out next week!
@Booajo agreed that I would have preferred an admit or a reject to just move on but after out right EA rejects from UNC bad UVA I am glad for a little love from Vandy. Another outright reject would have been tough.
@S18D20mom you might stop by a shopping area at 730 E Campbell Rd, Richardson, TX 75081 they have some places popular with UTD students like Twisted Root. You might try to find some current students to give you an unofficial tour. @GTAustin helped me out with this and it was really helpful we got to ask all sorts of questions to current students that weren’t under any pressure to answer one way or another, took the boys out for dinner in return for their time and it was a win/win. If your son is NM please try to get a meeting with someone from the honors college, there are lots of perks that aren’t well documented on their web page (free tickets to symphony and opera, a fund set up to take students to take professors out to dinner so they can get to know the students and right great rec letters, auto admit to CV honors program with priority registration, free printing in the honors lounge… You’ll find much has changed since you went there!
Twisted Root, yes! S20 and I went to the one by SMU. Fun and a great burger.
Big day tomorrow. D has first job interview and it’s IVY day. She has 4 ivy’s to hear from. Job is a big one with scholarship attached.
Set up for a big up or a major big downer tomorrow. Unfortunately daughter on east coast for interview will have to deal with it all alone.
@sekere62 Good luck to your D on her job interview tomorrow!
And of course for everyone waiting on Ivy Day tomorrow, good luck!
D18 has one Ivy tomorrow, UPenn, but is basically past the whole college application thing. She did have a good interview for them. The woman interviewer had majored in D18’s selection, which is somewhat unusual. Still, the RD rate there is so low that we’re assuming a rejection. Duke the next day and that’ll almost certainly be a rejection because they consider interest.
D18’s AP Lit teacher was nice today. He asked if D18 got into {the school that shall not be named, yes I’m that petty!} and was surprised she was rejected (he was one of her LOR writers). He wanted to write a letter to them saying it was a “huge mistake” and that she was one the best students he’s had in twenty years of teaching. That helped her quite a bit.
Thanks to all for your sympathy on the death of DS’s classmate. Funeral arrangements are finalized for Saturday but we have to go out of town. DS says that he and some friends will go to the Thursday afternoon wake, which he can manage before we leave on our trip. He says that I don’t need to take him (I understand, he wants to be independent) and I don’t mind not going but I also would have liked to extend my sympathy to the mother. Maybe I’ll send a card.
I do know that it will help the remaining family (mother, older sister, 2 grandmothers, uncles and aunts) to see students from their school come to pay their respects, as the first line in his obituary is “Proud student of X— High School”, it’s a selective school with strong spirit.
I realized how sad it is that we have to wonder whether the death of a young person may be due to suicide. Some of you who were on the Parents of the HS Class of 2015 forum may remember a heartbreaking post from a parent who posted “I am no longer a parent of a member of the class of 2015”, because her son, brilliant, funny, and, she thought, happy, had died by suicide.
Meanwhile we’re all trying to do what we can to keep our kids happy and safe and healthy which to many of us means right now hoping that they get into the school that’s best for them, and that they make a good decision among the choices that they have–and not losing sight of the big picture, the fact that this is just one step in their life journey.
For all of you who are disappointed at rejections from first choice schools, it does hurt and I wish your kids the best as they move on to find the right school. For those who’ve gotten good news, congratulations! And good luck and a link for all waiting for Ivy day decisions: https://mathwithbaddrawings.com/2015/09/30/why-ive-stopped-doing-interviews-for-yale/
^^^THIS. A thousand times this. While I am rooting for the kids who are getting decisions these last few days, I hope they all know that whatever the outcome, it doesn’t define them. They have their wholes lives ahead of them to do that themselves.
@crepes I remember that post because it was also in the 2014 group. That young man was originally a 2014 but then spent a year in China studying they language, and delayed graduation for a year. Incredibly sad story about a talented young life lost.