My S signed up for senior classes earlier this month. He hates math and has struggled a bit this year in honors trig/pre-calc, so is doing honors intro to calc instead of AP Calc AB. He didn’t want to take any math at all but you need 4 years to graduate. Also taking honors botany (not much of a science kid either so he didn’t want the AP), AP Computer Science, AP Eng Lit, and as he has taken all of the history/social studies classes available to him, he is doing an independent study in history. Also taking band, fulfilling a gym credit, and some electives (painting, psychology, marketing).
My D can only take at most 4 APs next year and none of them can be STEM because she already took more STEM classes than she needs. She is interested in AP Lit, AP Euro or World history, AP Art Hist, AP Gov, AP Psych, and AP French but can only pick 4.
@3SailAway I love that attitude. And I agree that it will be hard to apply to a lot of schools but I just don’t know if S19 has a choice. Right now, we have 14 on the list. I’m even worried about the easier admits on the list, though, as with these LACs, I feel like you just never know. A big chunk of the list are schools with 25-30% acceptance rates where he’s in the top 25% for GPA and scores but they can’t be considered even matches because the percent admit rate is so low. He’s going to be doing a lot of writing this summer. I do not want him applying to schools where he cannot see himself. As he embarks on writing these supplements, if a school just isn’t speaking to him, we will drop it from the list.
In the quest to lower that mile time, he just ran a 4:52 this afternoon. New PR - six seconds faster than his last time of 4:58 just earlier this month. There are probably twelve kids faster than him on his team alone but he’s motivated!
My d is planning to take 2 AP courses next year. Maybe 3 if something else she requested doesn’t fit her schedule. She is taking 4 this year. But she is planning on at least 4 dual enrollment courses as well.
My D is part of an honors program at her school. They are incredible with these kids, getting them on track for college- summer programs, SAT prep, etc. They have a list that they have put together with selective colleges that they believe are worth looking into. The list is based off of many different criteria, such as endowment per student, U.S. News & World Report ranking, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, graduation rate and alumni giving.
It’s nice to have a list already and we just need to go through and see what may be a fit for our D’s needs. They also suggest that the kids ultimately apply to 10-15 schools; due to selectivity.
We spent part of the morning over at the local community college. They have a dual enrollment program with our school system. Kiddo is signed up to take health for one 5 week term and macroeconomics for the other half of the summer.
I had conceived of this as a way to get the kid out of the house during the summer, but we somehow ended up enrolling him in the online version of both courses. He has to physically go to the college three or four times over the summer for tests, but other than that it’s completely self-paced and at home. Or from anywhere, really, so we can still take some family vacations.
Both of those are semester courses at school, so this frees up another class period for something else. It will be interesting to see what the kiddo picks.
But that means we still have to figure out a summer activity that gets the kiddo out of the house. I know him, he will be climbing the walls and driving me crazy within two weeks without some sort of social interaction during the day. I’m pushing for a summer job. He has a line on a theatre camp counselor position but he has to actually fill out the forms and apply before someone else snaps up the job.
@3SailAway a couple of us on this thread have happy freshman at UVM (both did EA) and are happy to answer any questions.
Well, S19 shared with me that he no longer considers his favorite school to necessarily be his favorite. He likes all of the small LACs on his list. He would like me to cancel the full day he was gong to spend at the favorite which is scheduled for two weeks from now. Doesn’t want to miss school with the APUSH test and SAT coming.
And, he is now totally open once again to Penn State main campus. After being open to it. Then not being open to it. PSU main is the opposite of all the other schools. He is going there in two weeks as part of a school field trip. A teacher is taking the class up for a themed academic event. Apparently, tours will be available. So, we’ll see what happens. If he likes PSU, we can consider some other options.
Ah, the ever changing college moods of the high school junior. Anyone else go from “I want to live at home and attend the local private school” to “Small LACs are my thing” to " Gee, the ginormous state flagship sounds good" seemingly overnight? Hey, I’ll keep taking him to visit schools. He still wants to stay within two hours of home so we can do so easily.
On a fun note, Mr. InfiniteWaves went out in Lancaster with a couple of buddies last night. Let’s just say that the F&M, Elizabethtown, and Millersville students were, uh, enjoying themselves at the Irish bars. Mr. InfiniteWaves and buddies were all “can’t believe we were like that once.” 
Yes, ever changing… S19 said yesterday, when did I say I want to do chemical engineering?
Apparently, now his interest is in biomedical engineering and biochemistry. ¯_(ツ)_/¯
Yes, ever changing… S19 said yesterday, when did I say I want to do chemical engineering?
Apparently, now his interest is in biomedical engineering and biochemistry. ¯_(ツ)_/¯
Test score question. Any benefit to sending early (not free score send) to schools?
Wondering if it increases communication, notification of visits locally, shows early interest etc. For most we will be unable to visit until after (if) accepted and see $$ offers but since testing is done I wonder if I should just send to a few in the match/ reach bucket. We did free score to the safeties only. I don’t think our flagship will care but the 4 privates might?
@eandesmom, I think it would be noted at “demonstrated interest” schools. I am surprised at how much some of them track. If they notice how many times you click on their websites, surely they will consider that you sent scores early.
Hm. @EastGrad We didn’t send any SAT scores when S19 took the test. If he’s done testing now, though, I wonder if we should send scores now as a show of interest? Anyone think it’s ok to pay and send scores this early before you send apps? Do schools start a file this early for a student application? Part of me feels like they would get lost but I guess my sending them now wouldn’t be much different than doing the free score report back when he took the test. Anything we can do to show extra interest could help S19.
We sent our 4 free scores on the ACT to the 4 most likely schools on the list. I think I remember reading an admissions guy saying that if they get a score before they get an application, they just open a file on the kid. Everything matches up eventually, I guess.
Yes, they create a file and it is stored there to be matched later.
We received emails and postcards when they visit nearby.
With S17, after the free reports, I sent scores on August 1st as we started working on Common App and then in mid October for the second batch. He did not do ED.
He ended up not applying half the schools to whom I sent scores because he had several results by late December and did not feel like applying anymore. I would send the scores only to “definitely-apply” schools.
With S19, he is likely to apply to more schools and till later, so I am in no rush. He will probably do ED and a few EA apps and then several RD in December, so I may be still sending scores mid December.
I’ll probably send scores by the end of the summer if any schools are added to S19’s list by then. D16 sent her scores way before her applications and there were no issues with scores not getting matched up.
We sent scores for my DD16 as a junior and none were misplaced.
Regarding tracking interest, @EastGrad, you said that schools track how many times you click on their website…How? I know how IPs work but that seems like so much extra work, and also, invasive. Plus if you are at school/work the IP isn’t your own.
@JenJenJenJen I thought they just noticed if you opened their email and then maybe clicked on any links they sent in the email. Why would it matter what device you use?