The process for recommendations depends on the high school. Ours uses Naviance to upload to the Common App; the college counseling office handles that. The student needs to notify the office which schools they are applying to, and then the office uploads all school docs, including teacher recommendations, all at once for each of those colleges.
Day 2 of staycation and college âvisitsâ here.
Last nightâs UCF information session was not very informational! 5 minutes on college statistics and school spirit events and 30 minutes on how to apply and how to transfer. Nothing about academics, honors programs, majors, the different schools, etc. Turned D21 off from the school. And then she went on niche or reddit and found âUCF stands for U Canât Finishâ!
We just watched a tour of Pitt which was great in contrast. It was a local student tour guide and I think it was taped right after the university shut down - upload date was 3/20. The guide was so enthusiastic and treated the camera like it was her tour group. She was a great spokesperson for her school and D21 liked Pitt a lot. Will do an information session at 1:30pm with them.
I finished reading âYour Ticket to the Forty Acresâ which is a book written by a former UT admissions officer. It talks about how they calculate and rate applicants, with a formula that takes into account rank and test scores, weighting math and verbal scores differently depending on intended major. I donât know how they would reconfigure their admissions process if they went TO. I would think maybe that if SAT/ACT were delayed in the fall then we might find out about admissions decisions later than usual to allow everyone to get a score.
We went to a local state park yesterday and walked on the nature trails. It was nice to be outside and see some nature. Iâm still mourning the lost road trip and bonding experience the next two weeks was supposed to be though. And the current state of affairs here in the US does nothing to boost my spirits. 
I just got off a Zoom presentation by our schools college counselors - they are full time and manage the process for a class of approx 100 students. Lots of experience and we are fortunate to have them in our corner and to talk us down at times too!
Regarding the lack of scores for the Class of 2021 - ALMOST EVERYONE in the world is in this situation. They continue to state that students should continue to register (knowing it is a mess) and plan to sit for these tests. TO could come in to play for a larger percentage of an admitted class - IF the Fall test dates can not happen, but right now they said âthink of TO for the students that donât have parents that can/will sit on hold for hours to registerâ or for students that have major family disruptions due to Covid.
âIt is easy to forget that this is bigger than your child and our school.â The majority of schools do not offer school day testing, but they have heard that schools across the US are in discussions with the SAT to add an in school test day in October. No info on ACT.
All of this is a big âit dependsâ, as if testing canât happen or is very limited in the Fall - it will change and the test will play less of role in admissions. This is not something we can know now and we need to just wait it out. They are hearing from more and more Class of 21 kids that their parents are stressing them out, causing them more anxiety around testing that already causes kids anxiety and they requested we all âback downâ a bit. It has become a big dinner time conversation and is impacting the students that have so many disruptions, sadness already during this time.
I asked them about the comment from Tulane, she said that is not just âTulaneâ and even long term TO schools only take a very small % of kids without test scores or donât report and mark as TO, if it harms their reported range. Schools want a lot of applicants - qualified or not and spend a lot of money marketing to students and TO is just one more way to get more applicants in this uncertain time.
They donât know of ED dates shifting yet, feel D1 athletes will still need scores (and should have been done by February), full pay and legacy could be more a boost for kids on the bubble and deferrals, as they stand now, will not harm the acceptance numbers for the Class of 2021.
They acknowledged that many parents hate these standardized tests, but no matter how you feel about them - donât count them out yet. The college landscape is changing and they imagine our kidâs college application process will become their âwalk in the snowâ story - as it wonât look the same in years.
They encouraged all kids to continue to research schools on line and this is something they can control, as well as, start their essays. They have communicated to the students that digital footprints for the applicants will play a bigger role for schools that look at interest. Get on websites, attend online presentations, engage when the opportunities are offered, follow on social media. Personal statements and essays will hold a higher weight too and read, read, read.
Apologize for the long post and hope you find some of this of value.
Pitt is 2/2. Their information session was good also. Basic and standard stuff but well done.
This whole thing makes my head spin. I spent 7 hours trying to register my S21 for an SAT test. I was able to get him a seat in October. August and September already sold out. Regular registration is tomorrow and I assume that everything will sell out. There are fewer spots available and higher demand.
Here in our state, ACT test centers are closed for the summer. Iâm hoping he can capture a seat in September but worry it will only be online. From what I hear, students do more poorly when the tests are online.
How is it possible for schools to require tests if the tests are sold out and students have NO opportunity to test? It is unreasonable.
My son has studied so hard for these tests and literally hasnât even had an opportunity to sit for the test.
He really wants to apply ED1 to a school that is still not test optional. He is reconsidering his ED1 to a TO school. Everything else is set to go.
I think this year is an exception and I donât think they will only allow a small percentage of students to be test optional. If they do, the students submitting the scores will be lower on average. There simply arenât enough kids with the high scores to offset the ones not submitting their scores. Also, a lot of schools that superscore rely on multiple testing dates.
Some schools such as Claremont McKenna have said they wonât even accept scores from tests that were taken online since they are not confident in the validity.
Due the circumstances, I donât think we can compare this year to any other year in history.
I think the underlying problem is the ranking system. That really needs to go, especially this year. Hereâs a good article about this https://www.chronicle.com/article/Why-One-Former-Campus-Leader/248831
No at-home SATs this Fall. College Board just announced (perhaps all the issues with the AP testing deterred them from trying to go forward with at-home SATs).
https://www.collegeboard.org/releases/2020/cb-asks-colleges-show-flexibility-admissions-reduce-stress-students-challenges-universal-access-sat-coronavirus-pandemic
^wow, big announcement! Iâm relieved that they arenât going to put out a half-baked product.
Iâd guess that even top schools will end up being flexible about testing this fall if it turns out that students are unable to secure seats. Iâm also hopeful that CB will find a way to expand the supply of seats some time between now and August, though that involves extensive unknowns.
The trickiest position will be those students who donât have a score yet (or who donât yet have one reflecting their academic potential) but need one to offset a less-optimal GPA.
If I recall (and maybe this isnât accurate), in the past there have been fewer test centers for August in the northeast because many schools donât open classrooms prior to Labor Day (in a normal year).
(For us, this is a bit relieving, because we are in a flyover metro area where, in past years, we have not seen an issue with August filling up. All schools have started their school year by then, in a normal year.)
Geez. So now College Board is acting like itâs student-centered and concerned about all of the kids who canât test and hoping to save face with this announcement. I bet they think parents wonât hate them as much now.
Itâs interesting that CB made this announcement before regular registration opens up tomorrow. Iâd have thought they could wait a month.
What I really wish theyâd do is invest in a better website that can handle the traffic. They upgrade it all the time and yet those upgrades seem buggy. (e.g., didnât they upgrade one time right when people were ordering score reports for deadlines or somethingâŠ)
Letâs see how quickly the remaining colleges flip to test optional.
I bet theyâll all take Nov scores for Nov 1 deadlines, as many already did. Maybe theyâll just kick the date for which test dates theyâll accept rather than move the entire app deadline?
Hard to imagine that colleges would consider this?
Right. Unless the colleges ask which dates you took the test, which they donât normally do, how would they know the studentâs testing situation? I suppose one could write about it briefly in the Covid common app question but I donât think Iâd advise that. Whatâs to say? Didnât register for Dâs first SAT until March, then all spring cancelled and she got one shot in Aug? I wouldnât do that but, if the common app added a specific question about when kids tested, I would have her answer. Students with solid scores before March would continue to look good. It wouldnât take anything away from them. But the whole idea for some schools and TO is that they CAN judge without a test score so they donât need excuses from kids as to why they donât have one.
Regarding Tulane specifically and test optional generally:
If it matters for ranking purposes, I think every school (except possibly Reed, lol) will be watching very carefully the number of TO students they are admitting. Unless US News makes an announcement that they are tweaking the ranking formula for the class of 2021 because of the testing mess, this will be a factor.
Tulane was completely off of our radar a year ago. At some point I started following their admissions counselorâs blog and ultimately I think D will apply there. The reason I started following him is that I think he is more honest than most in the business. I donât know that Tulane admissions are that different than everyone else. But they are upfront about what they care about. There is less of the âjust be yourselfâ fluff that everyone else says. We all know that there are unsaid things all schools are looking for. I think Tulane is just willing to say out loud what they are doing with TO, which is probably the same thing happening everywhere.
Having said that, I think it may end up being a high choice for D, and they have a really low acceptance rate. So if any of you want to blacklist Tulane and make her chances (infantismally) better go for it!
In case it is missed, that last paragraph was meant in humor. Iâm never sure how that translates online. I realize the odds of standing out in a sea of 40,000 apps are no worse than in 39,900.
Nov 7 scores will be out Nov 20th, which most colleges should be able to make work for EA/ED mid-Dec decisions, assuming thatâs not all their early applicants, just some portion.
@dadof4kids - Lol! Tulane was on our list a year ago but it has since come off S21âs list bc weâre trying to get list more manageable in size. So hey, one less male, Hispanic, full pay, and high ACT kid applying. ?
^make that two! Mine has a mold allergy, which seemed reason enough to not bother looking closer.
@nichols51 Thank you for this!
I canât believe the nerve of College Board.
College Board: we cant figure our end out and weâve stopped trying, so how about you guys (colleges) bend over backwards and adjust all of your matrices so no one is mad at us.
I mean, just because we wonât be able to make our deadlines, doesnât mean that deadlines mean anything to you guys. Just extend everything and donât let it hurt kids that they canât take our test. Ok? Ok. Weâre done. Thanks!
See you next year when our test will be king again (right? Youâre not thinking of dumping us, are you? Weâre crucial to the admissions process. Remember?)
@mm5678 Bummer to hear that UCF was lacking in their presentation. D18 loves it there and would have graduated over a year early, but instead is taking time off for internships. They are great about taking credits. People rave about their honors college. Sounds like they need to up their game!
Glad to hear Pittâs was good, itâs on D21âs list (UCF is way to big for her!). I love they have rolling admissions!
Schools need ED/EA apps in by the usual date to start working on them and have them done in time to begin of RD apps. Schools could easily delay the date test scores need to be submitted.
Thinking of dragging S21 to a campus this weekend to walk around and check out the area. âDraggingâ because he has little interest in anything college related - lol. I seem to remember some of you having done this during quarantine.
Any tips or suggestions on how to make the most of an informal visit when no one is around?