Parents..please help. Dad got amazing job offer from states...what to do?

Parent Cafe
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<p>Parents,</p>

<p>I am posting this on here because you obviously have more experience than high school kids with employment, admissions, highschool, life, etc. I need some honest, sincere advice on what to do in this situation:</p>

<p>I live in Canada. I’m just now ending my grade 11 year, will go into grade 12 in September. It has always been my dream to go to Stanford – I have the grades, EC’s, test scores that make me competitive. My parents know this, and they know that: (a) it’s a LOT harder to get into the top US schools as an International, and (b) money is a major determining factor, and (c) we will be less likely to recieve financial aid as Canadians no matter what school I go to. </p>

<p>Now, consequently, my dad has been in touch with a company in California. They just offered him a position that gives him greater power within the company, amazing benefits, higher salary, and in an overall better company. This job is quite a bit better than his current one. </p>

<p>Now, this situation has put us in a dillema. Do I finish high school here in Canada, and apply to the states as a graduate from here? Or do we move over the summer and I apply from the states? OR, does only my dad move, wait for me to finish high school, and then the rest of the family follows and I go off to college? </p>

<p>My parents have basically given me the power to decide. They want to see me in the best university – as do I – and therefore said it is up to me. If I feel that moving to the states and living there for 4 months will be enough for universities to see me as an American resident and therefore increase my chances, I might go for it. But then I would lose my extra curriculars, HS friends, etc. Keep in mind that if my dad were to take this position, we would be also LESS reliant on financial aid.</p>

<p>So… will moving help my chances? Is it worth it to disrupt highschool less than one year before it’s over? If solely my father moves and we make it clear on my applications that no matter where I get accepted, we will all be going to the States after I finish HS, will that help me out?</p>

<p>So. It’s all up to me. A huge choice to be placed on a HS Junior, no doubt, but they want to see me succeed. What do you guys think of this situation?</p>

<p>Thanks,
Eddy</p>

2

<p>First, congrats to your dad. That’s a great state to move to during the college admissions period. </p>

<p>Second, familiarize yourself with the requirements of California’s top universities. calmom and others can hlep. It is my understanding that their admissions is very very stats based–not unlike Canada.</p>

<p>Third, pick your location based on your gut feel for where you are most likely to excel–in the classroom–on the sport field–in ECs–in leadership.</p>

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<p>Big gamble to move to CA thinking it will give you a better shot at Stanford. I think Stanford’s new admission director recently gave interviews indicating that he believes S takes too many applicants from CA and will be looking to have a wider recruiting range in the future. Starting senior year at a new school is a gamble too, considering what you give up in ECs and teachers who know you well enough to write great recommendations, not to mention the final year of h.s. with your close friends. It’s a lot to give up for a slim chance of admission to S. </p>

<p>Does your father want to take this job and does the family want to move even if your college choice was not an issue? Do you know where you would be going to h.s. in CA – is it a feeder school for Stanford and could you be at the top of that class upon entering as a senior? Have you visited S and it’s neighboring rival, Berkeley? Obviously, it’s a plus that your father’s new job would allow you to apply to other colleges with less concern about finances, not to mention qualifying for in-state tuition to UCB or UCLA. </p>

<p>Perhaps you should consider staying in Canada to finish h.s. while your father moves to take the better job in CA, then move with your family and take a gap year rather than applying right away.</p>

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<p>My best suggestion is to find out as much as you can about the new High School you would be attending. How does it compare to where you are now? Look at everything. Course content, do the kids do well on AP tests? Do they have what you like to do in EC’s, sports, honor choir. Will you be able to compete at the same level you are at now?</p>

<p>We moved a kid for his senior year, and the smartest thing we did was to have recommendations written by junior year teachers that knew him. The new school seemed like it would work out okay, but they did many things DIFFERENTLY, so it wasn’t very comfortable. We were told that a kid transferring in high school is likely to suffer a grade drop, for various reasons- homesickness, different style of testing, or it might be hard to find a ‘group’ to hang out with, etc. Maybe it won’t happen to you, but keep in mind, that there might be an ‘emotions’ factor that you aren’t considering.</p>

<p>If you do move, be sure to keep your current email address, and have someone pick up your mail. You have probably already used those addresses for test scores, college interest queries, etc. so you want them to be able to keep track of you.</p>

<p>Good luck- your next year sounds like an adventure, or maybe an opportunity to conquer adversity.</p>

<p>BTW, it is not so bad to have Mom and kids in one country while Dad is working in another. We did one year of that also, and it worked out better than we expected.</p>

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<p>I’m not sure there is a “feeder” high school for Stanford, but the local public high schools (Palo Alto, or PALY, and Gunn) do send quite a few students onto Stanford. Many have some sort of connection to Stanford, such as a parent that works there. One student from my daughter’s school got a bump because she had been fencing with the Stanford fencing team (a club sport) for years. However, they claim if it’s between a local kid and a kid from out of the area, with identical stats and resumes, they’s take the kid from out of the area.</p>

<p>That said, the University of California system is probably one of the best values in university education. You might want to look into it. And the Cal State University system isn’t all that bad either.</p>

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<p>

Sounds as if you are a Canadian citizen, and not a US citizen now living in Canada? It is your country of citizenship that counts, not your country of residence. LIVING IN THE U.S. FOR 4 MONTHS WILL NOT ENABLE YOU TO APPLY AS A U.S. DOMESTIC APPLICANT at most schools (specifically not at Stanford).</p>

<p>At Stanford (as at MIT, with which I am more familiar), you are considered international (even if you’re Canadian) if you are neither a US citizen or a holder of a green card as a permanent resident. The Stanford Admissions [FAQ</a> webpage on International Admissions](<a href=“http://www.stanford.edu/dept/uga/applying/1_4c_faqs.html]FAQ”>www.stanford.edu/dept/uga/applying/1_4c_faqs.html) confirms this.</p>

<p>Check the details of international admissions for any school you’re interested in here: if you’re not a U.S. citizen/permanent resident with green card, you will likely be considered an international applicant regardless of where you live. If there is a compelling reason to interrupt your schooling now, OK, but if you have the option of staying in Canada, perhaps that will be best in terms of continuity in your ECs etc, since you’ll be considered an international applicant until you are a citizen or have a green card.

No. If you are a Canadian citizen and not a U.S. citizen, it will not matter.</p>

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<p>Mootmom is right. If you are a Canadian citizen, you will still be consider an international applicant even when you are living States side.</p>

<p>To move or not to move, IMHO, will depend very much on you and your family’s ability to communicate over long-distance. Going through the application process can be a draining process and parental support is invaluable. Also, are you the type that make adjustments to new situations easily? That may also determine how easy you will be able to tackle just one year in a new school and new country.</p>

<p>If you are interested in big or big-name schools like Stanford, they probably have lots of experience dealing with international applicants and may not even bat an eye with a mixed Canadian-US background. Why not call a school or two to see how familiar they are with such transfer?</p>

<p>Congratulations to your dad. Good luck.</p>

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<p>If the job change/move for your Dad is mainly a means to make college admissions easier for you, then I wouldn’t advise it, because it won’t achieve that. Getting permanent residency/green card status will take far longer than four months and even with it, I can’t see it affecting your admissions chances at Stanford. If you’re in the ballpark for Stanford with your stats, it won’t matter if you’re applying from Canada or California, other than the possible advantage of Canada as mentioned by jazzymom. It’s not your citizenship that is the issue here, it’s permanent resident status for state schools but that won’t affect the possibilities for Stanford.</p>

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<p>mootmom and alwaysamom are right on target – you will apply as an international student and not a US student since you are a Canadian and don’t hold a green card. The increased ability to pay is good – most schools are not nee-blind for international applicants.</p>

<p>Stanford is not a California public school, so living in California for four months will not increase your chances at getting into Stanford at all. If you are looking at other schools that are in the UC system, make sure you have thoroughly read the requirements for applying and attending as a resident.</p>

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<p>It depends on how well you adjust to new surrounding. Consider this…</p>

<p>New high school, new curriculum, new friends and teachers. Can you walk in on a swim team (example) on the sr year? And dont forget you might face different level of competition among fellow students. The competition in schools like Gunn, Monte Vista near Stanford are fierce. </p>

<p>I was in similar situation as your dad. It was following 9/11 and job prospects was terrible, so I moved by myself to another state while S finished his jr and sr year. He was at competitive HS and had the networking and EC’s and we felt it was best he stay there and finish. For the longest time, I told my co-workers that I was making “xxxx” wages, but paying for California living. (Your dad will be in reverse, making good cali$ and paying out in can$ so at least that helps). In the end it all worked out. S is at Ivy and doing well. Good luck with your decision.</p>

11

<p>One more item to consider: real estate prices in California.</p>

<p>The job offer for your Dad sounds excellent in so many respects. But if he is considering it only or primarily to improve your admissions chances, others have given advice re whether it will really help.</p>

<p>And… has your family considered the cost of real estate in California? I don’t know what the specific area is in question, nor the real estate values where you are in Canada. However, it is an unfortunate fact that the cost of housing in many parts of California can far outweigh the financial benefits of some (not all) salary increases. </p>

<p>Just one more thing to think about.</p>

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<p>Ok, first off, you need to realize that getting into Stanford is extremely difficult for anyone[ less than 10% chance] regardless of how well qualified they are. You need to have other colleges on your list, and not just reachy schools like HYPC, etc. With the changes in SCEA applications this coming year at a few Ivy’s, many more students are likely to apply to Stanford early than in the past, which will make it even harder to get admitted.
I would recommend you stay put in Canada for this year because the new admissions dean is making it harder for Calif kids to get accepted- he is trying to cast a wider net for applicants, and your transcript, if you move, will show it is coming from a Calif school. The way admissions work, you will be compared and ranked with other students from you school you apply from in the first round of readings. There are far fewer Canadian students applying to Stanford, so in that regard, you will be able to stand out.
If you stay, you won’t have the disruption of trying to acclimate yourself to a new school, find new friends, and finding a way to continue your EC’s. Also, it will be easier for you to get letters of recommendation from teachers who know you. Applying to colleges your first semester of your Senior year takes a LOT of time ,on top of taking rigorous classes and continuing your outside activities. I think that you would be best advised to stay in Canada, continue to do well, and apply from there.</p>

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<p>Do NOT hyperfocus on Stanford. As a strong student from Canada, you might look at parts of the USA that don’t get many Canadian citizens in their student body if you want some merit money. Some schools are looking hard to diversify their regional student bodies. Take care to apply to a couple good match colleges while looking at Reach colleges, doo. Every Reach College truly is a long shot now matter what your stats are. Get clear on that point. good luck! Happy hunting.</p>

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<p>If you truly want to attend in CA and your father will be working, he ought o have a green card and you would be residents and qualify for in state tuition at a UC!</p>

<p>My D has a friend from Canada whose Dad transferred to LA when the student was in grade 11, he attended a top UC at in state rates, so maybe the gap year idea is a good one…he did finish at his HS in CA while his parents established residency</p>

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<p>Would you be able to finish the requirements for a U.S. high school diploma in one year?</p>

<p>The high school or the state of California may require courses that are not taught in Canada, such as U.S. History and U.S. Government. It might be difficult to fit all the required courses that you haven’t already completed into a single school year. There may also be specific tests required for high school graduation. If these are based on a curriculum that’s substantially different from what you experienced in Canada, they could be a problem.</p>

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<p>No matter what the Stanford Dean says, historically both Stanford and USC have taken well over 50% from California. With the new Dean’s input, that percentage might drop to 45%, but it isn’t suddently going to roll back to 15%. The USC Dean said the same thing a few years ago–and the percentage intake from California has stayed the same. The schools have excellent rea$$$$$ons for taking the majority from California–including assembling a diverse population which will be comfortable with the diversity on those two campuses. Anyway, the intake is a long held historic fact. I would put the Dean’s comments in the pile with Marilee Jone’s comments about taking ‘regular’ kids into MIT. Maybe she took one or two sweeties–but the majority were math and science nerds.</p>

<p>Thus, the OPs thought that a California residency might benefit his app is basically correct. </p>

<p>To the OP, I’m not sure a semester makes you a Californian–but you could play up your excitement about the relocation. Obviously Stanford is a big California promoter.</p>

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<p>But cheers, residency in CA isn’t what “counts” – it’s citizenship. We still haven’t heard back from the OP about whether he’ll have his own green card immediately upon relocation (which is fairly unlikely, in my experience, but I suppose it <em>could</em> happen). If he won’t, he’ll still be considered an international applicant, which will make any CA residency mostly a moot point.</p>

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<p>cheers, I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss his intentions. Stanford will probably have even more students applying from the east coast next year, where the dean is from [ Yale], because of the SCEA changes coming to Harvard and Yale, leaving Stanford alone in offering an SCEA option among the top, non techy [ MIT] colleges. I think he means it when he says he wants to make Stanford more geographicly diverse.</p>

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<p>

The only thing that will make the universities see you as an American resident is a green card. Will your Dad be getting one when he starts his job? (if so, you’ll get one automatically as well)</p>