@Txmom14 So, how long was your entire drive to take the SAT? And, why didn’t you take it in the bustling metropolis of Bellingham?
I did essays - and still remember my “famous person I want to meet” for Penn (Andrew Carnegie - how cliche). But you just kind of popped them out, you didn’t slave over them.
I seem to remember the applications as being in colors like sea foam green or canary yellow, as I remember buying the color correct-type stuff. I took the SAT once (right when the Kent state riots were going on), visited 2 schools, applied to 3. Done. I remember chickening out of applying to Princeton as it has just gone coed and I was afraid of being in such a minority. Always wondered… But Ironically I went to a school that had also just gone coed, but int he other direction. Picked it because I never had to take another language class.
My sister started college when I was in 8th grade, and, while I enjoyed high school, I began eagerly looking at colleges as a freshman. When I say, “looking at colleges,” I mean visiting them! My parents kindly took me to several campuses anywhere from 2 to 9 hours away, and I spent a week before my sophomore year at a college for a camp, partly for the camp and partly to check out the school.
Junior year, 1989, I took the SAT without any preparation. In fact, I thought it was strange that one friend’s parents paid money and that this friend spent time on a SAT test prep course! There were only 3-5 students in that after-school course. Those of us not in the course sort of shrugged at it as if it was an oddity because at that time, it was! I don’t remember what I scored at all, although I know I was aware of my score then and slightly aware of how it compared to others, but that wasn’t a big deal at all to me.
Senior year, 1990, I put my eggs in one basket and applied to one school–my favorite of those visits years before. I had no doubt I’d get in. That would probably be arrogant now, but then, it was true, I guess! I don’t remember how I obtained the application, but I do remember filling it out by hand at the kitchen table. I also remember writing one essay.
I was oblivious to finances–from paying for the app to financial aid–except that I was aware of the initial cost of the school and I did know I received a sizeable scholarship, but that I also had a loan that I was responsible for sometime in the big, fuzzy future.
Two years later, I transferred. I was going to go to another private LAC. In fact, I had my ID card and everything. At the very last minute, I decided to transfer instead to a state school near my parents’ new location so that I could commute from their home. I had never even visited that school! It all worked out fine in the end; I had (and have) fabulous friendships from my first school and think that I received a better education at the state school! And, I got more time with my parents, something I think I craved.
I applied to exactly one school - UT Austin. I had excellent stats, but I didn’t see the point of applying to other schools when UT’s civil engineering department was rated as one of the top in the country. And at $4 a credit hour, it was a pretty good deal, ha! I DID pick up the application for Rice. I thought it would be cool to be accepted there. But when I saw how long the form was, and that I would have to write another essay, I decided it wasn’t worth the effort.
Early 1970s - all the college bound kids in our high school took the SATs twice, but no one prepared (“It’s like an IQ Test, you can’t study for it”), except for one kid who had a prep book. We all thought he was crazy.
Used a Smith-Corona manual typewriter to apply to 5 schools. Didn’t visit any of them before applying. Applied Early Decision to the school I eventually went to (yes, it really did have ED back then). Tuition was $3,165 freshman year. Room and Board about $1,500.
All this talk about typewriters is causing me to have flashbacks of my irritating HS typewriting teacher. I can still picture her walking around the room saying “touch type” non stop. :-@
Fall 1979. I hand-wrote everything. I only remember three colleges that I applied to (USC, Vassar, Duke) but I’m sure there were 5-6, because I wrote my SSN enough times that I finally had it memorized by the time I was done. I could have typed them on one of the old manuals we had in the school library (I went to boarding school), but I was not a skilled typist, and no one had introduced me to Wite-Out.
I had two sheets of carbon paper. I used them to make copies when filling out applications and numerous essay drafts.
Didn’t use Wite-out - used a paper called something like Correcto-type.
Yup-- mentioned correct-type in post 42.Mine was multicolored: robins egg blue, sea foam green, canary yellow, and some pink/orangey color, IIRC
Applied to exactly one college. think it was handwritten. Practically packed for school before the acceptance letter came.
I did half my college career on a manual typewriter. It was small and I could sit with it in my lap–sort of like having a very heavy laptop today But with paper hanging out. Hated White Out because I never had patience for it to dry.
“I had two sheets of carbon paper. I used them to make copies when filling out applications and numerous essay drafts.”
You were either incredibly rich, or must have had some “in” at an office supply center! I don’t even know how one would have gotten carbon paper unless you were a teacher!
We had lots of carbon paper. Right next to typewriter paper at the store in the old days.
Pretty sure she would have had to, but non-resident tuition then was relatively inexpensive. The non-resident tuition (not including room and board, etc.) at UC was $2,147 in 1975, $3,176 in 1980, $5,142 in 1985, and $8,236 in 1990. Adjusted for CPI, these are $9,424, $9,102, $11,285, and $14,880 in today’s dollars. Compare to $36,195 for 2014.
I applied to 2 and my guidance counselor didn’t help with anything! She didn’t know my name and I have no idea what she did with her time because I don’t think she helped anyone else either!
In the old days, some people were poor.
I did not pay OOS tuition at Berkeley, I had a scholarship that covered both tuition and housing (and paid for a year of study abroad). I left college with a $3,000 student loan that didn’t come due (or accrue interest) for six months after I graduated. I thought $3,000 was a HUGE amount of debt.
I did however have to take “English as a foreign language” class since everyone seemed to believe we spoke exclusively French in Canada. Other students in the class thought I spoke English very well (comparative thing).
In high school we were not permitted to write colloquial at all, only the “Queens” English was used for written work. I was called to my English professors office after the first assignment and asked “who writes like this?” Had my roommate proofread all assignments for the next few months, old habits die hard.
The drive from my house for the SAT was 16 hours to Vancouver then about 3 to Seattle. I don’t think Bellingham offered the SAT, not sure how we learned that Seattle was the closest location.
I applied to three state schools. As a Washington State resident, I took the Washington State Pre-College test as my entrance test. I was ready to go to one school, but changed my mind in July and went to a different school. Despite that last minute change, I was able to stay in a double dorm room by myself for $50 more a year. Applications were neatly printed.
Most of my friends applying to highly selective colleges had scores in the high 600s (per section). Since mine were in the 700s I figured I was golden. I’m still cross that my best friend who stopped taking math with Algebra 2 scored better in math than I did taking Calculus! She’s a genius at multiple choice tests - not so much in coping with real life.