I’ve seen you guys on different threads and enjoy your perspective. The waiting has been tough, but helping my D25 to apply to colleges was worse. But now I think making a final decision will be the most brutal part of all. What to do if your child has no idea which college to choose?
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I can relate to this and happy to discuss our approach to finalize the decision. Other than being ditched by our state flagship (which will sting for a long time) we’re sitting pretty at the moment.
Which major did your D25 apply to?
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Thanks! She applied for business, except for UVA (in-state) where she applied for Econ. She’s waiting for UW-Madison, and has narrowed the choices to IU, Ohio State, UVA, VT (which she has always loved), and Washington. She doesn’t like the vibe at UVA and wished VT had a better business school.
These decisions can be tough and depend on many factors specific to your family.
Our approach is to break it down into categories that are important to us, and then each of us rates the categories.
Some of the key categories are: various general and specific program rankings; relevant differences in each school’s curricula, support services, extracurriculars, research/internship/study abroad opportunities; personal fit; and financial feasibility.
It becomes more difficult if your child doesn’t really know what they want to do, or has a lot of similar options, or hasn’t had the opportunity to visit the schools.
Bottom line for me is: what is the best school that we can afford, that will best motivate my daughter to achieve her academic goals? In the end, it will be a “go with your gut” decision that she buys into.
My guess is you’ve already thought about something similar.
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Imo, she has great options… and plenty of time to pick the one that means the most to her.
She can’t go wrong with either of OSU Fisher, IUB Kelley, and WSB at UW Madison.
It’s fantastic that your choices are already narrowed down to top 3-4.
To help with final decision we’re visiting all our shortlisted schools on their admitted student days (they do help build excitement).
During the tours, unlike my DD, I love to a strike conversations with college students walking around the campus, cafeteria etc. That’s important because otherwise the admitted student days could easily be a facade.
Also, we’re intentional about what we expect from these 4 years; not very specific, but broadly what matters to us, like: academic focus, safety, culture (collaborative vs hyper competitive), internship opportunities, quality and accessibility of clubs/workshops related to major; and lastly: CoA, prestige against CoA, and proximity (how quickly can we get there when needed).
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Very nice!
Thank you both for your responses. As her parent/adult, I know most likely she can’t go wrong and will be happy anywhere. I would love for her to be able to listen to her gut and go where she feels most comfortable. But just at dinner, she said she’s trying to convince herself to go to UVA due to prestige and CoA, but it’s not working. 
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A lot of parents/kids would kill to be in-state w/ UVA in their back pocket. But, to the extent that it’s financially doable, there is little risk in the quality of her options.
Sounds like she’s focused on the choices, and she has a parent who wants it to be her choice. Lots of time until May 1 to hone in on the whats and whys of a good decision.
All the best!
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Agree agree agree with both of you. Down to about four schools. Visiting. Waiting on RD and choosing between the last few feels so intense. Trying to focus on personal fit versus minor differences in rankings etc. This year has been full of highs and lows and my junior is shaping up her list and I can’t believe we do it again. Ours visited Wisconsin this past weekend and loved it.
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This year all over again. I don’t even want to think about that. Lol
I’m sure you’ll do well in both cases. I bet you learned a lot in this go round.
All the best!
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Fickle mindedness among kids is so real.
Just recently my DD added UGA to her mix. All along it was out of contention not being a direct business admit; but after her close friend visited last month, and can’t stop raving about it, we’re visiting it next week… lol…
I’d love to be in your position of being in-state and having UVA as an option; just give it time, these kids have a lot on their mind; we just need to ease them into making a decision they won’t regret rushing into.
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I’m so glad your DD loved Madison; it’s an amazing school and town. My DD was so keen on it, that this was the only school we visited despite a deferral.
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I am so ready for this to be OVER! My kid has picked OSU as the top contender after a Buckeye admitted day visit but I want to wait to see if UW Madison says yes (deferred from EA) to make sure the decision is final. We had UIUC, Purdue, Minnesota, Penn as top contenders (got acceptances to all). I will miss the squirrel astrology, not the process.
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We are grateful she has UVA as an option, but her heart isn’t there and I’m not sure it’s the best fit for her, so we’re letting her decide on her own. She was deferred at Madison, so we’re really hoping she gets in, visits, and loves it as much as most people do on this thread.
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I hope she gets to add UW to her impressive list. She, and you, have much to be proud of.
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I Hope you get a “yes”. UW was my kid’s first choice for a long time and then he got really excited with another option. I wish you both the best!!
Thank you for the kind wishes. And if she doesn’t get in, we all know it’ll be ok too. I think we all want our kids to be super excited and find their “dream” schools, but it doesn’t happen for everyone. The goal is to make wherever they end up into their “dream” schools. Best of luck to everyone!!
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Best of luck to your daughter in her decision! I attended UVA (loved it) and S24 is at Wisconsin and loves it. I can attest to the fact that they are both wonderful but very different schools that appeal to different people.
If your daughter needs more information, I recommend attending UVA’s admitted student day. I did that with two close friends and I walked away knowing it was my place and my friends both said “no thanks”.
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