Parents of the Class of 2019

[MerissaAndMomLoveDis]

Hi fellow parents and WELCOME to the new folks!

DD and I have been B.U.S.Y. so I haven't been on the Dis much lately. School ended on May 31, she ended the Maymester dual credit class on June 1st, and started work on June 4th at the full time summer research program. She also is now taking two summer I dual credit classes and trying to get some prep in for the July ACT. She has been so focused and disciplined, and I couldn't be prouder of her! She also got her official lab coat from the medical school for her research program this week, so that was pretty cool. And the first paycheck!

In other news, like most of you, I feel like we are running an all out sprint until all this college stuff is done, schools chosen, and applications in. I had no idea there would be so much to do and think about. I am so grateful to have this community of Dis'ers! I think we all gain so much support and knowledge from each other.

Like all of your Seniors, DD is getting tons of "college courting" mail and emails. Her Top 10 list is constantly evolving as we spend many hours researching different colleges for "fun" in our down time. We have a spread sheet to keep up with important info about each school, which we have found incredibly helpful in keeping information straight. Visits are on hold for DD for now due her program work schedule, but DD has recently gotten invitations to apply to several university fall fly-in programs and she is working on those applications. It would be so amazing if she got accepted to have all expense paid trips to visit some colleges. She immediately reached out to her high school for her transcript. It took a while to get it, and then there were so many errors. OMG!!! I guess the only other college news type thing is that she has pulled the essays from some of the various Applications and started thinking about essays and jotting down notes when she has an a-ha moment or inspiration.

DD received notice of “priority registration” from Tulane. Basically, she can apply for no application fee (no guarantee she’s in) and start working on merit based scholarships.

I'm so glad you mentioned that. My DD also received that Notice of Priority with Waiver of application fee in the mail from Tulane yesterday. We had not visited there, so it was a bit of a surprise. But a nice one! Had you demonstrated interest at Tulane? I am curious as to how my DD got on their radar.

Keep on plugging Parents of the Class of 2019! It's going to be an expensive and stressful year!!!!!!

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Yes, DD had Tulane on her radar.

 

[soccerdad72]

AP Exams are back - 4 in CS Principles, 3 in Calc AB. He's taking Calc BC next year, so hopefully he can improve that score, although he's saying he might not take the AP credits even if he scores good enough, because he feels that he should be taking Calc in college to make sure it's fresh in his mind.

 

[mjkacmom]

She got 3’s in Spanish and calc, 4’s in English and history, so at least she might be able to use them since her major is physical therapy. She’s not taking BC calc next year due to a scheduling conflict, but is taking AP stat with dd15 (who is also taking pre calc), so they can study together. She has SO much homework to do over the summer, she’s also taking a AP humanities and AP science that’s not chem or bio (another scheduling conflict, she’s in the small honors choir which is a set class, and doesn’t want to drop down).

She hasn’t even looked up the common app essays yet.

 

[lovesdumbo]

My DS left for Alaska on the 4th-arrived 2am AK time/6am our time on the 5th. By 11am AK time he was texting me asking if he could go to college in AK.

I still need to finalize plans to visit a few colleges in FL (he had been saying he wanted someplace warm....). Plus we need to plan a few more college visits when we bring his older sister back to college.

 

[tink1970]

DD toured UNC-Chapel Hill today and despite the heat and rain liked the campus and it's still on the list.

She received 5s on AP US History and Lit/Comp as well as (super exciting) a 6 in IB Biology (range is 1-7; we were hoping for a 4, 5 as the best case scenario so a 6 was almost unbelievable -she's not a math/science person).

Her second semester grades were not good due to her grandmother's death and her grieving so having some good news has been quite welcome!

So good to hear everyone is having a good summer!

 

[design_mom]

@lovesdumbo -- we just got back from Alaska and my senior also really liked it. He hasn't said anything about studying there, but said he wouldn't mind living there someday.

He was pleased with his AP scores. 5s on Microeconomics, Macroeconomics and Psychology and a 4 on Literature/Comp. (He was pretty confident for Macro and Psych. Was hoping for a 5 on Micro, so was happy to get it. And he was expecting a 3 on Lit but was a little worried that he might do worse, so he was really pumped to get a 4.) He's usually a pretty reserved kind of guy but he was "feeling celebratory" when he got the scores and in a great mood.

 

[Eureka]

DS got a 4 in AP world history and a 3 in AP bio. He was happy with those, got a 2 in Calc BC and not happy there, but what’s done is done and he’s taking AP Stats next year so maybe that will be better. I’ll get reimbursed for two of the three tests, so that’s good. Several people who took his math class didn’t do great so in a weird way that made him feel a little better and one kid who graduated top of her class only got a 2 in physics so he’s glad he didn’t take the test.

 

[Eureka]

DD toured UNC-Chapel Hill today and despite the heat and rain liked the campus and it's still on the list.

She received 5s on AP US History and Lit/Comp as well as (super exciting) a 6 in IB Biology (range is 1-7; we were hoping for a 4, 5 as the best case scenario so a 6 was almost unbelievable -she's not a math/science person).

Her second semester grades were not good due to her grandmother's death and her grieving so having some good news has been quite welcome!

So good to hear everyone is having a good summer!

Chapel Hill is so beautiful. We looked at it last fall but after touring Duke also, DS decided he doesn’t want to be so far from home so will not apply to either. We just made reservations to tour Juniata College in August on the way back from seeing family in New England. It’s the last one on his list and only the second small school we’ll have looked at. With his scores and grades, I think he’d be at the top of the heap there, which could go either way in terms of being comfortable or being bored. So we shall see. One of his teachers went there and says good things about it. I’ll be glad to have gotten all the touring done before school starts again. Once his SAT subject scores come in this week, we’ll send all his SAT and ACT scores out everywhere.

 

[lovesdumbo]

June SAT scores came out today. My DS was convinced he did better in math but he dropped 10 points. I'm so disappointed for him. He's still away in AK but he really needs to pick a few more schools to apply to. He only has 3 on his list that he's really interested in and 2 others he finally said he would visit. He is stressing me out!

 

[StephMK]

June SAT scores came out today. My DS was convinced he did better in math but he dropped 10 points. I'm so disappointed for him. He's still away in AK but he really needs to pick a few more schools to apply to. He only has 3 on his list that he's really interested in and 2 others he finally said he would visit. He is stressing me out!

There is a lot of talk on the college boards about the difficult scoring on the June test. DS did much better on the ACT than the SAT if thst might be an option.

We finished our road trip and toured 6 schools. One was an unexpected fav, 3 more stay on the list, and 2 were dropped. He also cancelled a tour for one and added 2 tht we just drove through. He had planned on a big state school with lots of team spirit but his fav is a small private.

It will be interesting to see if he sticks with that or changes his mind over the next few months again.

 

[bjscheel]

DD got a 3 on AP Lit. That's fine, it's good enough for college credit some places. We didn't care too much, the test was free.

We just got back from WDW and she is hanging around another week before heading back to camp so she can see her out-of-state cousins this weekend. She caught a cold on the last night of our trip so she is laying around the house watching Netflix, Snapchatting her new boyfriend, and stressing about college choices! She is still trying to find that perfect school that is cheap yet awesome and has all her possible majors. IMO there is one of those nearby but she is still turning up her nose at it as being the place where everybody goes if they don't go to cc. So maybe there will be 15 kids there she knows out of 5000 students...sigh. I don't know whether to help her keep looking elsewhere or tell her to get off her high horse and give it a fair chance and visit. She visited with her sister 2 years ago and didn't care for it, but that was during the summer and she might like it better if she gets to talk to some professors.

 

[lovesdumbo]

There is a lot of talk on the college boards about the difficult scoring on the June test. DS did much better on the ACT than the SAT if thst might be an option.

We finished our road trip and toured 6 schools. One was an unexpected fav, 3 more stay on the list, and 2 were dropped. He also cancelled a tour for one and added 2 tht we just drove through. He had planned on a big state school with lots of team spirit but his fav is a small private.

It will be interesting to see if he sticks with that or changes his mind over the next few months again.

Where's that talk? He said the day of test he thought verbal was tough but was sure his math was up. Would love to show him so he can feel better about his score. He texted me and asked about his score. I hated answering - would rather he not think about it on vacation but maybe now he'll just get over it quicker. ACT is not a good option for him as he could never do math in the time constraints. He just won't have time to study for a redo of the SAT in the fall. He has to finish his Eagle Scout before he ages out 1/10/19. I think he'll get a better lift from that than MAYBE gaining a few points on SAT. He was just so sure he did better on math in June compared to May. His SAT scores aren't dismal - he's in the 81st percentile overall but his verbal is much higher than math and he says he wants to do engineering. I think he might need to reevaluate that.

Of the 3 schools he's really interested in his GPA is lower than their average but if they look at his transcript and see that he grew up after freshman year he should be OK. His math SAT score is lower than the 25th percentile for 2 of the 3 schools but his verbal is better than 75th percentile at all 3. I want him to look at a school that would be more attainable for him in a location I know he would love. I also want him to look at a small private that I also think he would love. But he keeps saying he's not interested. Guess he will find a few matches and safety schools when he gets home so he doesn't have all reach schools.

 

[ColoradoDisneyFreaks]

So many updates from everyone!

DD had a great trip to Thailand, so now all of her service hours are complete (YAY!). Our school does the yearbook photos at school, so I haven't had to rush to get in Senior pictures which is wonderful as DS (15) is now a permitted driver and getting practice! (If you're in Colorado, stay off the roads!)

At the end of the school year, DD and I went to a graduation party for a friend of hers who was a senior last year and is now going to Alabama. I got to talking with his mom and asked where the Alabama choice came from and she told me about a college search agency that's here in Denver that they've used for the last 3 years. They helped him find what schools had great programs in what he was interested in (Computer Science) that he could get into (great grades so no issues there), and that offered the most aid. Turns out, Alabama was on the list, they offered him $100K over 4 years for merit aid and he ended up with another $10K for one year. He's pretty much only paying room and board there and after a visit, turns out he loves the campus and the programs. So, we gave them a call and got DD in for an appointment as trying to get her to decide on any kind of list has been difficult at best. They've been great so far and have offered up a lot of smaller schools that she never would have thought of that offer a good amount of merit aid. So, she's got a visit to Washington University in St. Louis in a couple of weeks (we'll be on our way to our summer vacation at LOTO Gumbo!). We're going to sign up DS for them mid-school year to get him going sooner rather than later.

Other notes, she got 5s on the AP US History and AP Lang test and a 4 on the AP Environmental Science test, so out of the 5 AP classes she's had so far she has 4 5s and 1 4, not bad at all! She's on the waitlist to take the ACT again this weekend, hopefully she can get in and does well on math, that was the only section she didn't score really well on and it's really because she ran out of time so she'll be more cognizant of it this time around, several of the schools that we've talked about do have super scoring on the test, so that would be great too as the pressure to do as well on the other sections won't be high.

They go back to school 4 weeks from tomorrow, and we'll dive into it again!

 

[design_mom]

Of the 3 schools he's really interested in his GPA is lower than their average but if they look at his transcript and see that he grew up after freshman year he should be OK.

My son is in the same boat. He is doing well in school, but Freshman year and the first part of Sophomore year he was not working to his potential and it shows in his cumulative GPA and his class rank. Last year (junior year), he really kicked into gear and did really well. I think he'll be OK in college. He's "in the ballpark" for his top choices, but not necessarily a shoo-in.

He's wondering if he should work it into his essay somehow -- please look closely at my Junior year grades because Freshman and Sophomore were not the best I could do. Frankly, he was "dealing with some stuff" then (some depression, anxiety, changing friend groups, some long-time friends choosing destructive paths, etc) that he has learned to cope with -- and he's thriving now -- but still doesn't like to talk about it. I think he'd have a hard time opening up to "some stranger" on an admissions committee about it. But I think if he was willing to dive deep, it could be an impactful "how I overcame an obstacle" essay. But I think he really, really doesn't want to put himself out there like that on paper.

 

[ColoradoDisneyFreaks]

My son is in the same boat. He is doing well in school, but Freshman year and the first part of Sophomore year he was not working to his potential and it shows in his cumulative GPA and his class rank. Last year (junior year), he really kicked into gear and did really well. I think he'll be OK in college. He's "in the ballpark" for his top choices, but not necessarily a shoo-in.

He's wondering if he should work it into his essay somehow -- please look closely at my Junior year grades because Freshman and Sophomore were not the best I could do. Frankly, he was "dealing with some stuff" then (some depression, anxiety, changing friend groups, some long-time friends choosing destructive paths, etc) that he has learned to cope with -- and he's thriving now -- but still doesn't like to talk about it. I think he'd have a hard time opening up to "some stranger" on an admissions committee about it. But I think if he was willing to dive deep, it could be an impactful "how I overcame an obstacle" essay. But I think he really, really doesn't want to put himself out there like that on paper.

I've been to a presentation by a private college recruiter/admissions officer here in Denver that said when you have situations like that, absolutely talk about them in your application comments. They look more for those students who had great grades freshman and sophomore year but tailed down later, but it's still a good thing to explain for them so they're not left asking themselves why with no further information. It could be the difference between getting an interview with a local admissions officer and being round filed.

 

[StephMK]

Lovesdumbo- people are saying that the curve was extremely difficult and lots of kids were disappointed with their scores. College board has a few discussions about it.

 

[lovesdumbo]

Thanks! I found a few discussions on College Confidential. I looks at his score closer. He got 5 more correct math questions but his score dropped 10 points.

 

[StephMK]

Thanks! I found a few discussions on College Confidential. I looks at his score closer. He got 5 more correct math questions but his score dropped 10 points.

Oh wow, that is so frustrating! Oops, sorry, I meant CC. It even made the top story on my Google page today.

 

[Eureka]

My son is in the same boat. He is doing well in school, but Freshman year and the first part of Sophomore year he was not working to his potential and it shows in his cumulative GPA and his class rank. Last year (junior year), he really kicked into gear and did really well. I think he'll be OK in college. He's "in the ballpark" for his top choices, but not necessarily a shoo-in.

He's wondering if he should work it into his essay somehow -- please look closely at my Junior year grades because Freshman and Sophomore were not the best I could do. Frankly, he was "dealing with some stuff" then (some depression, anxiety, changing friend groups, some long-time friends choosing destructive paths, etc) that he has learned to cope with -- and he's thriving now -- but still doesn't like to talk about it. I think he'd have a hard time opening up to "some stranger" on an admissions committee about it. But I think if he was willing to dive deep, it could be an impactful "how I overcame an obstacle" essay. But I think he really, really doesn't want to put himself out there like that on paper.

Many of the info sessions we've been to say that they look not only at what you take but the progressions of courses and grades so hopefully the schools he's applying to will also. And maybe not work into an essay but some applications have a "personal statement" option for anything you need to add that doesn't fit anywhere else that he could use to explain.