Parents of Class of 2018 thread

[DawnM]

Just a repeat reminder: If your son or daughter was adopted internationally, PLEASE be sure that they have either a current passport or a Certificate of Citizenship.

I KNOW they're already citizens, thanks to the Child Citizenship Act. But the FAFSA paperwork hasn't caught up with the law, and you'll need one of those two documents to file FAFSA.

Good reminder. My foreign adopted child is only 7th grade, so hopefully they will get their act together by the time he is ready.

 

[DawnM]

We are starting to look at college options. At least he is starting to think about it.

He isn't the best test taker, so I am a little concerned, but we will see. We are talking about moving back to our previous state after he graduates, so he is looking there (CA) primarily right now. His GPA is good but not the super high Ivy League GPAs some have. I think it is a bit above 3.5 weighted. He takes Honors Math and Science but regular English and History. His PSAT scores weren't that great, and we don't have his ACT scores yet from Feb.

He does have Eagle Scout and he does volunteer a lot, including two 10 day trips to Mexico to work in an Orphanage. He is on the Drama Team, but not in a leadership position.

We have told him that if he starts at the CC, we are fine with that. But I think he will get in to a couple of his choices. We are looking at two Cal State schools, a private school in CA, and one NC school. But he is honestly pretty set on moving to CA, so we will keep looking there.

 

[robinb]

He isn't the best test taker, so I am a little concerned, but we will see. We are talking about moving back to our previous state after he graduates, so he is looking there (CA) primarily right now. His GPA is good but not the super high Ivy League GPAs some have. I think it is a bit above 3.5 weighted. He takes Honors Math and Science but regular English and History. His PSAT scores weren't that great, and we don't have his ACT scores yet from Feb.

I have a little piece of advise. My DD was very much the same last year (except she also took honors/AP English classes) with an unweighted 3.5 GPA and a "not that great" average ACT score. If I had a do-over, I would would move heaven and earth to get her into a great ACT/SAT prep program and pay whatever it took for her to get a great ACT/SAT score. It really is THAT important. I didn't and now she's waitlisted at our state school which is her #1 choice. She was also passed up for thousands and thousands of dollars in merit scholarships because of her average ACT. Those ACT scores (multiple, she took it 3 times and barely studied for any of them) cost us a small fortune and probably cost her admittance to her #1 school. I kept on hoping that she would wake up and realize that I was telling the truth about how important it was. I think she knows now that it's too late.

 

[DawnM]

I have a little piece of advise. My DD was very much the same last year (except she also took honors/AP English classes) with an unweighted 3.5 GPA and a "not that great" average ACT score. If I had a do-over, I would would move heaven and earth to get her into a great ACT/SAT prep program and pay whatever it took for her to get a great ACT/SAT score. It really is THAT important. I didn't and now she's waitlisted at our state school which is her #1 choice. She was also passed up for thousands and thousands of dollars in merit scholarships because of her average ACT. Those ACT scores (multiple, she took it 3 times and barely studied for any of them) cost us a small fortune and probably cost her admittance to her #1 school. I kept on hoping that she would wake up and realize that I was telling the truth about how important it was. I think she knows now that it's too late.

He is signed up to take an ACT test prep as an elective in the Fall, but I honestly think that is too late. It kills me because I used to actually TEACH SAT test prep for the verbal and writing portions. If he would just learn from what I can tell him, we would be golden. But I am MOM and that doesn't seem to work.

I am looking for a class this summer for him to take.

Honestly, his math section is fine. He struggles mostly with the verbal section. We have gone over the 500 most used words on the SAT, etc....but he just seems to not get it.

He KNOWS this will limit his chances at some schools. But he also has to buy into it and realize its importance, or we are just spinning our wheels and wasting money.

 

[VillainFavs]

I have a little piece of advise. My DD was very much the same last year (except she also took honors/AP English classes) with an unweighted 3.5 GPA and a "not that great" average ACT score. If I had a do-over, I would would move heaven and earth to get her into a great ACT/SAT prep program and pay whatever it took for her to get a great ACT/SAT score. It really is THAT important. I didn't and now she's waitlisted at our state school which is her #1 choice. She was also passed up for thousands and thousands of dollars in merit scholarships because of her average ACT. Those ACT scores (multiple, she took it 3 times and barely studied for any of them) cost us a small fortune and probably cost her admittance to her #1 school. I kept on hoping that she would wake up and realize that I was telling the truth about how important it was. I think she knows now that it's too late.

I see a lot of discussion in this thread and in other places about "good" or "great" or "not that great" scores. I know some of it depends on which particular schools they're applying to, but what would you all consider good versus great versus not so great scores for SAT? (We don't do the ACT around here, so that's what we're focused on.) The only thing I have to go on is my son's PSAT scores which were 620 and 640. I think those are pretty good but am I naive about how good they really have to be? We're certainly not looking at Ivy League, but hoping for some decent schools.

 

[Poohforyou]

I see a lot of discussion in this thread and in other places about "good" or "great" or "not that great" scores. I know some of it depends on which particular schools they're applying to, but what would you all consider good versus great versus not so great scores for SAT? (We don't do the ACT around here, so that's what we're focused on.) The only thing I have to go on is my son's PSAT scores which were 620 and 640. I think those are pretty good but am I naive about how good they really have to be? We're certainly not looking at Ivy League, but hoping for some decent schools.

My recommendation is to go on college board andr check out the median SAT scores for schools your son is interested in. IMO you want to be above those numbers for target schools, well above for safety schools and at or just below for reach schools. Remember, these are median scores.

Many/most schools use SAT/ACT scores as a first cut of applicants. This is why positioning yourself well is an important start.

I also would highly recommend considering one on one tutoring for test prep. This is especially important if your teen needs focus on one aspect of the test rather than the whole thing. We did this with dd and it really paid off IMO.

Lastly, I strongly recommend finding a safety school or 2 that your teen will be truely happy at. This admission thing is sometimes a crap shoot and sometimes that safety becomes a reality.

Good luck everyone.

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

He is signed up to take an ACT test prep as an elective in the Fall, but I honestly think that is too late. It kills me because I used to actually TEACH SAT test prep for the verbal and writing portions. If he would just learn from what I can tell him, we would be golden. But I am MOM and that doesn't seem to work.

I am looking for a class this summer for him to take.

Honestly, his math section is fine. He struggles mostly with the verbal section. We have gone over the 500 most used words on the SAT, etc....but he just seems to not get it.

He KNOWS this will limit his chances at some schools. But he also has to buy into it and realize its importance, or we are just spinning our wheels and wasting money.

My recommendation is to go on college board andr check out the median SAT scores for schools your son is interested in. IMO you want to be above those numbers for target schools, well above for safety schools and at or just below for reach schools. Remember, these are median scores.

Many/most schools use SAT/ACT scores as a first cut of applicants. This is why positioning yourself well is an important start.

I also would highly recommend considering one on one tutoring for test prep. This is especially important if your teen needs focus on one aspect of the test rather than the whole thing. We did this with dd and it really paid off IMO.

Lastly, I strongly recommend finding a safety school or 2 that your teen will be truely happy at. This admission thing is sometimes a crap shoot and sometimes that safety becomes a reality.

Good luck everyone.

Another Class of 2017 mom here. In hindsight, I also recommend the one on one test prep. I paid $600 for DD to take a small group prep class. Originally it was scheduled for early August, but when kids dropped out, they rescheduled it for September. School had already started, and DD was in the middle of volleyball season. She barely had time to do the prep work, but she did get it done. With 6 kids in the class, she didn't get the step by step explanations she needed on the math problems the instructor went over during class. Her math score only went up 10 points! I should have paid the $1200 for a one on one tutor over the summer. It would have been way more effective. Had she raised her SAT score 100 points, she would have been eligible for $10,000/year in automatic scholarship money at Tennessee. That money would have brought Tennessee's tuition in line with our state school tuition. Live and learn!

 

[robinb]

He is signed up to take an ACT test prep as an elective in the Fall, but I honestly think that is too late. It kills me because I used to actually TEACH SAT test prep for the verbal and writing portions. If he would just learn from what I can tell him, we would be golden. But I am MOM and that doesn't seem to work.

I am looking for a class this summer for him to take.

Honestly, his math section is fine. He struggles mostly with the verbal section. We have gone over the 500 most used words on the SAT, etc....but he just seems to not get it.

He KNOWS this will limit his chances at some schools. But he also has to buy into it and realize its importance, or we are just spinning our wheels and wasting money.

Oh, I know EXACTLY what you're saying. We parents are know-nothings about ACT/SAT testing and it makes it 1000% worse when their friends score high with zero effort. I also thought last year at this time that it should be more student driven and you lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. I was wrong when it comes to my DD. We seriously missed the boat by not paying for one-on-one tutoring over the summer. She always does well when she works with someone one-on-one and I should have set it up, made it a priority and insisted that she go. I just didn't want to pay the $150-$200 per week to make it happen and it cost me thousands. There is plenty of time to study since should be a test at the end of the summer that you can use for applications.

I also concur with the other 2017 parents about determining a "good" ACT/SAT score. Look on the college websites and make sure your son's ACT/SAT are at the upper part of the range for admittance. Also, check out the automatic merit scholarships and see what the ACT/SAT miniums are. We had really no clue where my DD wanted to go last year except Minnesota and Wisconsin where she is waitlisted at both (because of her ACT!). You'll get a general idea if you pick about 4-5 schools you think he might be interested in and create a spreadsheet for him in black and white.

 

[Mom3girls]

I'm a 2017 parent. I chimed in a while back about making sure your children take the SATs and the ACTs if possible. My daughters SAT score was good but not great, but she did better on her ACTs. She decided to take them a second time and did great. BUT A couple of her schools won't except her second score because it was past their deadline( so she could miss out on a lot of merit scholarship money!! We are talking a difference if $5,000/yr compared to $24,000/yr!!!!!! Don't let this happen to your child !!! Make note of all dates and make sure they have time to take it twice if possible!!

 

[DawnM]

Oh, I know EXACTLY what you're saying. We parents are know-nothings about ACT/SAT testing and it makes it 1000% worse when their friends score high with zero effort. I also thought last year at this time that it should be more student driven and you lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. I was wrong when it comes to my DD. We seriously missed the boat by not paying for one-on-one tutoring over the summer. She always does well when she works with someone one-on-one and I should have set it up, made it a priority and insisted that she go. I just didn't want to pay the $150-$200 per week to make it happen and it cost me thousands. There is plenty of time to study since should be a test at the end of the summer that you can use for applications.

I also concur with the other 2017 parents about determining a "good" ACT/SAT score. Look on the college websites and make sure your son's ACT/SAT are at the upper part of the range for admittance. Also, check out the automatic merit scholarships and see what the ACT/SAT miniums are. We had really no clue where my DD wanted to go last year except Minnesota and Wisconsin where she is waitlisted at both (because of her ACT!). You'll get a general idea if you pick about 4-5 schools you think he might be interested in and create a spreadsheet for him in black and white.

A spreadsheet is a good idea. Can I just WHINE for a minute?

My oldest (graduated last year) has LDs. He also has Asperger's. I should just be VERY THANKFUL that he is moving forward, attending out local CC, and doing very well academically. Instead, I am sitting here, spending most of my day helping him finalize his schedule for summer and fall semesters because he can't seem to understand how to do it himself (and yes, it is confusing, but sheesh!!!!!!!)

And I guess I just thought middle son could be more self-sufficient. He has no LDs, and no neuro issues, other than some ADD, but nope, I have to hold his hand too.

Really, I do love my kids.....I am just TIRED! Just so tired.

 

[DawnM]

There is some *formula* for some of the schools he is wanting to apply to. It isn't a cut and dry GPA and test score. It is called an "Eligibility Index."

And then some of them ONLY take your GPA on your core academic subjects only for a final tally towards that eligibility index.

So, not sure a spreadsheet will work.

Things have really changed.

 

[robinb]

There is some *formula* for some of the schools he is wanting to apply to. It isn't a cut and dry GPA and test score. It is called an "Eligibility Index."

And then some of them ONLY take your GPA on your core academic subjects only for a final tally towards that eligibility index.

So, not sure a spreadsheet will work.

Things have really changed.

Go to collegedata.com and type in the schools your son might be interested in attending. It will show you what factors are used and how important each of those factors are.

 

[VillainFavs]

How do you find out about cut-and-dry numbers needed for merit scholarships? The schools my sun is currently looking at all say they offer merit, average awards, etc., but I can't find anything about, "If you have X SAT score, you'll get X $ in merit scholarships." Or is it just that a lot of schools don't publish such guidelines?

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

How do you find out about cut-and-dry numbers needed for merit scholarships? The schools my sun is currently looking at all say they offer merit, average awards, etc., but I can't find anything about, "If you have X SAT score, you'll get X $ in merit scholarships." Or is it just that a lot of schools don't publish such guidelines?

Some schools post a cut and dry formula for automatic merit money (like Tennessee http://onestop.utk.edu/scholarships/volunteer/). Other schools don't have automatic merit money (so no posted formula); students are looked at individually case by case for scholarship consideration.

 

[DawnM]

Go to collegedata.com and type in the schools your son might be interested in attending. It will show you what factors are used and how important each of those factors are.

Thanks. That was somewhat helpful, but actually was different than the actual website for calculations. And it was vague on a couple of things.

 

[Aliceacc]

He is signed up to take an ACT test prep as an elective in the Fall, but I honestly think that is too late. It kills me because I used to actually TEACH SAT test prep for the verbal and writing portions. If he would just learn from what I can tell him, we would be golden. But I am MOM and that doesn't seem to work.

I am looking for a class this summer for him to take.

Honestly, his math section is fine. He struggles mostly with the verbal section. We have gone over the 500 most used words on the SAT, etc....but he just seems to not get it.

He KNOWS this will limit his chances at some schools. But he also has to buy into it and realize its importance, or we are just spinning our wheels and wasting money.

I currently teach math SAT prep six periods a week. But do you think my darling daughter has even looked at a single prep exam??? Nope. She's fine on verbal, but I could really show her some strategies on math. But it's not worth the war that would ensue between us.

So we're looking at schools that she can get into. We'll know more after her June SAT scores come back. (OK, repeat of a previous rant. Her school has scheduled the Junior prom the same day as the May SAT. What idiocy!!! So she'll take them in June instead. Not a catastrophe, but absolutely illogical!!!)

 

[DawnM]

I currently teach math SAT prep six periods a week. But do you think my darling daughter has even looked at a single prep exam??? Nope. She's fine on verbal, but I could really show her some strategies on math. But it's not worth the war that would ensue between us.

So we're looking at schools that she can get into. We'll know more after her June SAT scores come back. (OK, repeat of a previous rant. Her school has scheduled the Junior prom the same day as the May SAT. What idiocy!!! So she'll take them in June instead. Not a catastrophe, but absolutely illogical!!!)

Oh no!!!! My son isn't going to prom. He hasn't said a word about it, and it is too late to buy tickets.

I forgot to ask if the ACT scores are back yet.

I WISH the SAT/ACT were offered in the summer. That would be ideal.

 

[mnrose]

Am I the only 2018 mom not stressing about college? Seriously, the schools my kids are looking at are nearly sure things for them based on GPA and test scores. As in, such a sure thing I'm not wasting on second of time on stressing. LOL. There ARE schools out there where they WILL get in. Maybe it's just my area of the country, but I don't know any parents stressing over it.

Maybe if my kids wanted to go to Harvard (which thankfully, they do not)...although my son did look longingly at the Harvard brochure he got sent....he KNOWS it is unaffordable (and please don't waste my time saying that it is...believe me, I've done the net cost calculators for ALL those schools, and they are not as we are expected to pay for it in it's entirety...). Since his scores are "good enough" to get recruited to all the big name schools (yes, they ARE that good), I know for a fact that there are literally 100's of other schools which would be more than happy to have him, probably with some merit aid tossed in.

My daughter has settled on a school where her already existent GPA and ACT score gets her in, with scholarship money. Done. She loves the school and it's a good fit.

 

[VillainFavs]

Am I the only 2018 mom not stressing about college? Seriously, the schools my kids are looking at are nearly sure things for them based on GPA and test scores. As in, such a sure thing I'm not wasting on second of time on stressing. LOL. There ARE schools out there where they WILL get in. Maybe it's just my area of the country, but I don't know any parents stressing over it.

Maybe if my kids wanted to go to Harvard (which thankfully, they do not)...although my son did look longingly at the Harvard brochure he got sent....he KNOWS it is unaffordable (and please don't waste my time saying that it is...believe me, I've done the net cost calculators for ALL those schools, and they are not as we are expected to pay for it in it's entirety...). Since his scores are "good enough" to get recruited to all the big name schools (yes, they ARE that good), I know for a fact that there are literally 100's of other schools which would be more than happy to have him, probably with some merit aid tossed in.

My daughter has settled on a school where her already existent GPA and ACT score gets her in, with scholarship money. Done. She loves the school and it's a good fit.

I guess if their scores are that wonderful and they're not trying to go for any reach schools at all, there's no stress! Not everybody's so lucky!!!

But I would add that until that acceptance letter is in hand, there's no such thing as sure thing.

 

[mnrose]

I guess if their scores are that wonderful and they're not trying to go for any reach schools at all, there's no stress! Not everybody's so lucky!!!

But I would add that until that acceptance letter is in hand, there's no such thing as sure thing.

Actually, that's not true. There are some automatic admit schools with certain GPAs and test scores.

It helps that all the "reach" schools we know we can't afford. Makes it super simple.

So, I guess my kids will just have to suffer and go to non-reach, but still perfectly adequate schools.