College admissions

[ncat]

What I wish I had done better for my oldest (college sophomore) is push her to take an AP history and/or English class in high school. She is a stem major and took stem AP classes, but didn't get the rigorous writing experience that the English and history AP would have provided.
What I wish I had done better for my high school freshman is make sure his 8th grade coursework and grades set him up better for college-track high school classes. He goofed of and ended up placed in non-honors foreign language, which would be totally ok except that his school only offers two years of non-honors for the language he chose. Look at the high school curriculum carefully now!

[NCGrandma]

Another vote for 4H as a valuable activity. I was completely unfamiliar with it, but DIL had been in 4H and she made sure both DGDs started in elementary school. They have both found it very rewarding, and I’ve been impressed with the emphasis on things like developing leadership skills, public speaking, community service, etc. Both kids have won prizes at the county fair for everything from "best dozen eggs" to art work, sewing projects, "how to" posters on climate change, flower arranging, etc etc. They have developed skills and confidence in areas beyond school stuff that many of us took a lot longer to gain.


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[daisy13]

thank you so much for all your comments and advice.
Lots to think about and ponder. Just wanted to clarify- We aren't pressuring her in to anything- whether that's accelerating in math or her activities. She is a very driven child and chooses to do all of it herself. If anything we are trying to get her to take the load a little easy.

She is getting her black belt in Taekwondo next month and had hope to take a break in 9th to get involved in the many clubs she wants to try. We heard from soem parents that you cannot mention any activities that you do before 9th grade. Is that true? She wants to try waterpolo in HS- we have told her she needs to choose between Taekwondo and Waterpolo and Swimming.Practice times clashes and frankly its just too much on a 14 yr old..

[mom2binsd]

Some applications don't even ask for all the things people mention, so unless it's in the essay it's not on the app.

Many schools do not ask for letters of recommendation.

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[AnnieW625]

I would let her keep doing taekwondo tbh. I see how it is a positive thing for my DD2. I think she could write about getting her black belt and the challenge to continue it in high school. She would be working on her third degree by the end of high school if she keeps up with it, right if it takes two years to get to second degree (that is how it works at Dd2’s dojo); Dd2 will also be getting her black belt sometime in the next year.


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[gatorsmom]

We heard from soem parents that you cannot mention any activities that you do before 9th grade. Is that true? .

It's true that the Common App doesn't allow you to mention activities that were done before high school in the Activities section. However, your dd can definitely incorporate them into her essay. We were advised to have a running theme throughout his application of how ds's past interests and activities support his essay's point. So, for example, DS talked about how he's loved to tinker and create things to help others, he pulled in examples from 5th and 6th grade, his devotion to auto club starting in middle school, and working with friends on their cars in high school as part of auto club. His attendance at his high school clubs were on his transcript so that backed up what he mentioned in his essay.

[AmyZ]

https://www.saraharberson.com/

I highly recommend following Sara's college advice. If you scroll down on her website, you can sign up for a weekly newsletter.

[AnnieW625]

Some applications don't even ask for all the things people mention, so unless it's in the essay it's not on the app.

Many schools do not ask for letters of recommendation.

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Yes California’s CSU application is stupid simple. They ask for activities, and grades but don’t have an essay.


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[California]

You may not be putting pressure on her, but it sounds like she is immersed in a high pressure system. SheÂ’s seeing what her friends are doing. If her friends are taking the hardest course load they can, she may feel like she is somehow falling behind if she doesnÂ’t too. And if they are striving for the most selective colleges, she may feel like thatÂ’s what she needs too.

I feel like most of us (parents and kids) start out with a narrow vision. When we think of potential colleges, we think of the top state schools and big name schools. There are so many more great schools out there that may be a good fit for your child. A lot of private colleges give merit to match the UC price tag. (Which is still expensive - around $35k.) Some will even give it to a B+ students. If sheÂ’s interested in law and public policy, sheÂ’s got many good options for college. It may help her to hear that.

That said, alumni networking and industry connections are factors we didnÂ’t really consider for our DS. This is important for internships and later jobs. Students can of course look at job postings and send out resumes. But connections are how they get personal referrals, and find out about the jobs that never get posted. If they intern, they may be offered a job without even having to go through a second interview process. Your DD is too young to hear about this now. I only mention it because it is helpful to know for the future: This may be a consideration if your DD decides she wants a career straight out of college. If your DD ends up applying for law school, at that point sheÂ’d definitely want to consider this.

[ett]

We attended the Yale info session this week and the admissions officer mentioned this blog post from MIT.

https://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entr...ying_sideways/

A good read for all the kids (and parents) who feel stressed about choosing the right classes, activities, etc. to get into their dream college.