College Admissions Questions (1 Viewer)

[The Z Machine]

Floppinho just hit "accept" to Yale class of '29!

Spent an exhausting but amazing few days at "Bulldog days" there that sealed it

Amazing and congrats to him.

 

[Kanil]

Floppinho just hit "accept" to Yale class of '29!

Spent an exhausting but amazing few days at "Bulldog days" there that sealed it.

That's so effing cool. It's the dream lots of parents have when their kids are young. You did it!

 

[The Z Machine]

Floppinho just hit "accept" to Yale class of '29!

Spent an exhausting but amazing few days at "Bulldog days" there that sealed it.

That's so effing cool. It's the dream lots of parents have when their kids are young. You did it!

Well, not to take anything away from Floppo and his wife, but I would give full credit to the young man who received this admission.

 

[Kanil]

Floppinho just hit "accept" to Yale class of '29!

Spent an exhausting but amazing few days at "Bulldog days" there that sealed it.

That's so effing cool. It's the dream lots of parents have when their kids are young. You did it!

Well, not to take anything away from Floppo and his wife, but I would give full credit to the young man who received this admission.

You kidding me? If my kid makes it into Yale, I'm taking all the credit. If he ends up in prison, that's his mom's half.

 

[El Floppo]

Floppinho just hit "accept" to Yale class of '29!

Spent an exhausting but amazing few days at "Bulldog days" there that sealed it.

That's so effing cool. It's the dream lots of parents have when their kids are young. You did it!

Well, not to take anything away from Floppo and his wife, but I would give full credit to the young man who received this admission.

Thanks guys.

Yeah... Full credit to the boy, who has always been this kid. We got really lucky with him.

Full credit to my wife as well, for helping him find opportunities on his path so far.

He's always been in charge of his actions and making the most of those opportunities (studying, practicing, performing well under pressure, managing his time, being a good person, etc) but without my wife, so many of them wouldn't have happened (private school, Juilliard, on and on). I've been there to advise and support, model behavior, but mostly try to stay out of the way.

 

[The Z Machine]

Floppinho just hit "accept" to Yale class of '29!

Spent an exhausting but amazing few days at "Bulldog days" there that sealed it.

That's so effing cool. It's the dream lots of parents have when their kids are young. You did it!

Well, not to take anything away from Floppo and his wife, but I would give full credit to the young man who received this admission.

Thanks guys.

Yeah... Full credit to the boy, who has always been this kid. We got really lucky with him.

Full credit to my wife as well, for helping him find opportunities on his path so far.

He's always been in charge of his actions and making the most of those opportunities (studying, practicing, performing well under pressure, managing his time, being a good person, etc) but without my wife, so many of them wouldn't have happened (private school, Juilliard, on and on). I've been there to advise and support, model behavior, but mostly try to stay out of the way.

Well said, Floppo. You guys are great parents and role models.

 

[GenX fan]

My Oregon resident kid just got accepted to Oregon State University.
With living expenses, it will cost $30K a year. We just got our FAFSA info. The government is only going to loan us $5k/year to pay these costs. Are you kidding me??
Help! What do I do, I don't have that kind of money.

Pardon the bump for any ideas at all.

I was looking at Parent Plus loans. These seem like a giant scam. The current interest rate is 9% AND you have a loan origination fee of 4.5% !! Highway robbery.

 

[dgreen]

This seems like a good thread for this question.

My daughter recently graduated from college. She has some private loans with me as the co-signer. I assume the next steps are to consolidate her loans and remove me as a co-signer? She has a job lined up, so that's good. Should she expect her interest rate to change a lot by removing me?

 

[NewlyRetired]

hello all,

I started this thread almost 9 years ago. Through out the college process many people in this thread issued good wishes and encouragement for my daughter's struggles and I thought I would come and give a little heart warming update.

To remind every one, my daughter was a strong student who secured a full tuition ride to Trinity on a merit scholarship. But my daughter also suffers from some serious personal issues which made the college process very difficult for her. I am honestly not sure she would have made it through the whole 4 years with out dropping out but as chance happened, Covid hit and she was able to complete her last two years from home.

She graduated summa cum laude (I think one of only 7 kids in her graduating class to achieve that). But she was so riddled with social issues (she rarely speaks and struggles in group settings) that we knew at this time that she was very likely to remain at home for the rest of our lives.

She was not able to take any interviews due to her social issues but my wife was able to convince her to come to our library where she and I both worked, and have her volunteer. The volunteering led to a part time job which she held for the last 4 years. We were extremely happy about this because we were never sure that she would be able to do that on a consistent basis in that type of setting.

And just recently, out of the blue, she decided to apply to another library for a full time job. Even though she was told there was an overwhelming number of applicants, she persisted through 3 rounds of interviews and landed the job! She now has a career in a back facing role that suits her particular skills and issues.

Many thanks to the people who wished her well over the years in this thread!

 

[El Floppo]

hello all,

I started this thread almost 9 years ago. Through out the college process many people in this thread issued good wishes and encouragement for my daughter's struggles and I thought I would come and give a little heart warming update.

To remind every one, my daughter was a strong student who secured a full tuition ride to Trinity on a merit scholarship. But my daughter also suffers from some serious personal issues which made the college process very difficult for her. I am honestly not sure she would have made it through the whole 4 years with out dropping out but as chance happened, Covid hit and she was able to complete her last two years from home.

She graduated summa cum laude (I think one of only 7 kids in her graduating class to achieve that). But she was so riddled with social issues (she rarely speaks and struggles in group settings) that we knew at this time that she was very likely to remain at home for the rest of our lives.

She was not able to take any interviews due to her social issues but my wife was able to convince her to come to our library where she and I both worked, and have her volunteer. The volunteering led to a part time job which she held for the last 4 years. We were extremely happy about this because we were never sure that she would be able to do that on a consistent basis in that type of setting.

And just recently, out of the blue, she decided to apply to another library for a full time job. Even though she was told there was an overwhelming number of applicants, she persisted through 3 rounds of interviews and landed the job! She now has a career in a back facing role that suits her particular skills and issues.

Many thanks to the people who wished her well over the years in this thread!

This is fantastic news!!

Absolutely amazing to hear that she (must have) crushed those interviews! I hope you all, and especially her, are feeling incredibly proud of her.

 

[TennesseeJed]

hello all,

I started this thread almost 9 years ago. Through out the college process many people in this thread issued good wishes and encouragement for my daughter's struggles and I thought I would come and give a little heart warming update.

To remind every one, my daughter was a strong student who secured a full tuition ride to Trinity on a merit scholarship. But my daughter also suffers from some serious personal issues which made the college process very difficult for her. I am honestly not sure she would have made it through the whole 4 years with out dropping out but as chance happened, Covid hit and she was able to complete her last two years from home.

She graduated summa cum laude (I think one of only 7 kids in her graduating class to achieve that). But she was so riddled with social issues (she rarely speaks and struggles in group settings) that we knew at this time that she was very likely to remain at home for the rest of our lives.

She was not able to take any interviews due to her social issues but my wife was able to convince her to come to our library where she and I both worked, and have her volunteer. The volunteering led to a part time job which she held for the last 4 years. We were extremely happy about this because we were never sure that she would be able to do that on a consistent basis in that type of setting.

And just recently, out of the blue, she decided to apply to another library for a full time job. Even though she was told there was an overwhelming number of applicants, she persisted through 3 rounds of interviews and landed the job! She now has a career in a back facing role that suits her particular skills and issues.

Many thanks to the people who wished her well over the years in this thread!

So awesome.

 

[zoobird]

hello all,

I started this thread almost 9 years ago. Through out the college process many people in this thread issued good wishes and encouragement for my daughter's struggles and I thought I would come and give a little heart warming update.

To remind every one, my daughter was a strong student who secured a full tuition ride to Trinity on a merit scholarship. But my daughter also suffers from some serious personal issues which made the college process very difficult for her. I am honestly not sure she would have made it through the whole 4 years with out dropping out but as chance happened, Covid hit and she was able to complete her last two years from home.

She graduated summa cum laude (I think one of only 7 kids in her graduating class to achieve that). But she was so riddled with social issues (she rarely speaks and struggles in group settings) that we knew at this time that she was very likely to remain at home for the rest of our lives.

She was not able to take any interviews due to her social issues but my wife was able to convince her to come to our library where she and I both worked, and have her volunteer. The volunteering led to a part time job which she held for the last 4 years. We were extremely happy about this because we were never sure that she would be able to do that on a consistent basis in that type of setting.

And just recently, out of the blue, she decided to apply to another library for a full time job. Even though she was told there was an overwhelming number of applicants, she persisted through 3 rounds of interviews and landed the job! She now has a career in a back facing role that suits her particular skills and issues.

Many thanks to the people who wished her well over the years in this thread!

That's awesome. Congrats to her and to you!

 

[New Binky the Doormat]

hello all,

I started this thread almost 9 years ago. Through out the college process many people in this thread issued good wishes and encouragement for my daughter's struggles and I thought I would come and give a little heart warming update.

To remind every one, my daughter was a strong student who secured a full tuition ride to Trinity on a merit scholarship. But my daughter also suffers from some serious personal issues which made the college process very difficult for her. I am honestly not sure she would have made it through the whole 4 years with out dropping out but as chance happened, Covid hit and she was able to complete her last two years from home.

She graduated summa cum laude (I think one of only 7 kids in her graduating class to achieve that). But she was so riddled with social issues (she rarely speaks and struggles in group settings) that we knew at this time that she was very likely to remain at home for the rest of our lives.

She was not able to take any interviews due to her social issues but my wife was able to convince her to come to our library where she and I both worked, and have her volunteer. The volunteering led to a part time job which she held for the last 4 years. We were extremely happy about this because we were never sure that she would be able to do that on a consistent basis in that type of setting.

And just recently, out of the blue, she decided to apply to another library for a full time job. Even though she was told there was an overwhelming number of applicants, she persisted through 3 rounds of interviews and landed the job! She now has a career in a back facing role that suits her particular skills and issues.

Many thanks to the people who wished her well over the years in this thread!

crazy awesome NR!!!

 

[Oracle]

hello all,

I started this thread almost 9 years ago. Through out the college process many people in this thread issued good wishes and encouragement for my daughter's struggles and I thought I would come and give a little heart warming update.

To remind every one, my daughter was a strong student who secured a full tuition ride to Trinity on a merit scholarship. But my daughter also suffers from some serious personal issues which made the college process very difficult for her. I am honestly not sure she would have made it through the whole 4 years with out dropping out but as chance happened, Covid hit and she was able to complete her last two years from home.

She graduated summa cum laude (I think one of only 7 kids in her graduating class to achieve that). But she was so riddled with social issues (she rarely speaks and struggles in group settings) that we knew at this time that she was very likely to remain at home for the rest of our lives.

She was not able to take any interviews due to her social issues but my wife was able to convince her to come to our library where she and I both worked, and have her volunteer. The volunteering led to a part time job which she held for the last 4 years. We were extremely happy about this because we were never sure that she would be able to do that on a consistent basis in that type of setting.

And just recently, out of the blue, she decided to apply to another library for a full time job. Even though she was told there was an overwhelming number of applicants, she persisted through 3 rounds of interviews and landed the job! She now has a career in a back facing role that suits her particular skills and issues.

Many thanks to the people who wished her well over the years in this thread!

I’m proud of your daughter and how well she has done. This is fantastic news and I needed to hear this today.

Congrats!

 

[bigbottom]

hello all,

I started this thread almost 9 years ago. Through out the college process many people in this thread issued good wishes and encouragement for my daughter's struggles and I thought I would come and give a little heart warming update.

To remind every one, my daughter was a strong student who secured a full tuition ride to Trinity on a merit scholarship. But my daughter also suffers from some serious personal issues which made the college process very difficult for her. I am honestly not sure she would have made it through the whole 4 years with out dropping out but as chance happened, Covid hit and she was able to complete her last two years from home.

She graduated summa cum laude (I think one of only 7 kids in her graduating class to achieve that). But she was so riddled with social issues (she rarely speaks and struggles in group settings) that we knew at this time that she was very likely to remain at home for the rest of our lives.

She was not able to take any interviews due to her social issues but my wife was able to convince her to come to our library where she and I both worked, and have her volunteer. The volunteering led to a part time job which she held for the last 4 years. We were extremely happy about this because we were never sure that she would be able to do that on a consistent basis in that type of setting.

And just recently, out of the blue, she decided to apply to another library for a full time job. Even though she was told there was an overwhelming number of applicants, she persisted through 3 rounds of interviews and landed the job! She now has a career in a back facing role that suits her particular skills and issues.

Many thanks to the people who wished her well over the years in this thread!

What a great accomplishment! Congrats to her and to you and your wife for your amazing support that has made all this possible.

 

[The_Man]

hello all,

I started this thread almost 9 years ago. Through out the college process many people in this thread issued good wishes and encouragement for my daughter's struggles and I thought I would come and give a little heart warming update.

To remind every one, my daughter was a strong student who secured a full tuition ride to Trinity on a merit scholarship. But my daughter also suffers from some serious personal issues which made the college process very difficult for her. I am honestly not sure she would have made it through the whole 4 years with out dropping out but as chance happened, Covid hit and she was able to complete her last two years from home.

She graduated summa cum laude (I think one of only 7 kids in her graduating class to achieve that). But she was so riddled with social issues (she rarely speaks and struggles in group settings) that we knew at this time that she was very likely to remain at home for the rest of our lives.

She was not able to take any interviews due to her social issues but my wife was able to convince her to come to our library where she and I both worked, and have her volunteer. The volunteering led to a part time job which she held for the last 4 years. We were extremely happy about this because we were never sure that she would be able to do that on a consistent basis in that type of setting.

And just recently, out of the blue, she decided to apply to another library for a full time job. Even though she was told there was an overwhelming number of applicants, she persisted through 3 rounds of interviews and landed the job! She now has a career in a back facing role that suits her particular skills and issues.

Many thanks to the people who wished her well over the years in this thread!

From one Trinity Bantam to another, I love this update!

 

[NajehHejan]

New to this thread. Congrats on your daughter, NR!

My older son is a rising senior in HS. We’re about to start the application process (10-15 schools minimum). We will not qualify for any need based aid, but we’re hoping for as much merit aid as possible. Any advantage or disadvantage for when we officially submit FAFSA? TIA!

 

[NewlyRetired]

New to this thread. Congrats on your daughter, NR!

My older son is a rising senior in HS. We’re about to start the application process (10-15 schools minimum). We will not qualify for any need based aid, but we’re hoping for as much merit aid as possible. Any advantage or disadvantage for when we officially submit FAFSA? TIA!

I do not believe FAFSA effects individual Merit aid one way or another.

My daughter got a full tuition scholarship and then on top of that still received FAFSA which we put towards housing/books/etc.

 

[El Floppo]

New to this thread. Congrats on your daughter, NR!

My older son is a rising senior in HS. We’re about to start the application process (10-15 schools minimum). We will not qualify for any need based aid, but we’re hoping for as much merit aid as possible. Any advantage or disadvantage for when we officially submit FAFSA? TIA!

I do not believe FAFSA effects individual Merit aid one way or another.

My daughter got a full tuition scholarship and then on top of that still received FAFSA which we put towards housing/books/etc.

With our son just graduating from HS, Its amazing how quickly ive forgotten this stuff im sure my wife still has it locked away. So ymmv here.

But here goes...Submitting fafsa shouldnt interfere with merit scholarships. Iirc, i think most schools school require it before providing merit and schools actually use it to prioritize merit scholarships for students that need them more (at schools where funding is tighter). I dont think it affects merit at schools with big endowments. I also dont think it has a bearing on outside scholarships- those not coming from the school. I do recall that getting fafsa in as early as possible was a benefit for getting earliest access to some scholarships that are limited ..dont recall exactly if those were first come first served, but it was something like that.

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

Update on my end….

Oldest - still at Salisbury. First year was a bit of a disaster. It’s definitely a party school and she didn’t handle it well. To her credit she got back on track and is doing very well now but I was close to her coming home and doing CC.

Youngest -
It’s always the ones you least expect. Little Miss IDGAF who couldn’t have cared less about school at all - worked her tail
Off and got straight A’s at our CC and is now headed to College of Charleston in a few weeks.

I can’t wait to visit Charleston. Heard great things about the city.

 

[El Floppo]

Update on my end….

Oldest - still at Salisbury. First year was a bit of a disaster. It’s definitely a party school and she didn’t handle it well. To her credit she got back on track and is doing very well now but I was close to her coming home and doing CC.

Youngest -
It’s always the ones you least expect. Little Miss IDGAF who couldn’t have cared less about school at all - worked her tail
Off and got straight A’s at our CC and is now headed to College of Charleston in a few weeks.

I can’t wait to visit Charleston. Heard great things about the city.

Was just talking to the wife about a gb of mines oldest, kinda flipped version of yours. Youngest was the worker and went to UC Berkeley. Oldest wasnt the same kind of student and was mostly disinterested in school...wanted to work in a shop after HS, then wanted to maybe be an interior designer. Started taking CC classes as a 20yo after a couple years out of HS, and zagged towards a different interest, and then another. Ended up getting in to UCLA where shes also finishing up.

I had a LOT of HS friends go that route- work, cc, college- all happy and successful adults. (Eta...darnit! Thought id written this importanst bit.... Also had some friends forego college entirely and have the same happy successful lives)

Theres no one or right way of doing this Life thing. Feels like these gen of kids and us parents keep forgetting that.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Theres no one or right way of doing this Life thing. Feels like these gen of kids and us parents keep forgetting that.

I agree.

It has become so ingrained in American parents that I think most have been effectively brain washed to think if child does not go to college, they failed as parents.

 

[El Floppo]

Theres no one or right way of doing this Life thing. Feels like these gen of kids and us parents keep forgetting that.

I agree.

It has become so ingrained in American parents that I think most have been effectively brain washed to think if child does not go to college, they failed as parents.

I had this convo during the process last year with my wife..she wasnt having it- her son was going to the best college possible because he worked his *** off for years and deserves it. She didnt disagree with my- i trust this kid to do something with his life to the best possible degree no matter college/no-college...but he was going to college dammit.

 

[New Binky the Doormat]

calling @Zow and any other attorneys here. Our daughter is going into her senior year and will be taking LSAT(s) in December or so.

what is the best way to study and prep for the LSAT (she plans on taking it twice) - which prep courses, etc. - tks!

 

[TennesseeJed]

calling @Zow and any other attorneys here. Our daughter is going into her senior year and will be taking LSAT(s) in December or so.

what is the best way to study and prep for the LSAT (she plans on taking it twice) - which prep courses, etc. - tks!

It's been many moons since I took the LSAT, but if memory serves, there really is nothing to study. Its primarily a logic test, with some reading comprehension on the side.

My personal opinion is buy one of the study guides with practice tests, and just take those timed tests. I think for most people it's probably more about timing - meaning making sure you can get through the test in the time limits. I assume everything is online these days - so should be able to find something like that. Back when I took it, everything was still on paper.

 

[thecatch]

calling @Zow and any other attorneys here. Our daughter is going into her senior year and will be taking LSAT(s) in December or so.

what is the best way to study and prep for the LSAT (she plans on taking it twice) - which prep courses, etc. - tks!

It's been a long time since I took and I don't know what courses are recommended these days (Kaplan was a big one at the time, as I recall). But I would strongly disagree with the prior poster - I did self-study and I'm sure I probably cost myself several points on my score. And even a few points can materially impact what tier of law school you can get into, and by extension, what average employment outcomes you can expect after graduation. So LSAT prep is pretty much the last thing in the legal education process I'd try to save a few bucks on.

Also don't be afraid to take the LSAT a couple times if she isn't totally happy with her initial score (unless admissions offices have changed to a system where they only consider your average scores or something in the last couple of decades).

 

[Instinctive]

calling @Zow and any other attorneys here. Our daughter is going into her senior year and will be taking LSAT(s) in December or so.

what is the best way to study and prep for the LSAT (she plans on taking it twice) - which prep courses, etc. - tks!

I'm not sure how the test has changed in the last 15 years. Knowing lawyers, probably not a ton.

Here is the guide I wrote in 2009 on how to prep for the exam: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-ydQ97zT64v1xi2TPOvw3nQKvo1BUIR35JY_u7etliM/edit?tab=t.0

Even if the way it is administered has changed, I think the principles apply to all standardized tests.

I wouldn't take it twice unless her first time is done with poor prep or something that she can change to do better a second time, AND the first score is below what she needs for her target schools. I didn't get the score I wanted, but it was good enough for all the schools I applied to so in hindsight I'm glad I was talked into "if the score is above x for these schools, don't waste your time" by an admissions consultant who did a free lunch with me and said I wouldn't need his services, gave some advice, and wished me luck. LSN (https://lawschoolnumbers.com/) was very helpful to ID what I needed for a given school with my GPA.

Happy to take a DM if you want, I talk to students at OU about this a few times a year when they reach out. ANYONE can get 170+ if they study well, for the time they end up needing, and practice and find out the game that is the LSAT. It's more like a big puzzle than a test really.

 

[odin33]

First kid is a HS senior this year, and she's the oldest of this generation so there isn't any family to lean on for advice/tips/tricks. She knows what she wants to go into and has schools narrowed down to (mostly) local colleges. One college tour down and a couple more to come. How late is too late to get college visits in?

She's going to need a healthy amount of financial aid/loans. Is the FAFSA paperwork something I need to seek out or is that something that automatically comes?

When I was in college it was scholarships (grades, sports), grants, FAFSA, and then loans. Now I'm understanding that there's all kinds of aids/scholarships that she may be eligible for. Is there a good website, book, source for this?

Is it ask the guidance councilors still, or are you on your own to figure it out. Just feel unprepared, and lost.

 

[The Dreaded Marco]

calling @Zow and any other attorneys here. Our daughter is going into her senior year and will be taking LSAT(s) in December or so.

what is the best way to study and prep for the LSAT (she plans on taking it twice) - which prep courses, etc. - tks!

My daughter just started her 3rd year associate year at a firm in Los Angeles, so she was in your daughter's position about 6 years ago.

I asked for her advice and she said she took an in-person class first, but more to motivate herself, as she wasn't wanting to self-study yet.
She then used the Kaplan prep course for self study and felt like it was a very good prep for her--much more beneficial than the in-person course she took. Her LSAT score was quite good.

She also has friends that used the Barbri and 7Sage LSAT prep courses that were happy with their results as well.

Good luck to your daughter!

 

[El Floppo]

First kid is a HS senior this year, and she's the oldest of this generation so there isn't any family to lean on for advice/tips/tricks. She knows what she wants to go into and has schools narrowed down to (mostly) local colleges. One college tour down and a couple more to come. How late is too late to get college visits in?

She's going to need a healthy amount of financial aid/loans. Is the FAFSA paperwork something I need to seek out or is that something that automatically comes?

When I was in college it was scholarships (grades, sports), grants, FAFSA, and then loans. Now I'm understanding that there's all kinds of aids/scholarships that she may be eligible for. Is there a good website, book, source for this?

Is it ask the guidance councilors still, or are you on your own to figure it out. Just feel unprepared, and lost.

Not too late for visits- and she absolutely should go to any school shes interested in. Get a tour and talk to as many active students/staff there as possible. Have her do her homework for each school first and come up with questions shed like answered...then ask them and get those answers. Check in with admissions to show interest...ask questions of them too. If she knows her area of study, check into those depts too and talk to faculty- ask as many relevant questions as she legitimately comes up with.

Do FAFSA asap. I just posted about a lot of merit based scholarships being tied to FA

 

[New Binky the Doormat]

calling @Zow and any other attorneys here. Our daughter is going into her senior year and will be taking LSAT(s) in December or so.

what is the best way to study and prep for the LSAT (she plans on taking it twice) - which prep courses, etc. - tks!

My daughter just started her 3rd year associate year at a firm in Los Angeles, so she was in your daughter's position about 6 years ago.

I asked for her advice and she said she took an in-person class first, but more to motivate herself, as she wasn't wanting to self-study yet.
She then used the Kaplan prep course for self study and felt like it was a very good prep for her--much more beneficial than the in-person course she took. Her LSAT score was quite good.

She also has friends that used the Barbri and 7Sage LSAT prep courses that were happy with their results as well.

Good luck to your daughter!

many thanks marco!