End of 11th grade with no real college list….

[Anonymous]

Anybody’s kid reach end of junior year without knowing where they want to apply? I’ve had trouble getting my kid to engage beyond his plan to apply to the popular schools in VA. But he needs to apply to more than 4-5 schools. Isn’t sure of major (but not engineering). Isn’t sure if he wants small or big.
We’ve visited a few campuses.

Kid has decent stats in a way that’s typical for this area (4.0uw with many APs, 1480 SAT, sport, band, leadership positions, summer job, some volunteer work). So fine but no hooks or anything. If your kid took a while to engage, how did things turn out/how did they create their list?

[Anonymous]

You really need to do actual tours this summer.

[Anonymous]

Summer tours, followed by repeat visits/open house events in the fall for the top choices or any ED possibilities.

DC’s list is pretty solid, but I was talking to several parent friends at an event this weekend and many kids are still list-building, and summer visits are the plan for all of them.

[Anonymous]

Ours. DC has been very busy and had a spring break trip with school so we could not do trips. So far DC only has schools where DC does NOT want to apply. We are super stressed by the lack of action, but we understand the stress. Hoping to do visits this summer, but summer campuses are really different.

[Anonymous]

Not in DC area but same. Kid is interested in college but has no list, had other plans over break, etc. And honestly his final grades this semester will make an impact on options as will the June and August SATs. Strong student for school (currently in top 10) but NOTHING like the stats seen on this board. Not stressed, he'll figure it out one way or another and I think he'd do well and be happy at our state flagship if he doesn't (which of course he DOESN'T want at the moment).

[Anonymous]

View this as liberating (and an excellent sign about your kid, who sounds honest and genuinely undecided about exactly may work, which is a sign of great judgment given the age of these kids). What may be useful is to identify a few more specific criteria (most likely three or four majors, close to VA vs. far vs. urban vs. rural vs. scenic) and then generate a list based on nature and strength of programs and locations. Developing a list closer to decision can make eminently good sense if tastes and preferences are in flux. End of summer, take a few campus tours to narrow it further and use virtual tours in the interim for out of state.

Good luck.

[Anonymous]

I specifically put off college stuff with my son (second kid) for a couple of reasons, 1. To see what his gpa looked like at end of junior year and SAT. I don't want to waste his time or mine considering/touring colleges that he'd never get into. And 2. He's BUSY! Adding college conversations and tours to an already insanely busy junior year seemed like a bad idea.

We will knock out some tours this summer and finalize a list by august. Depending on ED results, we may need to revisit in December, but that seems like enough.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies & suggestions. We can definitely visit some more schools this summer. Anybody find the virtual tours helpful for further-away colleges? And he will be working on essays this summer & taking the SAT a second time.

[Anonymous]

Even in early fall of senior year, my daughter had no idea of where to apply or what to major in. It all worked out but it was more stressful than it needed to be.

[Anonymous]

Maybe his list DOES NOT need to be more than 4-5 schools. As long as there is a safety or two on that list, you may be good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for the replies & suggestions. We can definitely visit some more schools this summer. Anybody find the virtual tours helpful for further-away colleges? And he will be working on essays this summer & taking the SAT a second time.

Save those further-away for if he gets in? Do any of these schools near or far offer live student panels that he can participate in as well? Do you have any ideas of schools that you think might be good for your child, since you know him best? Or just lean into your state schools since they will be less inexpensive and he can try for a transfer his sophomore year if need be?

[Anonymous]

Yes, my junior has been to see one school (JMU) . No list, major will be undecided, have to see how the GPA ends up this year.

[Anonymous]

What is the spread of those 4-5 colleges on the list as far as likely, target, and reach? Depending on what that looks like, I’d probably add 1 or 2 more for each bucket. So, try building that way from the existing list with schools that may be similar or otherwise appealing. If you share the actual list, you can probably get more helpful suggestions.

[Anonymous]

If Pitt isn’t already on the list, that’s probably a good one to add. Apply early rolling and he’ll likely have an early acceptance to carry you through, and may not need to add any more colleges to the existing list.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is the spread of those 4-5 colleges on the list as far as likely, target, and reach? Depending on what that looks like, I’d probably add 1 or 2 more for each bucket. So, try building that way from the existing list with schools that may be similar or otherwise appealing. If you share the actual list, you can probably get more helpful suggestions.

UVA— reach
W&M— reach or target?
VT—?
GMU— safety
JMU— target or safety?

He has said he doesn’t want an urban campus. I think he might like smaller schools, but he hasn’t said that himself. So I was thinking he could look at some SLACs.