I am losing heart.

[Anonymous]

It seems that excellent GPA and SAT is no longer enough. EC activities have to be supplemented with trips to teach underprivileged children in 3rd world countries. And you have to be able to afford the said trips to foreign countries. You have to know people to get internships and recommendations. All this in HS.

I just feel that I have failed my kids because this is just so overwhelming.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It seems that excellent GPA and SAT is no longer enough. EC activities have to be supplemented with trips to teach underprivileged children in 3rd world countries. And you have to be able to afford the said trips to foreign countries. You have to know people to get internships and recommendations. All this in HS.

I just feel that I have failed my kids because this is just so overwhelming.

Jesus, calm down. I've raised two kids who have gotten through the college admission process and have one more and the hysterics are too much for me. I posted on another thread, but my kid who spent 20 plus hours a week working retail was basically able to turn THAT into a hook. You don't need expensive trips. It's not rigged, but kids who have the scores/grades and can set themselves apart by explaining WHY they do what they do and WHAT they've learned from their experience will be fine.

[Anonymous]

No, you just have to do SOMEthing other than have good grades. Local volunteering would probably be better than "voluntourism," which is out of fashion now anyway.

Just make sure your kid is doing something that shows s/he has a life/interests outside of class. No need for hysterics.

[Anonymous]

I understand where OP is coming from. I am totally disillusioned with all of this maneuvering to get to the head of the line for the best colleges.

People are gaming the system with Prep that helps kids score higher on the SAT. They are studying to take a test better and better. So what does the SAT even mean? How well you can cram for a test, it's not a true measure anymore.

Schools hand out A's like water under the pressure of helicopter parents. A 4.0 means your kid is average now. So now kids have to take AP to get into colleges.

Wealthy people pay for tutors for the kids to spoon feed the course work to them. Do the improved grades mean they are smarter, more dedicated or just pampered students?

Lord help the kids that fall behind early on because they go to a lesser school. The road is too long and steep to catch up in this educational rat race.

I am sick of it. This uneven playing field isn't serving any of these kids (rich or poor) well. College is going to weed out a lot of these kids, but it probably won't be their fault at all.

Now we have DeVoss. That's the last nail in the coffin.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I understand where OP is coming from. I am totally disillusioned with all of this maneuvering to get to the head of the line for the best colleges.

People are gaming the system with Prep that helps kids score higher on the SAT. They are studying to take a test better and better. So what does the SAT even mean? How well you can cram for a test, it's not a true measure anymore.

Schools hand out A's like water under the pressure of helicopter parents. A 4.0 means your kid is average now. So now kids have to take AP to get into colleges.

Wealthy people pay for tutors for the kids to spoon feed the course work to them. Do the improved grades mean they are smarter, more dedicated or just pampered students?

Lord help the kids that fall behind early on because they go to a lesser school. The road is too long and steep to catch up in this educational rat race.

I am sick of it. This uneven playing field isn't serving any of these kids (rich or poor) well. College is going to weed out a lot of these kids, but it probably won't be their fault at all.

Now we have DeVoss. That's the last nail in the coffin.

So? There are plenty of good schools that are a good fit for your kid that aren't "prestigious." What is it you hope to get out of a "prestigious" college? You want your kid to be an i banker? You think those people are any happier than ppl who are teachers or lawyers or accountants? A kid who goes to a "lesser school" can still lead a fulfilling life. Maybe even a more fulfilling life. I feel like the college application process today is like the marriage fairy tale we were fed 40 years ago. Harvard doesn't equal happily ever after.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I understand where OP is coming from. I am totally disillusioned with all of this maneuvering to get to the head of the line for the best colleges.

People are gaming the system with Prep that helps kids score higher on the SAT. They are studying to take a test better and better. So what does the SAT even mean? How well you can cram for a test, it's not a true measure anymore.

Schools hand out A's like water under the pressure of helicopter parents. A 4.0 means your kid is average now. So now kids have to take AP to get into colleges.

Wealthy people pay for tutors for the kids to spoon feed the course work to them. Do the improved grades mean they are smarter, more dedicated or just pampered students?

Lord help the kids that fall behind early on because they go to a lesser school. The road is too long and steep to catch up in this educational rat race.

I am sick of it. This uneven playing field isn't serving any of these kids (rich or poor) well. College is going to weed out a lot of these kids, but it probably won't be their fault at all.

Now we have DeVoss. That's the last nail in the coffin.

That's because going to the best colleges, whatever that means, is unnecessary and way oversold.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I understand where OP is coming from. I am totally disillusioned with all of this maneuvering to get to the head of the line for the best colleges.

People are gaming the system with Prep that helps kids score higher on the SAT. They are studying to take a test better and better. So what does the SAT even mean? How well you can cram for a test, it's not a true measure anymore.

Schools hand out A's like water under the pressure of helicopter parents. A 4.0 means your kid is average now. So now kids have to take AP to get into colleges.

Wealthy people pay for tutors for the kids to spoon feed the course work to them. Do the improved grades mean they are smarter, more dedicated or just pampered students?

Lord help the kids that fall behind early on because they go to a lesser school. The road is too long and steep to catch up in this educational rat race.

I am sick of it. This uneven playing field isn't serving any of these kids (rich or poor) well. College is going to weed out a lot of these kids, but it probably won't be their fault at all.

Now we have DeVoss. That's the last nail in the coffin.

So? There are plenty of good schools that are a good fit for your kid that aren't "prestigious." What is it you hope to get out of a "prestigious" college? You want your kid to be an i banker? You think those people are any happier than ppl who are teachers or lawyers or accountants? A kid who goes to a "lesser school" can still lead a fulfilling life. Maybe even a more fulfilling life. I feel like the college application process today is like the marriage fairy tale we were fed 40 years ago. Harvard doesn't equal happily ever after.

Thats a good analogy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It seems that excellent GPA and SAT is no longer enough. EC activities have to be supplemented with trips to teach underprivileged children in 3rd world countries. And you have to be able to afford the said trips to foreign countries. You have to know people to get internships and recommendations. All this in HS.

I just feel that I have failed my kids because this is just so overwhelming.

That is not true at all. In fact these volunteer/vacations are not viewed the way you think they are by admissions counselors. There are plenty of "real" ways kids can make an impact via volunteerism that doesn't cost $5 grand. My kid got into 3 Ivy's and a number of SLAC's with special honors and didn't have a single volunteer/vacation. He did avail himself of plenty of opportunities at his school and in his community, sought out internships and national and international competitions. You don't have to "buy" an extracurricular--nor should you. College admissions counselors are not idiots. They know exactly what those trips are about--and it isn't altruism.

[Anonymous]

OP, I have a normal stats kid that did just fine in the admissions process. His unweighted GPA was around 3.6, he took 5 AP classes but didn't take the tests, and he scored 29 on the ACT. His EC's were football, wrestling, some normal kid volunteer stuff (little league, hospital), got a couple of awards, nothing spectacular... Interviewed great, wrote a solid essay and picked a reasonable selection of schools. I'm proud of his results and he ended up going to Macalester. Here's the breakdown:
St Olaf - accepted with aid
Luther - accepted with aid
Carelton - denied
College of Wooster - Wait list
Kenyon - accepted with aid
Grinnell - Wait list, no aid
Denison - accepted with aid
Cornell - denied

So you see, even with a normal GPA and ACT, he had his choice of St. Olaf, Macalester, Luther college (his safety), Kenyon and Denison.

So, please don't lose heart based on what you read here. Your kid will do just fine.

[Anonymous]

I am getting sick of the whole "wealthy hire tutors to spoon feed their kids." The people that I know who hire tutors (very few) have kids who are struggling either with a poor teacher or an LD. The idea that most are rigging the system by buying special assistance for their child is so overblown. The tutor is needed to help the kids grasp information that is needed to pass, not move a kid from an A- to an A. Poor kids have access to Khan Academy, libraries and non profit tutoring groups. If you are worried about any child having access to homework help, I hope you are volunteering to help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, I have a normal stats kid that did just fine in the admissions process. His unweighted GPA was around 3.6, he took 5 AP classes but didn't take the tests, and he scored 29 on the ACT. His EC's were football, wrestling, some normal kid volunteer stuff (little league, hospital), got a couple of awards, nothing spectacular... Interviewed great, wrote a solid essay and picked a reasonable selection of schools. I'm proud of his results and he ended up going to Macalester. Here's the breakdown:
St Olaf - accepted with aid
Luther - accepted with aid
Carelton - denied
College of Wooster - Wait list
Kenyon - accepted with aid
Grinnell - Wait list, no aid
Denison - accepted with aid
Cornell - denied

So you see, even with a normal GPA and ACT, he had his choice of St. Olaf, Macalester, Luther college (his safety), Kenyon and Denison.

So, please don't lose heart based on what you read here. Your kid will do just fine.

What is Macalester? Never heard of it.

[Anonymous]

What is Macalester? Never heard of it.

Good Canadian school.

[Anonymous]

Just have your kid mentor a refugee. That should take care of it. Get lots of photos for the app.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

What is Macalester? Never heard of it.

Good Canadian school.

WTF? Macalester is an excellent liberal arts college in St. Paul, MN. One of the few urban SLACs. USNWR has it tied with Oberlin College at #24 on its LAC ranking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

What is Macalester? Never heard of it.

Good Canadian school.

Uh, no. It's a very fine small liberal arts school in Minnesota. Not the PP, but it's on my list for my daughter to look at.