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[quote=Anonymous]I think overall we're happy with how it went for DD. She applied to a range of LACs that were mostly highly-likelies with great programs for her major and would give merit aid. And that aid came in as expected. Only applied to W&M as a reach and, while still waiting for an answer there, I don't expect her to get in and she'd decided she doesn't want to go anyway because too many friends from HS are going there.

Regrets are more "what ifs" than really regrets. One thing is that very late in the process she started to focus on the importance of continuing a particular EC that hadn't been so important early on and we might have added other schools to the list because of that. In the end, among her top 3 that hit most of what she wanted, only one had that EC. Fortunately, it's also where she felt most at home on visits and is happy with that choice.

I do wonder if it will feel too small (1300 students) but that may just be my own experience of going to a large state U. I tossed out ideas of mid-sized and larger schools along the way but she dismissed those as too big. So, we'll see. She does plan to do junior year study abroad so she'll get a totally different experience in that way. My older kid is at a huge public university and has had his own challenges that come with that experience.

I think the big takeaways were to get as clear as possible early on, through visiting a range of schools, about what is most important to the student. Be clear on your budget and understand what's possible at different schools. Never use the word "safety" -- a lot of schools you think are, are not, and even if they are it tends to sound derogatory. Really dig into what those "highly likelies" offer so that the student can see what great things they can do there. Make sure you have several on the list so you have choices in the end that you are happy with.

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