I have a 10th grader, soon to be 11th grader. I feel like it is too soon to even start figuring out where to visit. Top student NOW, but 11th grade can be brutal on the GPA and DC hasn’t taken the SAT/ACT yet. OP, how do you even know what is a safety when GPA and test scores are still theoretical?

I attended my safety with merit aid.
Every once in a blue moon, I wish I had the bragging rights of the better school I got into. But the majority of the time I think my choice was the right one.

My 11th grader has visited 21 schools (I can hear the vapors of outrage from DCUM as I type it) but he is still in love with the first school he ever visited which is a safety. He does not plan to apply to any reach schools but does plan to apply to multiple schools. He did find two other schools he really loves in addition to that first school but they are all safeties.

So your son might not change his mind but maybe ask him if he would like to visit schools with a similar vibe? In any case I would want my child to apply to more than one school.

Depends on the kid & how picky you are about colleges.

The folks having heart attacks over your kid being in 10th grade seem to be missing the fact that kid will be in 11th grade a few months from now. Also missing that people are casting a wider net than before. Gone are the days when you could see most of the likelies with a quick drive through New England like Tony Soprano. It’s best to have the vast majority of the exploring done before senior year starts, because that senior year can be insane if your kid is playing sports, taking AP classes, writing application essays, working a job etc .

It’s good to see as many places as possible, even if you just walk around for 30 minutes & skip the official we-are-a-unique-community-of-scholars-educating-tomorrows-leaders tour.

You lost me at 10th grade. Your child is going to change their mind before senior apps. I wouldn’t be stressing over college tours this early.

Ours fell in love with a kind of random school we visited while on a spring break trip spring of sophomore year. We visited cuz we were in area and just to give her a feel for a college of that type. She fell in love. It was a safety.

It did guide her search in that it cemented the type of college she wanted, but we kept looking. That school did stay on her list as a safety, but she found others she liked better, and fell in love even more with another - a reach that really was/is the perfect fit. They thought so too, she got in ED to the reach.

So keep looking OP!

Anonymous wrote:Don’t assume he will get in.
Yield protection is a very real thing and being overqualified can be a problem (paradoxically).

He’d have to really convey his level of interest like any other applicant.

They have ED, so my assumption is that if he still feels the same way he'll convey his interest that way.

Does this safely have their major?

Count your blessings.

So many kids won't seriously focus on finding a safety they will be happy at, because they're sure they'll get in elsewhere. Then, oops, and disappointment. Your kid sounds well adjusted. Embrace it and let him enjoy the years ahead.

Don’t assume he will get in.
Yield protection is a very real thing and being overqualified can be a problem (paradoxically).

He’d have to really convey his level of interest like any other applicant.

He’s just a 10th grader, back off. There’s enough pressure coming up. In the spring, re-visit it.

Anonymous wrote:He has time.
Back off a minute, and visit more schools later.

Thinking the same. I hear you, OP, but he'll likely push back now. You can revisit later.

Ours fell in love with a “safety” in the Spring of Junior year after we forced them to add “one more school” to our itinerary on a visitation junket. DC fought the feeling, applied other places (and got in) but sometimes you just can’t go against your gut. DC expected having to defend the choice but the harshest criticism came from unexpected corners (a family member and some HS faculty). But everyone else, and I mean everyone else, has been super supportive. We are excited for this next chapter their young Life.

Anonymous wrote:It’s WAY too early to worry about it. Just smile and nod.

+1 next year, of he still likes that one, find a few others that have things in common with it too check out.

But it's ok if that ends up being his favorite and he ultimately only applies there plus a couple backups

You always need a backup. Some kids don't get into their safety and get into their reach schools, there's always a degree of randomness to it.