Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:She should look at liberal arts colleges that give merit aid. You might be able to get close to what the state schools cost and she could have smaller classes.

We tried this route with our older kids, and they didn't get enough merit aid (even at much lower-ranked schools) to fill the gap. Our older kids went to state colleges purely because of price.

If anyone has a gifted kid who was/is happy at a lower-ranked school, please post. Thanks!

I was CTY eligible and a female NMF. I tried PSU's Honors College. PSU profs and classes were good but the social life was lacking in intellectual heft. I transferred to Pitt and took Honors and regular classes. I loved Pitt. My grad degree is an MBA from Michigan. Also loved Michigan. So there are 3 flagships where I succeeded academically and met learning goals.

UMD is getting good reviews on DCUM these days. I recently met a very happy journalism major from our non-MD high school who was top of her college. Nothing but positivity. Sounds to me to be like my Pitt experience. Pitt was considered more gritty and humble 30 years ago. But there's nothing wrong with being gritty and humble. UMD is also in a bigger metro area with a wider range of employers.

I think your daughter will thrive at a flagship if she selects smaller classes, reading-intensive classes, and meets/communicates actively with professors. Look for smaller humanities classes, freshman seminars, honors classes, etc. The peers don't even matter if the professors are good and care about your questions and your learning. If they are quiet, more focus on you. My son observed this in a freshman seminar at his flagship. Now he has a professor who is interested in him doing research for her. Because he was the star student.

My family is big school friendly. The real world is a big place. Better to get used to it.

Why are you randomly reviving a thread that is 4 years old? OP has likely graduated college or is a senior in college by now. You always post about transferring to Pitt and going to Michigan. We know your story, PP. We know.

PP. I did not revive the thread, although it looks that way. I don't search for threads. I only read Recent Topics. I assume a post above mine got deleted. I wouldn't have answered if I realized it was a zombie thread.

Furthermore, I'm sure people recognize me as I also recognize others who repeat their stories across posts. That may be a flaw to you, but perhaps you should feel comforted that I don't have 10 different fake personas that I write from. I do post on the threads that relate to schools I attended, flagships, honors colleges, etc. That is why you recognize me.

Regarding transferring, I do especially like to comment on that topic. As the great Despair.com poster says: "Mistakes: It could be that the purpose of your life is only to serve as a warning to others".

https://despair.com/products/mistakes?_pos=1&_sid=4869ea759&_ss=r&variant=2457302467

Anonymous wrote:Does lower-ranked mean a lower-ranked LAC and second-rier state school rather than the state flagship? I have a kid at Pitt and a kid at Oberlin who both did CTY and they're doing great. DS is in the honors college and is studying several uncommon languages through the LCTL program - I think having a niche interest to pursue at large state schools can be key for a nerdy kid to find their people and place of belonging. My Obie is also doing well, double-majoring and taking language classes and working on lot of campus jobs. Yes, there are slackers or kids who are less focused on academics, but you can definitely find strong peer groups at a variety of colleges. My kids have friends are St Olaf, Lawrence, Muhlenberg, Hobart and Smith, Connecticut College, and Wooster who are all doing well.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD is a junior, and her only options for college are in-state because of our family's financial situation. She has a 3.88 at a good public high school, one sport, no ECs to speak of. She hates high school with a passion, thinks it's idiotic, all her classes are stupid, hates the administration and its crazy rules and incompetence, etc. She does the work because her friends do it, but she has no enthusiasm for school at all.

She went to CTY at Johns Hopkins for three summers, where she really blossomed. She told me recently those were the happiest weeks of her life. Her CTY teachers said she was "exceptional" and "outstanding."

I'm not bragging, I'm worried. I fear she'll be unhappy and unchallenged in college. We can't afford to send her to a CTY-like top college. If you have a similarly gifted kid who went to a lower-ranked college, how did s/he do? Did your child find a peer group? Were the classes interesting/challenging enough? Any advice most appreciated.

CTY is a pretty low bar to be honest.
What are her standardized test scores?

Anonymous wrote:DD is a junior, and her only options for college are in-state because of our family's financial situation. She has a 3.88 at a good public high school, one sport, no ECs to speak of. She hates high school with a passion, thinks it's idiotic, all her classes are stupid, hates the administration and its crazy rules and incompetence, etc. She does the work because her friends do it, but she has no enthusiasm for school at all.

She went to CTY at Johns Hopkins for three summers, where she really blossomed. She told me recently those were the happiest weeks of her life. Her CTY teachers said she was "exceptional" and "outstanding."

I'm not bragging, I'm worried. I fear she'll be unhappy and unchallenged in college. We can't afford to send her to a CTY-like top college. If you have a similarly gifted kid who went to a lower-ranked college, how did s/he do? Did your child find a peer group? Were the classes interesting/challenging enough? Any advice most appreciated.

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Anonymous wrote:No, she's not on the spectrum. A psychotherapist friend calls her a late bloomer, which may be the case. She's a kid who reads a four-hundred page book in an hour, yet she forgets to study for an English test. I don't know what you call that. Immaturity?

I call that very, very obvious ADHD. Classic symptoms, in fact.
The hyperfocus part of ADHD means she gets lost in her book.
The inattentive part of ADHD means she forgets due dates and assignments.
It's sad you didn't catch on sooner, because she could have had a much better experience at school, and been much happier. Children with ADHD who are left to struggle on their own often because angry and frustrated, and are more likely to turn to self-medication with drugs or other undesirable activities.

You want to get her evaluated by a psychologist as soon as possible. Don't ask your pediatrician, they are not trained in that specialty.

(BTW, twice exceptional means gifted with disabilities, not necessarily Aspie. It can be dyslexia, ADHD, anxiety, whatever.)

She's been unhappy due to the isolation caused by the pandemic, so I had her evaluated. The psychotherapist said she's gifted and hypersensitive to stress, but no ADHD. She's fairly well organized. Forgetting to study for a test has only happened once or twice. She reads prodigiously.

My apologies, then, I misunderstood.

I think she'll be happier in grad school (or law school or med school), once she focuses on the topics she REALLY wants to study. Tell her she has to power through until then, otherwise she won't reach that goal. What does she like to do?