Anonymous
04/09/2018 19:18
Subject: schools for student with no extra curriculars
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My DS is very similar. He graduated from high school two years ago, had no ECs, 29 ACT and was in the top five in his class in a very small, well regarded private. What we eventually decided on was finding him a smaller LAC that was close enough to home that he could go home when he needed to.
He is now a very happy sophomore with a 3.8 GPA at a school that fits his needs and is about 45 minutes away from us. It was not as selective as some of the schools his peers decided on - but FWIW he did get into a HYPS but knew that he would not be successful there because he wouldn't have the support he needed. From what I remember, he wrote his common app essay about deciding to switch from public to private in seventh grade and feeling like he was a part of something bigger than himself for the six years he was there.
His social anxiety was so bad with the roommate situation he initially had that we were able to get a medical exemption for housing after his first semester and he now lives in an off campus apartment and has his car if he needs to come home. I would say he probably comes home every other weekend so he has a quiet familiar place to get work done.
He has found a great group of friends in his major who are all quiet, dedicated and driven to succeed - and they have all bonded further by doing charity work through their honor society and going out to dinner at different restaurants. Your DD will find her people if she's in the right environment and has support from you!
Admission to HYPS with a 29 ACT and no EC's is surprising to me. What do you attribute that acceptance to?
I am this PP. He had a 4.4 GPA and a pretty legitimate hook - as well as the program he was admitted into was not seen as a "popular" one at Princeton.
Anonymous
04/09/2018 16:58
Subject: Re:schools for student with no extra curriculars
Anonymous wrote:UMCP is much too big a school for a student with social anxiety.
OP didn’t say social anxiety. There are different types of anxiety. PTSD, generalized anxiety, OoCD are also severe forms of anxiety.
Anonymous
04/09/2018 16:37
Subject: Re:schools for student with no extra curriculars
UMCP is much too big a school for a student with social anxiety.
Anonymous
04/09/2018 16:16
Subject: schools for student with no extra curriculars
Think off the top of my head OP, maybe your DD should gap year then apply? If she can intern, volunteer or work FT for a year before college while working at home, it might solve two problems. It could give her something very substantive to put on her application. Especially if she can find something that relates to what she wants to do with er life. It could also give her an extra year and extra experience managing in the adult world while she is still living at home. It’s not a race. Maybe it takes her extra time.
Also, how about summers? I have a severe anxiety disorder, so I get the one step at a time idea, incremental progress. It might be easiest to start while she is not also dealing with school. Maybe she could find something without a lot of interpersonal contact, like shelving books at the local library. Or something at the school, where she is already comfortable? I’ve also seen this recommended for kids who like to write, but have social anxiety, ASD or are strong introverts. http://www.writopialab.org/
Good luck! She’ll get there.
Also, how about summers? I have a severe anxiety disorder, so I get the one step at a time idea, incremental progress. It might be easiest to start while she is not also dealing with school. Maybe she could find something without a lot of interpersonal contact, like shelving books at the local library. Or something at the school, where she is already comfortable? I’ve also seen this recommended for kids who like to write, but have social anxiety, ASD or are strong introverts. http://www.writopialab.org/
Good luck! She’ll get there.
Anonymous
04/09/2018 16:05
Subject: schools for student with no extra curriculars
How do you already have SAT scores for a sophomore OP?
Anonymous
04/09/2018 15:44
Subject: Re:schools for student with no extra curriculars
^ (meant to add) but there were several good schools I came across that didn't seem to place a big emphasis on the ECs
Anonymous
04/09/2018 15:41
Subject: Re:schools for student with no extra curriculars
OP, if you Google "common data set [school name]" and scroll down to section C, there is a grid with check boxes that show the importance of a variety of categories that the school considers for freshman applicants. EC's is one of the categories listed. Generally, the higher ranking schools have a check box in the "very important " category, but there are plenty of good schools that have the box checked for "considered," which is the 2nd lowest importance rank, with "not considered" being the lowest. Elon is the only one that comes to mind off the top of my head that ranks ECs as "considered."
Anonymous
04/09/2018 12:11
Subject: schools for student with no extra curriculars
Just want to chime in, that for an introvert dorm life can be horrible. There is a school with all single rooms, cannot remember the name though. And a larger school may foster her ability to just disappear from social contact without remark...if she is overwhelmed
Anonymous
04/09/2018 10:50
Subject: schools for student with no extra curriculars
I agree that a job would look good for your DD. It shows that she can work with others, be responsible, etc. And maybe your DD would see it as necessary, rather than fluff, and so more motivated to do it despite her anxiety. I have heard of kids as young as 15 getting hired in various places like Georgetown Cupcakes, Basking Robbins, etc. Good luck.