Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thought it would be interesting to get an update on this thread now that the summer is over.

OP here. I missed when you bumped this thread but searched for it now to update. My kid is so stressed out by the apps. As I suspected she would be if she didn’t do anything much over the summer. I was trying to encourage her to start essays in August to avoid this stress but, while she agreed in principle, she didn’t do much.

PP above. I feel your pain. And I’m puzzled. It takes some time. But my kid can crank out a decent 650 word essay with a round of peer review edits and a response to teacher comments in 2-3 weeks of English homework. He’s doing a decent job with supplemental essays. I’m trying to figure out why he is so stuck on the common app essay when he can write about literally anything.




Then again, his guidance office sent out a tips for applications by seniors who just graduated at the end of last year. And 90% said as the very first sentence— do not put off the CA essay. I knew my kid should do it early. He agreed it should be done early and seems to be making an honest effort. And yet... here we are.
Have a virtual glass of wine with me?

Yes! Thanks for the commiseration. I think the CA essay just kind of paralyzes some of them because they feel the stakes are so high.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rising senior at one of the big 3s. Took SAT for the first time in 08/18 and scored 1020. Spent 8k on test prep and took in 03/19 and scored 1460. Spent another 4K on test prep and took the SAT on 06/2019 and scored 1570 and done with SAT.

This can’t be real.

How so? The SAT can be rigged with lot of SAT prep

It happens, but I bet if the kid wasn't at the big 3, college board would be investigating.

I would hope in a Post Felicity Huffman world, especially at a Big 3. But money talks (and PP was trolling).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thought it would be interesting to get an update on this thread now that the summer is over.

OP here. I missed when you bumped this thread but searched for it now to update. My kid is so stressed out by the apps. As I suspected she would be if she didn’t do anything much over the summer. I was trying to encourage her to start essays in August to avoid this stress but, while she agreed in principle, she didn’t do much.

PP above. I feel your pain. And I’m puzzled. It takes some time. But my kid can crank out a decent 650 word essay with a round of peer review edits and a response to teacher comments in 2-3 weeks of English homework. He’s doing a decent job with supplemental essays. I’m trying to figure out why he is so stuck on the common app essay when he can write about literally anything.


Then again, his guidance office sent out a tips for applications by seniors who just graduated at the end of last year. And 90% said as the very first sentence— do not put off the CA essay. I knew my kid should do it early. He agreed it should be done early and seems to be making an honest effort. And yet... here we are.
Have a virtual glass of wine with me?

Anonymous wrote:I thought they applied junior year and heard back senior year???

No. Applications are due between 8/1 (rolling admission) and 1/15 senior year for most schools.

Anonymous wrote:Thought it would be interesting to get an update on this thread now that the summer is over.

I have the ADHD kid with all the structure and just saw this pop up. Applied to Pitt 9/1, admitted 9/11. HUGE relief. It was a super safety. But he likes the school, it’s very good at his little niche, and he loves the Pittsburgh vibe. He could live with it. We could live with it and pay full freight, no debt. (Merit aid info starts coming out in a few weeks). I strongly suggest this for just about everyone. It’s a decent school with an attractive campus and good word of mouth among the kids. Plus, there is a huge psychological benefit to having it be the worst case possibility (vs. what if I get in nowhere?)

Common App was completed for Pitt. Nothing outstanding on his end in terms of transcripts, recs, guidance counselor info

Now focusing on his two EA schools, due 11/1 and 11/15. He is supposed to have a draft of the supplemental essay for one to me this afternoon. The other has no supplemental essay.

He also needs to get the Pitt Honors College supplemental essays in by 11/1. Has not even looked at those.

He’d be in decent shape if it weren’t for the CA essay (which Pitt does not require). What he wants to do isn’t working. We told him nicely. His English teacher told him more bluntly. It’s on draft 21 or so and not getting better. I think he should just scrap it. He did a nice narrative piece for English last spring that would work with some edits. It’s not spectacular, but it’s solid. And he is spinning our wheels. But dig in that he can make his topic work. Kim trying to keep a low profile and let him hash it out with the English teacher.

Whoever invented the CA essay should be shot.

College visit and overnight over Columbus Day.

About 5 RD apps. WM and 2 others require supplements. Two don’t and he can just press sent.

He has a lot of writing to do before 11/1 and not a lot of free time. It could be worse. But it’s not going to be a fun month.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rising senior at one of the big 3s. Took SAT for the first time in 08/18 and scored 1020. Spent 8k on test prep and took in 03/19 and scored 1460. Spent another 4K on test prep and took the SAT on 06/2019 and scored 1570 and done with SAT.

This can’t be real.

How so? The SAT can be rigged with lot of SAT prep

Not that rigged. You can improve a score. Not 550 points though. That’s an automatic college board investigation.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rising senior at one of the big 3s. Took SAT for the first time in 08/18 and scored 1020. Spent 8k on test prep and took in 03/19 and scored 1460. Spent another 4K on test prep and took the SAT on 06/2019 and scored 1570 and done with SAT.

I guess for 4K you can get someone who looks enough like your kid’s id? I wasn’t sure what the going rate was.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rising senior at one of the big 3s. Took SAT for the first time in 08/18 and scored 1020. Spent 8k on test prep and took in 03/19 and scored 1460. Spent another 4K on test prep and took the SAT on 06/2019 and scored 1570 and done with SAT.

This can’t be real.

How so? The SAT can be rigged with lot of SAT prep

It happens, but I bet if the kid wasn't at the big 3, college board would be investigating.

Anonymous wrote:Thought it would be interesting to get an update on this thread now that the summer is over.

OP here. I missed when you bumped this thread but searched for it now to update. My kid is so stressed out by the apps. As I suspected she would be if she didn’t do anything much over the summer. I was trying to encourage her to start essays in August to avoid this stress but, while she agreed in principle, she didn’t do much.

I thought they applied junior year and heard back senior year???

Thought it would be interesting to get an update on this thread now that the summer is over.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rising senior at one of the big 3s. Took SAT for the first time in 08/18 and scored 1020. Spent 8k on test prep and took in 03/19 and scored 1460. Spent another 4K on test prep and took the SAT on 06/2019 and scored 1570 and done with SAT.

This can’t be real.

How so? The SAT can be rigged with lot of SAT prep

Nope. The SAT can’t be “rigged”. Your score can be improved upon. You can get a decent score bump with SAT prep. But in less than a year, 550 points isn’t real. As in, the College Board flags score increases of 500 points or more as invalid/ fraudulent unreal. 1020 is the 55%. I don’t believe a Big 3 kid scored a 1020. If for no other reason than because they should have a decent math background and some ability to do grammar. If a kid did score a 1020 from a Big 3, one of these schools is about to drop in rankings. Bigly. 1570 is 99.9%. You can prep, but there is also an aptitude element. 55% to 99.9% is not real. PP oversold. Should have stuck with 1020 to 1400 or 1400 to 1570.

I can’t believe someone would spend that many thousands for SAT prep. Clearly the kid can’t perform on his own at the level the tests suggest. This system is so rigged. I wish students had to submit all tests taken so the kids who score well with one attempt would be able to stand out.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rising senior at one of the big 3s. Took SAT for the first time in 08/18 and scored 1020. Spent 8k on test prep and took in 03/19 and scored 1460. Spent another 4K on test prep and took the SAT on 06/2019 and scored 1570 and done with SAT.

This can’t be real.

How so? The SAT can be rigged with lot of SAT prep

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do we find out what the common app essay question is?

It doesn't matter. All the essay questions are just prompts. You can write about anything. Like waiting for the domino's pizza person to delivery (was that Harvard Yale or Princeton that person got into) or writing "Black Lives Matter" 150 times (that was Stanford). The readers don't care that you even respond to the prompt. They just want to be entertained.

+1 And, one of the prompts is essentially, "anything you want"