Applications are in! (Well, almost)

[Bostondevil]

Andrew finished his second to last supplemental application with about 8 minutes to spare last night. I'm happy to report that Duke was the first one he finished and he got that one done before Christmas. That week between Christmas and the midnight deadline of last night was rough. He got about one supplemental app done per day for a total of 9, plus put the finishing touches on the Common App.

Final tally 10 schools: Duke, Davidson, Stanford, Harvard, Rice, Vanderbilt, WashU (in St. Louis), Pomona, Harvey Mudd, and Emory - Emory's deadline is January 15th so he still has to finish that one but at this point, I don't care.

All the others were due yesterday except for Stanford and Rice which were due Sunday. Stanford he got done on Saturday but Rice was submitted with, I kid you not, 30 seconds to spare. Andrew thought he might have another hour since Rice is in Central Time but I told him not to risk it.

[Very Duke Blue]

Good luck Andrew!! I'm sending vibes. I hope they help.

[CathyCA]

I can't wait until all those acceptances start rolling in!

[lawgrad91]

Major vibes for Andrew! Glad he got in the important application first.

[Ima Facultiwyfe]

SOOOOPER job Andrew! Early admissions have already come in for next year and Native is busy rounding all of them up online and even taking the locals to games in Cameron! Tell Andrew to give him a PM if he needs a student contact for any reason. He loves Duke so much and wants everybody to love it like he does and wants to help!

Those are ALL really fabulous choices, Andrew. Not a "safety school" in the bunch! Good for you! We're vibing for your wishes to come true!
Love, Ima

[Lavabe]

Let the Bluegrass vibing begin!!

[Turk]

Same here. The eldest of the young Turks (the Not-So-Young Turk?) got hers all done last week. She's applied to 6 - Duke, Penn, Johns Hopkins, UVa, Penn State, and Pitt. She's already in at Penn State but waiting to hear from Schreyer, which is their honors program. She's also in at Pitt's honors program. Didn't have a clear #1, so no early decision, and she says she still doesn't know which is #1 on her list. (I know which one is #1 in my list!! I also know which one is #2) She has a friend that applied to 18 schools - WTF?

Next up - FAFSA!!

[devildeac]

Same here. The eldest of the young Turks (the Not-So-Young Turk?) got hers all done last week. She's applied to 6 - Duke, Penn, Johns Hopkins, UVa, Penn State, and Pitt. She's already in at Penn State but waiting to hear from Schreyer, which is their honors program. She's also in at Pitt's honors program. Didn't have a clear #1, so no early decision, and she says she still doesn't know which is #1 on her list. (I know which one is #1 in my list!! I also know which one is #2) She has a friend that applied to 18 schools - WTF?

Next up - FAFSA!!

I have a colleague who had both her children apply to 20+ undergrad programs when they were "of age." Not surprising considering her OC personality but still unbelievable.

[Lavabe]

Same here. The eldest of the young Turks (the Not-So-Young Turk?) got hers all done last week. She's applied to 6 - Duke, Penn, Johns Hopkins, UVa, Penn State, and Pitt. She's already in at Penn State but waiting to hear from Schreyer, which is their honors program. She's also in at Pitt's honors program. Didn't have a clear #1, so no early decision, and she says she still doesn't know which is #1 on her list. (I know which one is #1 in my list!! I also know which one is #2) She has a friend that applied to 18 schools - WTF?

Next up - FAFSA!!

Way back when, I had a tough decision to make, but I wound up choosing Duke over Pitt's Honors Program.
Let the Bluegrass vibing for the Turks begin!!

[Bostondevil]

From Andrew's high school, 10 schools is kinda the norm. It's a lot more than I applied to but not an amount that would cause anybody around here to raise an eyebrow. I've also heard all the horror stories about so-and-so's kid who appied to 10, 15, even 20 schools and didn't get in ANYWHERE!! Apparently all these kids who didn't get in ANYWHERE had great grades and top scores. I don't believe the stories.

[devildeac]

From Andrew's high school, 10 schools is kinda the norm. It's a lot more than I applied to but not an amount that would cause anybody around here to raise an eyebrow. I've also heard all the horror stories about so-and-so's kid who appied to 10, 15, even 20 schools and didn't get in ANYWHERE!! Apparently all these kids who didn't get in ANYWHERE had great grades and top scores. I don't believe the stories.

Daughter #1-3 apps
Son-5
CLD-4

I don't think we could have tolerated reading any more essays or check writing. We have a nice advantage here in NC with legacy kids AND Duke giving preference to in-state applicants.

[Turk]

I suppose a good bit of it has to do with the online common app. The only variable is the supplemental essays that are school-specific. My daughter had a couple that she was able to re-tailor to address the requested topics, so it's much easier to focus on the writing and not worry about the mechanics of filling out forms and stuffing envelopes. Still, I have a hard time understanding what traits about schools number 15 and above that would resonate with a kid enough to bother applying, even if online...

And yeah, a kid that goes 0 for 20 is either apocryphal or got really really REALLY bad advice from the guidance counselor...

[captmojo]

Best of luck to all applicants!

[lawgrad91]

Vibes for the not-so-young Turk!

[TillyGalore]

I have 90% of my application done. Need to write my personal statement and keep on one of my references to submit a reference.

[Bostondevil]

I have 90% of my application done. Need to write my personal statement and keep on one of my references to submit a reference.

Good luck!

[Bostondevil]

Truthfully, I think one of the reasons for the 10 schools around here is that everybody is applying to the same schools - typical list: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Cornell, Brown, UPenn, Williams, Amherst, Middlebury, and a safety. New England kids don't really think much beyond the Ivies. New England parents too. Maybe I mean Boston area. It seems that everybody is hoping to get into at least one off that list. (Yes, a few will substitute Dartmouth or Columbia for Cornell, or Bowdoin for Middlebury, but you get the picture.)

Did Andrew really need to finish his Harvey Mudd application? Probably not. Andrew's list though is a definite Top 2. A middle 7. And a bottom 1. If he doesn't get into one of his top 2, he's completely undecided as to which of the middle 7 is his favorite. We'll have to go on another college tour. He's only going to the bottom 1 school if doesn't get in anywhere else (highly unlikely scenerio) and it's not Harvey Mudd. So. I certainly didn't discourage him from 10. The list was actually 12 at one point, but he dropped UPenn when he saw their supplemental application - too much work for his 11th choice and Drury College in Springfield, Missouri. It's not on the Common App otherwise that would have been his safety school. He might still be able to apply to Drury but there are different hoops you have to jump through and he's not motivated to finish it, so.

[ArkieDukie]

Truthfully, I think one of the reasons for the 10 schools around here is that everybody is applying to the same schools - typical list: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Cornell, Brown, UPenn, Williams, Amherst, Middlebury, and a safety. New England kids don't really think much beyond the Ivies. New England parents too. Maybe I mean Boston area. It seems that everybody is hoping to get into at least one off that list. (Yes, a few will substitute Dartmouth or Columbia for Cornell, or Bowdoin for Middlebury, but you get the picture.)

Did Andrew really need to finish his Harvey Mudd application? Probably not. Andrew's list though is a definite Top 2. A middle 7. And a bottom 1. If he doesn't get into one of his top 2, he's completely undecided as to which of the middle 7 is his favorite. We'll have to go on another college tour. He's only going to the bottom 1 school if doesn't get in anywhere else (highly unlikely scenerio) and it's not Harvey Mudd. So. I certainly didn't discourage him from 10. The list was actually 12 at one point, but he dropped UPenn when he saw their supplemental application - too much work for his 11th choice and Drury College in Springfield, Missouri. It's not on the Common App otherwise that would have been his safety school. He might still be able to apply to Drury but there are different hoops you have to jump through and he's not motivated to finish it, so.

My oldest niece is a junior at Drury, majoring in psychology. How wild is that?!

Vibes to Andrew for his college applications!

[Bostondevil]

Way cool, AD. My nephew is a freshman. My father-in-law is an alumni (and on the Board of Trustees, I think, he may have just retired from that post).