Weekly Wisdom

Synopsis:
Class Choices for 10th, 11th, 12th graders. College Calendar. No-Excuses Essay. Articles by The Prep School and keeping in your kids lives without overkill. Tufts University.

Introduction:
In our third week of operation, we will start to look at the upcoming school year and what, if anything, you can do for your kids as either 11th or 12th grade is about to begin. These are hard times for both you and your kids, and hopefully everything can be done smoothly and with sanity.

Also, check out this link to our article in the L.A. Times, which appeared this last Saturday. (We scooped The Princeton Review on this one… they had one appear on Sunday… and it was boring.).

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-vo-engelberg31jul31,1,5853757.story?coll=la-news-comment-opinions

Weekly Wisdom for Sophomore, Junior & Senior Parents

This week’s wisdom is about class choice. There is a common adage in college admission circles that college admissions officers want to see the toughest schedule possible, and you are in trouble if you don’t take a schedule with “rigor”. This is, to some extent, true. There is no way that a student with 3 APs will impress as much as a student with 10 APs. That should be a given.

However, there are other factors to consider, not the least of which is the sanity of your child. 11th Grade parents should consider; your kids likely have: athletics, extra-curriculars, PSAT, SAT, and SAT IIs to take this academic year, and all of normal high school issues. Pile on top of that a load of incredibly tough classes, and it might not always benefit the student. After all, while As in 5 AP classes would be fantastic, it would probably be better to get 3 As and 2 Bs in 5 non-APs than it would be to get 1 A, 2 Bs, and 2 Cs in 2 AP classes, which is a very common problem. The concept of “weighting” AP and honors classes should not be used, especially by parents, as a way of saying, “well, my daughter really has a 3.8 weighted.” Colleges do their own “weighting”, and your high school’s “weighted” GPA reporting may not mean much to them.

AP and honors classes, especially at top schools, are designed to be extremely rigorous. They tend not to just be hard themselves, but to “leech” time and energy away from other classes. So, 11th graders (and 10th graders, too) should take the most rigorous schedule they can.. but within reason. DO NOT allow your kids to sign up for honors or AP courses unless you are sure that they can handle the load. One of our favorite students was an A-student in 10th grade, got overloaded with APs in 11th grade (including AP Chemistry), and became a B student with a lot more stress and anxiety than was necessary. Sure, his parents might argue that Bs in AP courses is “like getting an A” in a regular course.. but it is not the same, and the student not only was stressed beyond belief, but felt worse about himself. So, with the idea of “rigor” in your mind, make sure that you consider all of the factors, psychological, chronological, and otherwise. Rigor should not become rigormortis.

For you senior parents, on the other hand, the name of the game is rigor. True, you have more stress even than the juniors, with applications and last tests to worry about in the fall, but colleges will likely decide to admit or not admit without seeing senior year grades. But they will see the senior year schedule. So tell your students to continue whatever has been started. Don’t let them relax now, so near the end! Don’t allow your students to drop any core courses! And finally, make sure they get an early start on those applications.

Upcoming Deadlines

• August 20th – last day to register for the Sept. 25th ACT test
• Sept. 3rd – late registration deadline for the Sept. 25th ACT
• Sept. 7th – last day to register for the October 9th SAT & SAT II
• Sept. 15th – late registration for the October 9th SAT & SAT II
• Sept 25th – ACT Assessment Test
• October 1st – last day to register for Nov 6th SAT & SAT II
• October 9th – SAT & SAT II !

Articles in the News

This week we have a couple of interesting articles. The first is our own, regarding the NEW SAT for you incoming juniors. The article was written in response to an article in the Times a week earlier about the anxiety over the NEW SAT.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-vo-engelberg31jul31,1,5853757.story?coll=la-news-comment-opinions

The other article this week has to do with parent involvement in students’ lives. It is an interesting article to read. If possible, take a step back and note the panic and anxiety inherent even in the writing of the article. There is a line between participation and domination, and we hope to help you stay informed enough not to have to cross it.

http://www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2004/07/25/pushing_to_the_front/

Ask The Experts

asktheexperts@thepreptalk.com

One of the most frequent questions/requests we receive is for a “checklist” or “calendar” for college admissions. This week, we had two people ask us if we could provide a college application calendar. So, here’s our answer. Hope it helps.

College Application Calendar

Application & Essay Tips

As you start to help your kids think about essay topics and brainstorm those durn essays, remember two important things: first, the essay should never be seen as an opportunity to “explain away” or “excuse” some lack in the rest of your application. For example, if your student got a C in Chemistry, and all the rest of her grades were As, do not EVER think about making the essay explain the C. Don’t draw any more attention to weakness than you have to.

Second, do not ever make your essay about your regular academic pursuits. They have your transcript.. there is nothing more obnoxious than a student who says, “I’ve really tried to take advantage of all my school has to offer, I took Chemistry and got an A, and my AP Us history course was great and I got an A-.” This will make the reader want to gag.

Featured College

Tufts University

Many have heard of Tufts but not so many know a lot about it. Located in Boston (College Town, USA), Tufts is (if you like rankings) the third-ranked school in Massachusetts behind a couple of little known-ones called Harvard and MIT. Despite an absolutely stellar international academic reputation and superb academic offerings, especially in international relations and business, Tufts is not often one of the first schools on people’s minds when they think of the “Boston schools”. Boston College, Boston University, Harvard, MIT, Northeaastern, even the Amherst schools often come to people’s minds before Tufts. Why would this be? Well, Tufts is a medium sized-school with around 8,000 total students, about half of which are undergrads. The tone of the school is decidedly academic, as there is little to no athletic presence outside of intramurals, and school spirit is, well, unspirited. Tufts students are loyal to their school, to be sure, but in a more subdued and intellectual way. Greek life on campus is small and not nearly as influential as elsewhere. Social life, also, is subdued, although Tufts students are known for frequenting parties at other Boston schools.

Essentially, Tufts is a fairly serious school for serious students. There is a real sense of commitment to academia, and to extracurricular activities. However, it seems that most Tufts students would tell you that if a raucous good time is what you’re looking for, Tufts is not necessarily the place to go. If an absolutely top-notch education and a degree from a superb school is what you seek, then Tufts may be the place for you.

10th&11th Grade Tips

You will probably all witness friends of your who are parents of seniors having panic attacks over the coming months. If your kids are still a year or two away from this period, and you want to avoid the last minute rush and angst, it’s a wise idea to start planning now. Make sure to talk to your school counselor and get to know him/her before fall of 12th grade. Since these counselors write the recommendations to colleges, getting as much “face time” as possible is important. These counselors are always swamped with paperwork and interviews, so if an extra level of attention is what you’re after, consider hiring one of the many independent college counselors in your area. These counselors are often able to provide a level of personal insight and attention that helps quell nerves and maximize results through strengthening the application.

For now, though, the best advice is: do not let your child drop any of the five core academic “solids”: math, English, science, history, and foreign language. Colleges like to continuity of study, as well as a rigorous schedule.