Hopefully the friend is aware that things may be moved when her roommate arrives and they talk about who and what goes where.

Thank you for sharing his system and I like the idea of different fonts and use of color. Putting the classes in the columns gives more room to put pre-reqs and other comments underneath. This sounds good! It's second nature for me to do it too after years of DE. Dd and I both worked up plans when she was in CC too. It's fun and it helps to see the overall plan so you can see where there's room for change or extras. Dd has been doing her own scheduling of classes for years, but that doesn't stop me from doing it too. Maybe your husband can ask your daughter to put her own plan together and then they can compare.

Yes, that's exactly what I did. They don't.

Degree Works sounds like a great program, but not yet available at dd's school to the best of my knowledge. I have no idea if she has something available online or not, but it sounds like this is very new technology. It's not so much about knowing what's done and what's left, it's being able to schedule it into the semesters and then when changes are made, as they always are, knowing what requirements would need to be met elsewhere. Hard to explain as it's easy enough to look at major requirements, but there are other requirements as well. Very cool technology though which will hopefully help avoid last minute problems for students hoping to graduate in four years. Dd has great advising at school and so far they do it the old fashioned way. She has so many incredible options for how to complete the requirements and follow her interests, and only three years left to do it.

Planning is the part of homeschooling I enjoyed the most (aside from spending time with my dd), so I like to do it. Doing this is fun for me and has little to do with her. She did her own four year plan as some scheduling was difficult last year. She'll also need to do the four year plan this year to go over with her advisor. None of what I do was done for dd, it's just fun for me. lol Dd has been on the same path for the past four years, but I know that can change at any time. Still would love ideas regarding the excel, or any spreadsheet for that matter, charting of the four years.

Wonderful news! Well done!

I thoroughly agree that her plans now should be a non-issue. Support her and encourage her to meet with her advisor to see if all is possible and let her begin college looking forward to her studies enthusiastically. She'll be able to form her plan much better with having completed courses and plans are often changing. I have worked out on paper how dd can fit things into four years for what she wants to do, and she has done the same on her computer, but the idea of putting it on Excel sounds great. May I ask those who have done this how they or you organized the spread sheet? Do you put types of classes needed at the top of the columns and then fill in the specific courses for each semester under that? How do you indicate what pre-reqs are needed, especially if they're in a different subject area? I don't need a visual of the actual plans you have, but just an explanation would be great. I suppose it could also be organized with each of the semesters in a separate column. What did you, or your student, find that worked best. For all I know, dd may already have done this, but I'd like to set one up for myself.

My apologies Gwen and condolences to you and your family. I assumed as the funeral was in the future that she was in her final days still now. I think it's perfectly fine for college students to miss family occasions. I don't think you'll be needing so much bean dip when the reason the funeral was delayed was due to someone's Caribbean vacation!

Maybe your husband and she could visit now before classes. Might mean more to her grandmother to see her now even though they haven't been close.

It's not just the students who are highly focused on getting in, but the athletes, legacies and those with really strong admissions criteria who are admitted ED. You really have to check the stats for each school as for some it's a distinct advantage to apply ED and not so much for others. It's also important to know that while some ED non-admits are deferred to RD, others maybe simply denied and out of the running. Check each school's policy.

I would also ask what CS and math courses they should take prior to transfer and how long does it take the transfers, who have those courses, to graduate. CS is very popular, especially for the introductory courses. The upper classes tend to get smaller as many of those who start with an interest don't have the ability to continue. I'd also ask all those questions of the head of admissions. The CS department people may not even be aware of how many apply as CS transfers and are denied admissions.

Yes, they do get to take the standard deduction (or can itemize if that is to their advantage).

I had posted this in another thread, and thought it would be helpful here. Truth be told I'm hoping that having it all in one thread I'll be able to find this info when it comes to tax time. Pegasus, good info about the spring semester of dual enrollment expenses! This link is about how to apply grants and scholarships regarding tuition and fees vs living expenses, including room and board. http://www.irs.gov/p...TC 4 pager.pdf� We are permitted to count actual living expenses, not just the room and board charge. Edit: The link isn't working. I found this but it's not what I originally had. This explains that a Pell Grant can be applied to living expenses instead of tuition. http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/Pell%20AOTC%204%20pager.pdf I think that what I originally linked was the info contained in the IRS info on the AOTC under the heading Coordination with Pell Grants and other scholarships. 2nd edit:: Pegasus already covered this issue in point number 3 in her original post and even has a working link. I really should have coffee before posting!

Sarah I can only imagine what would have happened if someone had asked my help with college searching back when my daughter was in the elementary years. I would have been at a total loss for where to even begin. It has taken years of looking up info to find out how much I still have no clue about. I think it's great that you've been willing to do this for them as they obviously need help. I was quite a while into the process of searching for my dd when I finally figured out what everyone meant by "directional" universities. The state flagship, the top-rated and hardest to get into one, is usually State Name U or U of State Name. The directional universities are usually named Southern StateName University or University of East StateName. These directional universities are often much easier to get into. If you check, you may find that the school she's wanting to attend is one of these directional universities. It isn't ranked by US News, but it may be a great school for her goal. They have on their website high school requirements. They say that homeschoolers must submit a transcript, but they don't mention course descriptions. You can look further online or give them a call to find out what's required. I think she can work towards finishing up high school with the goal of getting direct admission into her dream school, as long as the finances are workable for her family. I know you don't want to say too much here, but there's such a wealth of information within The Hive that if you mention where she wants to go, you might be able to get some first hand admissions info from someone in that state. I would also suggest that when she returns that she email admissions and ask some questions of her own about the program and the job placement stats. She may want to contact some instructors involved with the certification program to get more specific information. She may also want to contact some of the places which are involved in hiring for those jobs and ask their opinion of the certification program and the school in general. Ask them if they like to hire those students of if they have other suggestions. You want to make sure that the info you have is accurate and not hype. Despite the better academics at Temple, I think this one would likely be a much better fit for her interests. College searching and applying as a homeschooler usually isn't easy. Ask lots of questions as I'm sure there are others who have had students with similar interests and I'm sure they'd be happy to help.

The key would be to get him moved to the top of the list so he won't have to couch-surf for too long, if at all. Four weeks is a long enough time for someone to drop out of housing. But I agree that it would be risky if he stays low on the waitlist.

No he can't build another dorm within the next few weeks, but as I mentioned above, he can see that Jenny's son's name is moved to the top of the list for housing. Reality is that finding housing off-campus is a more difficult situation for students under 18. Jenny did you call the hostel by any chance. Curious if they would take him as that might get him by temporarily if he was moved to the top of the list. Also curious if he's asked any of his friends if they would let him use their floor for a week or two. Maybe he could move between them so he's not staying too long in any one room.

Janet you may be right and admissions doesn't care. However the president of the university should care when 28% of freshmen do not return for their sophomore year. I would think they'd like to see that number reduced. Good point also about how it will affect his chances for on-campus housing for the spring semester should he not return for the fall semester. Jenny you may want to consider posting on the UT forum on CC and see if anyone from the university monitors there. It's not very active, but you never know. In one of the threads it was mentioned that there is a trolley? from the university to Ybor City. No idea of the time, distance, or hours of operation, but it might open up some housing options.

Yes there are usually more than two options. As for me, I consider living at home and driving or taking public transport to school commuting. To me, all the other options would not be considered commuting, but either living on-campus or in off-campus housing depend on which options. As far as whether the first article would consider them on-campus probably depends on the proximity to campus and how easy it is to participate in after hours study groups and activities. Many privately owned housing facilities just outside the campus could probably be considered equal to on-campus housing. Generally living on or near campus is going to cost more than commuting from home, but of course there are exceptions, such as staying with a nearby relative and commuting from there. The article linked in my first post is really just addressing some issues which could affect a commuter student. The second article gives pros and cons for each option.

I'd go after one thing from the housing department - getting your son at the top of their dorm room list. Obviously they haven't offered him that yet. They can't make a bed appear on campus until someone opts out, and they can't make an off-campus, affordable, nearby option available, but they can move him to the top of their list so he's guaranteed a bed as soon as one opens up. I would try to focus on that one thing for now. In getting his placement in the waiting list moved, I'd use every avenue available to you. Hopefully some of your son's contacts will be able to help him. When asking them for help, he needs to clearly spell out what he's hoping for as a result - namely getting moved to the top of the list so he knows he'll eventually have a place on campus and wont' need to drop the semester, and contacts if they know anyone able to take him in for a short time until the dorm room opens up. I would think that those who were so impressed by his talents and what he brings to the theater/dance program would be willing to go to bat for him and let admissions know that they don't want to lose him. Admissions is where I would let them know, preferably the head honcho, that he won't be able to attend this fall if he doesn't have on-campus housing. They need to know that you're asking the housing department to move him to the top of the list, but you haven't gotten any confirmation of that and without that, it's pointless to try to arrange for very short term temporary housing as he's underage and can't find/afford/drive to live off-campus. I'm saying you, but this could easily come from him and then a follow-up from you. They need to know that the person paying his bill won't be enrolling him without the eventual on-campus housing. If none of this gets him moved to the top of the on-campus housing waitlist, my next contact would be the president's office. This will get you results I'm sure, but I would try the other avenues first. This is a battle worth fighting IMO. Hope you/he get some good news today!

IMO Saxon is excellent preparation for an engineering student. Personally I wouldn't cut out anything. The whole purpose of the math facts is to become really quick at them and could take less than 2 minutes. The mental math can be done very quickly if you read the questions to him. Again it's about figuring out fast ways to come up with the answer and is great mental training. Saxon lessons take time to complete, but that's good training for someone interested in engineering. As he advances, the lessons will become more involved and skipping questions isn't a good habit to start IMO. Another thing to keep in mind is that the first 20 or 30 lessons are likely review. The lessons will be introducing new material and will be challenging for the final 20 or 30 lessons. Speed in calculations is a benefit for standardized testing as well.

If the income on the FAFSA will be about 40K, then she should qualify for a Pell Grant which could be as much as $5775, and can be determined by her mother running an estimate. https://fafsa.ed.gov/FAFSA/app/f4cForm?execution=e2s1 She'll also be able to borrow $5500. Then she can contribute what she makes during the summer and even during this year, and then she can work on campus. Maybe her father can make some contribution. If she lives with her father, then his income will determine FAFSA's outcome. That may or may not be helpful. If the student won't be returning home for another few weeks, then enrollment at the CC for the fall semester is not likely.

Is it referenced in the contents or index? I think Saxon does that.

Good point about ex-military being able to fill these jobs and her needing to be competitive. As far as her dream school, it's actually from an admissions point of view a good safety school. It's got a much higher percent for acceptance than Temple does and it would put her in the right environment for pursuing interests related to her field. IMO Temple would be a poor fit, but a visit to both would help determine that. Is she 18 and mature enough to move on her own now? I don't know the residency rules for the western state, but maybe she could move there and work in a job related to what she wants to do and maybe take some classes at a CC there. If that could establish residency for her, then she could apply to her dream university as a transfer student and complete her BA and certification at in-state rates. Can they afford, including loans and aid, a cost of attendance of about 20K per year? They should run the university's net price calculator to see what their actual costs might be.

Here's a more balanced, much better article on the pros and cons of either situation. Some great suggestions for commuting students as well. http://www.thesimpledollar.com/should-you-live-at-home-to-save-money-during-college/

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/ravens/bs-sp-ravens-john-urschel-math-20150707-story.html#page=1 Just wanted to share.