Timely topic. I'm interested as well. I can't quote any specific source, but I've long understood it is seriously frowned upon (fraudulent?) to put down a deposit at more than one college. And schools can/do find out if you've double-deposited but I don't know the mechanics of that. Some colleges DS has been accepted to state they will give you a refund though if you change your mind by a certain date (May 1). So theoretically you can pay a deposit at your first choice, but then cancel and ask for it back (if they do refunds) and pay a deposit at a second college if you do it all before the deadline? I understand the timing is critical - can't have two "active" deposits at the same time . . . ? Curious to hear BTDT experience from others. ETA: Double-depositing feels wrong to me, but here are some links for consideration: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/is-double-depositing-wron_b_5009949 https://thescholarshipsystem.com/blog-for-students-families/college-decision-time-double-deposits-ethical/ https://professionals.collegeboard.org/guidance/applications/ethics https://jlvcollegecounseling.com/2016/04/18/are-you-considering-double-depositing/

Yes, this one is OOS for us too, but next-door to our state, so we visited, DS has been accepted. Very nice school but might be too small for OP. Its location in Kirksville, MO, is a VERY rural setting, nothing around it for quite some distance (and I say that as someone who grew up in the middle of nowhere). The entire school gives me the feeling of a liberal arts-focused honors department that you might normally find within an honors college at a much larger university. They refer to themselves informally as the "Harvard of the Midwest", FWIW.

Being K-State grads, have you considered Pittsburg State? It's smaller than K-State but still a good size. Out of state tuition is quite a bit less than K-State's. Probably about 3 hours drive time from your family in KS though. When we visited I was pleasantly surprised and impressed by the campus and the town (small-town and rural/agricultural surroundings). Not sure of your DD's intended major, but we were there to check out the nursing program, which is quite well-regarded in the region, better than some neighboring larger schools' nursing programs. They have some other majors/departments that also have great reputations.

We used the online program offered by AAA. It was easy to use and a good experience. DS got his license at age 16 1/2. I didn't have to push him like some kids I hear about - he wanted to do it. The AAA program is called "Take the Wheel" and is one of several approved for use in our state. We could tell the videos were older but definitely still relevant and appropriate (and lead to some great sidebar conversations), and nothing scary or gruesome. I think it cost $99 when we used it.

My DS ended up applying to more schools than were originally on his target list. It evolved over time, due to a recent decision on his part to change his intended major, and also due to a decision on the part of all of us to take our lives in a different direction after DH retires (moving to a different state). DS has heard back from all the schools he applied to except one. Admitted to: Univ of Oklahoma, Univ of Tulsa, Pittsburg State, Truman State, Colorado State, Univ of Northern Colorado, and Regis Univ. Awaiting a decision from Univ of Colorado-Boulder. DS was named a NMSF so we are anxious to hear about NMF in February and then will start making decisions. Chasing merit money and a particular major/area of study but also doesn't want to go TOO far away. He isn't set on any particular school at this point. He has a favorite but is being very practical about it all. We started HSing when he was in 4th grade. Can't believe this part of our journey is nearly over. ETA: DS has been admitted to all 8 of the schools to which he applied and all 8 offered him merit scholarships. We've also been notified that he has advanced to NMF status. Woot! Now he has decisions to make . . .

Roy Speed's Essay Writing and Appreciation course (HSCollegebound.com) and Derek Owens' AP Calculus AB continue to be big hits for us. This is DS's second year with Mr. Speed and DS has now taken all of Mr. Owens' math classes. Both are "best finds" out of our homeschool journey - which is saying a lot because we outsourced quite a bit, for several reasons. Our only miss so far this year was a fall semester DE government class at the local 4-year univ. The instructor is obviously already looking ahead to retirement and just phoning it in. DS attended every class that was held but had to basically self-teach from the textbook. The class met for only half of its scheduled times. (Supposed to meet Mon and Wed, but instructor cancelled every single Wed class in advance, just told the kids not to come because he wouldn't be there). DH and I can't believe this was how the class was run and DS will be sharing the experience with the department head. Good thing DS knows how to learn independently. (We did check ratemyprofessor before signing up, but this issue was never mentioned. Apparently most students like this type of setup and don't complain?) Wasko Lit and Jetta Seboly's Clover Creek Science (Physics) were also standout hits for us in previous years. DS read many wonderful books with Mr. Wasko that I would not have gotten him to read otherwise, and he was guided through them in an enthusiastic, religiously-neutral and balanced way. And the awesome Mrs. Seboly gave DS a love of physics that was never there before (previously only a bio-sciences guy). Wish we had the opportunity to use them both again.

LOL, I guess everything really is relative. We just moved to CO. Denver feels extremely crowded and dense to me, not spread out at all. The surroundings at Regis, in Denver, felt very different (urban) to us compared to Univ of CO (Boulder), CSU (Ft. Collins), and Univ of Northern CO (Greeley). The "big city" nearest to us in our former state has a population density of around 930 people per square mile; in Denver the population density is 4,520 people per square mile! I was mentally prepared by the stats, but driving in Denver is definitely a huge adjustment for me!

An impacted major is one where admission to that specific major/department is competitive. More applicants than openings. So admission to the overall university is the first hurdle, then admission to certain majors is the next hurdle. The state we moved from didn't have this, that I'm aware of, but apparently some states/schools do. At CSU, this applies to biological sciences, for kids who want to go into medical or health careers. I've heard of certain engineering disciplines and computer science/information technology majors being this way at some schools too. Sorry I can't be of more help re: Regis.

I don't have any direct experience with Regis Univ, but we just moved to Colorado. DS (current 12th grader) did a campus visit at Regis, applied, and was accepted for 2020-21. He's also been admitted to CO State to an "impacted" major and he's waiting to hear from CU-Boulder. Has your DD ever been to Denver? Regis is pretty urban, as you might expect. Sorry I don't have much to offer, but hoping you get some helpful responses from others with experience at Regis. So is your DD interested specifically in smaller schools? Have you looked at Univ of Northern Colorado at Greeley? I hear they have strong programs for kids interested in health careers . . . maybe their prep for vet school would be strong too? IDK.

Look up “tonsil stones” and see if that seems likely.

Just my opinion, but I'd say 9th grade and up. I'm not sure if Mr. Speed has firm requirements, but you could ask him. There's a lot of discussion and critical thinking going on that my son wouldn't have been able to fully appreciate and participate in younger than 9th grade. And he's a strong student - it's just a maturity thing. DS took Logical Communication in 11th grade and I was worried at first that he'd be too old, but it worked out great. Mr. Speed has been able to meet DS where he is and give him new challenges. DS had enough outside writing instruction by 11th grade that he had the basics down (a year of Writing With Skill, a short course with Bravewriter (not a good fit), Lost Tools of Writing, and Write At Home), but he needed a focused, dedicated instructor like Mr. Speed who could take him to the next level.

You've probably already done this, but just in case (or for others reading) you might want to double-check that the schools on her list will accept her science AP/DE credits (if she has any) if she does go in as a BSN major. At two of my son's potential schools, the nursing programs will not accept transfer credits in any of the natural sciences - biology, chemistry, anatomy, etc. They want students to take those natural science classes at their campus with their instructors, so the students learn those subjects with the depth with which they want them taught.

Last year DS did take a light literature course (NOT writing intensive, but good live discussions - with Wasko Lit) alongside Logical Communications. Looking back, I think that was overkill, but he enjoyed the Wasko class anyway. This year, with him in Essay Writing and Appreciation, we are not adding a separate lit component. The works they read as part of the class are excellent. If you want to ask Roy Speed about the reading list, I bet he'd be happy to talk to you about it. He posts here sometimes, so maybe you could tag him and ask. (I would be happy to tell you about the reading list, but I'm not at home and don't have it accessible right now.)

DS says it is roughly 45 minutes to an hour a day (5 days per week) outside of class, sometimes less, sometimes more on weeks when a first draft of an essay is due. A typical workload, not too demanding. He says they write an essay from scratch about once per month and then spend the other weeks incorporating feedback and revising, which is time well spent. The live classes meet twice per week - for 90 minutes one day per week and 60 minutes on another day per week. Other work, besides the writing and revising, includes reading example essays written by famous/professional writers and doing exercises that analyze those essays (which is heavy enough IMO to "count" for literature), reading and critiquing other students' essays, and keeping a notebook of thoughts and observations. The worktext used in each course was created by Mr. Speed. DS says there is no busywork, every exercise is worthwhile. DS says he has unlearned a lot of bad writing habits that he learned in other courses. He says those previous courses (not Mr. Speed's) taught him how to use writing "training wheels", basic structure, grammar, etc., that are necessary for beginning writers to learn, but that are important to remove eventually for writing in the real world. Mr. Speed has moved him well past the "training wheels". FWIW, DS took a DE history course this past summer at our state flagship univ. that was taught by an ambitious young instructor with high expectations (i.e., NOT an easy summer course with reduced workload). That class required a full-blown analytical essay every week. DS got excellent essay feedback from the instructor and he even used one of DS's essays as an example to the other students. I have no doubt that DS was able to write those essays with that level of skill and efficiency thanks to his experience with Mr. Speed.

My son took Roy Speed's Logical Communication course last year (11th grade) and is continuing with his Essay Writing and Appreciation course this year (12th grade). I wholeheartedly recommend both of his writing courses. Logical Communication is a solid course that gives the foundation, so that's where you want to start, and then follow it up with Essay Writing and Appreciation. I'm going to share here what I've posted in other threads about our experience . . . Logical Communication with Roy Speed has been a big hit. It focuses on clear thinking, organizing ideas and arguments, backing up your ideas with evidence, logical flow, and rhetorical devices, all in conjunction with analyzing high-quality essays. The instructor has appropriately high standards and is enthusiastic, the live classroom is well-managed and has interactive discussions, the workload is just right (emphasis on quality, not quantity), and the feedback is individualized (appropriate for a range of abilities), prompt and constructive. DS has taken several composition courses before this, and this one is the best he's had by far. It has been the best money we've spent out of 9 years of homeschooling and many online classes. Mr. Speed is known here on the forum for his Shakespeare courses. He has also taught at a co-op for years and teaches writing to professionals, so he's experienced with writers at a variety of levels. DS will be taking his Essay Writing and Appreciation course next year. DS decided to do this instead of taking English Comp through dual enrollment or AP because he thoroughly enjoys the live class sessions and we know he will benefit significantly more from Mr. Speed's class. Mr. Speed has spoken with us personally by phone about our son's strengths and areas he can improve on next, and I was impressed by his reaching out to us to do that. Let me know if you have any questions and I'll do my best to answer.

Have you checked with FundaFunda to see if they will offer it in spring? We have found all the instructors we've had there to be very accommodating. It seems perfect for your needs otherwise.

I found this person's articles/blog posts really helpful, especially this one that covers many Common App topics and how-to's: https://fearlesshomeschoolers.com/blog/homeschool-transcript She says the following about the homeschool association question:

Thanks. I deleted the content of my posts because I decided that publishing certain hiring and compensation practices here might be frowned on by some parties. 😊 I just wanted to help by offering a perspective from the other side of the hiring table, and I think of this board as a tight-knit group, but I forget sometimes that this is an open public forum.

NM

Well, darn, I was hoping there was something like that for all states, and I was just having a hard time finding it. Thanks for posting yours though! I'm sure there are many here who will use it!

This list appears to be limited to California. Or maybe there's a filter limiting it to CA that I can't figure out how to remove. Did you find this somewhere on the College Board's site? Maybe the original web source has links/lists for testing centers other states?

I think AEC was saying that the difference in starting salary between a grad from a top-tier school vs a middle-tier school can be 50k/year, not that one would be starting out making 50k/year. (She said the "delta" between them.) (Removed other commentary that was too revealing.)

What does the bolded mean? Never heard of that. Edit: Answered my own question, but will post here for others who are also unfamiliar. Looks like a commonly referenced term in Florida and maybe a few other places. FTIC = first time in college = first-time, first year (freshman) student.

I don't know how common it is, but at schools in my region, these same perks plus better dorms are also available to students in the honors college and at no extra cost. No previous college credits necessary.

Just a heads up: My son is a rising 12th grader and plans on a science-heavy major that requires a separate admission to the major at the end of soph year in college. I was surprised to learn that at the univ my son is likely to attend next year, for the major he wants, he'll have to take 4 out of 5, and preferably ALL (to be a favored applicant) of his pre-major STEM courses on-campus at that specific univ in order to be admitted to his desired major. So AP/CLEP/DE credit would do him no good (other than pre-exposure to the topic) for those courses. Apparently this is not uncommon for this major in our region of the country. I'm so glad we researched this in advance so we didn't waste a lot of time and money on AP/DE. So it helps immensely to research ahead of time whether having certain AP/DE credits will even help shave off time; in my DS's case, it wouldn't. Another thing to consider: DE credits often (usually? depends on the school) don't get factored in to the college GPA at the receiving school. DS is "saving" some easier credits (instead of doing them via AP/DE) to complete at the univ during his freshman year, to help balance out the harder courses, in order to buffer a hit to his GPA from potentially lower than desired grades in the more difficult courses. A high college GPA is also required for admission to his (competitive) intended major. This exclusion from the receiving college's GPA can also apply to regular college transfer credits, not just DE. I'm not anti-DE or anti-AP; DS will start college with a few under his belt. But we've looked around and found alternatives which we believe have better instruction, more depth, more challenge, and are more appealing to DS. (Not DE fluff nor AP teach-to-the test.) I'm also not convinced that accumulating a bunch of credits prior to starting college is all that beneficial if you look at the end result. I do favor more breathing room for exploring classes of interest that may be outside the reqs for a particular major, but I'm not so sure I want to significantly decrease the overall time in college. Because I'm not so sure I would want DS to be graduating from college and entering the professional working world at age 20, KWIM? Just some things to think about.