tabmtbc
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Posts posted by tabmtbc
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I wish I knew. I have one like that and she wears us all out, though I love her like no other.
Tabitha
I have one of those intense kids who cares 500% about all kinds of things.
She's also very dramatic.
This becomes an issue quite frequently here.
Here's a common type of situation. She met friends at a 4H camp this summer. Then she came home and spent 5 days moping, moaning, crying, and wailing about how she won't see those friends till next summer and SOME OF THEM ARE GRADUATING AND I WON'T SEE THEM NEXT YEAR!
The drama sucked the life right out of me, until I snapped "You know. I am SO TIRED of hearing about your FEEEEEEEELINGS! This isn't the end of the world! Deal with it."
She was terribly offended and told me how awful it was that her own MOTHER didn't care about her feelings. She pouted and sulked for a day and then got over it.
(lest you wonder, she has an active social life, lots of friends, and opportunities to email/call/facebook far away acquaintances)
This isn't the only type of situation that happens. She just feels things so dramatically that it just wears us all out.
How do I explain to her that, the only reason I care anything at all about these things is because they are important to her. However, I can't allow the drama to overtake my life. I can't deal with tears and wailing for days after something sad or difficult happens to her.
She's 16. She can't go through life falling apart every time she meets someone for a few days and then doesn't see them for awhile. Small tragedies take on epic proportions around her and it exhausts me. However, I feel that unless I make an equally dramatic scene, she doesn't snap out of it.
How do I curb this drama
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I think grade weighting depends on school district. My local, highly ranked district doesn't give the same extra weight that the highly ranked district across the river does. It was actually a topic in the last school board elections.
I can't say what all colleges do with weighting official AP classes. I know there has been a lot of reporting about schools with many students in AP courses who don't have strong passing score rates on average. And more colleges are upping the credit requirement to 4-5 on the exam because students with 3 and lower aren't doing so well in their college courses.
So I would expect some skepticism. The line I've always took to heart is that they look for students who do well with the most challenging courses available. For some that may be AP. But not for all. It's my own bias that I'd be more impressed with a student who earned a 4-5 without all the surrounding structure of an official AP course. (I'm pulling together a syllabus for government and one syllabus I looked at said up front that the teacher would type up notes from the text so the class could move on to discussion and not lecture. I thought the desire to not just lecture was fine but wondered why "college students" weren't expected to read their own text and take their own notes. Sigh.
I hear ya.
All of the following is word-of-mouth reported, mostly on the part of students and at least one parent. I have no direct knowledge or verification, but I've been told (from various parties):
*"My son is having trouble in his regular classes in middle school and needs extra help. But yet, when he gets to high school next year, they want him to take AP?!?!"
*"Our school doesn't have any advanced classes, only regular ones, and I'm so bored."
*"Our school doesn't really have very many regular classes. There is a big push for EVERYONE to be in AP. It seems like everyone is either in AP or remedial."
Now of course word of mouth can be inaccurate, and as I said, I have no direct knowledge of these things--just things I've been told in passing and have not verified. But if true, these comments would exhibit the vast differences between one school/school system and another which can exist.
Tabitha
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Tabitha,
I think I should clarify my post. Yes, the weighting of grades by high schools is what you describe. However, most ad coms unweight grades and apply their own formula to transcripts. I would say that most of the college applications we have filled out requested unweighted GPAs, which is why I don't even bother weighting.
The other issue is honors title outside of the AP title. It means very little as a course title in relation to a homeschool transcript. For example, MUS has an "honors" designation that from my perspective barely meets a standard level. What is "honors"? At a high school, it means beyond what is done in the regular classroom. In the homeschool, it means compared to what? It is why ad coms repeatedly state that they appreciate course descriptions that accompany transcripts b/c it gives them something solid to compare to. Simply b/c you place the title honors on your transcript does not mean that the weight would remain.
FWIW, I am still not concerned about weight being more important than the over all picture in relation to how homeschoolers are evaluated. For ps students, the entire GPA issue is going to be far more of an issue. The GPA is in relation to other students in their school (general info about the school provided by the school in school profile), provides class ranking, shows level of challenge within an institution. Those are simply not applicable to homeschooled students. Moms are assigning grades. There is no class rank. Test scores and outside of home validation of prior level coursework is going to demonstrate just how challenging the coursework has been. (ETA: another piece of the puzzle I should have shared is that admission's officers also consider what course load students take in relation to their school. Some schools only offer a small # of APs. Some may offer 14 or more. Simply b/c a student does not have a long list of APs does not mean that they didn't take the most rigorous academic challenge available to them. Admissions knows this and does take it into consideration. I would assume the same is going to apply to scholarship applications or students of small schools with limited resources would not be able to compete against larger, more equipped schools' students.)
I'm not sure how scholarship committees deal with homeschoolers' applications, but it is definitely not going to apples to apples like they might approach traditional GPA/transcripts. FWIW, most scholarship applications we have encountered discuss using a holistic approach vs. strictly numbers......though I was under the impression that UA's scholarships were based on test scores.
OK I see what you mean and I agree to a large extent. So much of this whole college and scholarship thing can come under the generic but appropriate answer, "It depends what college you want to go/apply to."
Tabitha
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I agree about the rigor of AoPS compared to a standard AP class, but if colleges use a standard mathematical formula to calculate GPA, then adcoms may not have the discretionary power to just add an extra point if they think the course is "AP equivalent" (or better). It seems like that would open a real can of worms, especially if there are scholarships on the line.
I know that most colleges recalculate all the applicants' GPAs using their own system, but if they do give extra weight to AP/DE classes, then homeschoolers without "official" AP courses on the transcript may be missing out on points they deserve, if they've done the equivalent of an AP class. This is exactly why I plan to get some of our courses approved — a lot of the students applying to top colleges have GPAs well over 4.0, and unfortunately it's impossible to compete with that without APs and DEs on the transcript.
Jackie
I'm sorry but I must have missed something somewhere. AoPS? What is that please?
I can speak to weighting of classes directly. I took an AP English class back in the day, got an A in it, and it was given a 5 on a 4 point scale, both from my PS and at all the colleges to which I applied. As to what is done now, my dd has friends in PS (some of whom have parents who work for PS) who say the same--APs are 5, Honors are 4.5, and regular classes are 4 (for an A) when calculating GPA.
I have always known this to be the case. If something is different, I would be more than happy to be informed. I am as human as anyone walking the planet, and am always open to new information, especially when said information affects the direction I am guiding my child in.
Tabitha
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My son also has U of Alabama on his list. 8 if you call, can you post your findings?
According to Alabama's website, the only criteria used for the merit-based scholarships is the ACT or SAT score coupled with gpa. The website also states that these scholarships are automatically given to every admitted student who meets the score and gpa cut-off provided that the student applies within the stated deadline.
I have spoken with a handful of admissions officers about this issue, but not U of A. All that I have spoken to have said not to bother getting my courses approved by the College Board for their account because all they care about is the exam score.
My son will be taking three AP exams next year and I was not planning on having any of my classes approved by the CB. Maybe I will need to reconsider.
See my comment about weighting for gpa in post 15.
Tabitha
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Do they weight grades for scholarship purposes? It may be that having the course officially listed on the transcript as "AP Biology" (versus "Biology w/AP exam") would provide an advantage when calculating GPA, since AP and DE classes are often given an extra point. I'm sure the ad coms would still pay attention to a good score on the exam, but maybe they don't give the extra point in calculating a weighted GPA if the course is not a "true" AP course on the transcript?
Jackie
At the public high schools in my area (and this was true when I was in high school a zillion years ago too--same area) regular classes are given 4 points in the GPA if an A is earned for the course. AP classes are given a 5, and Honors classes are given a 4.5, for A's, respecitvely. So yes, I would assume that makes a difference.
Tabitha
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Ok, thanks. Yes, I do disagree with that claim. As with every school I have looked at, even at UA AP is considered credit ***by*** exam. There is no mention of "AP class" in order to receive credit. (actually UA extends far more credit than most schools I have previewed.
From UA's website:
OK there are two different things that I meant here, and the 2 are getting mixed up.
Credit. Credit is by EXAM.
But SCHOLARSHIP CONSIDERATION....I was given to understand that when being considered for scholarships, UA looks for AP CLASSES and AP EXAMS on the transcript, along with a mixture of other things, depending on the student's intended major and the size and type of scholarship.
Tabitha
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Unless you spoke directly with admission officers and those responsible for making the scholarship awards, I would contact those depts directly. It is not a logical jump to state AP title means more than AP score or course w/o AP label when across the country high percentages of students taking AP labeled courses are making As yet scoring 1s and 2s on the exams. It is one of the reasons that some universities are questioning the validity of AP courses. All universities "should be" aware of this trend.
The 2nd paragraph is typical of a lot of schools. Many universities won't accept any transfer credits at all. Even within a single university system, some courses may or may not transfer. Talking with the dean of individual depts will give you the most accurate information vs. admissions.
As far as the 3rd......I have a limit to what hoops I am willing to jump through. Ds is a very strong student with very strong credentials. If AP xyz means more than xyz with AP exam when looking at the over all applicant, I would question the the process and the school and move on to a school that focuses on the individual vs. a label.
FWIW, you may find universities easier to deal with vs. community colleges. We have managed to have universities alter their admissions process for ds when we have been able to demonstrate that his educational needs cannot be dealt with elsewhere. (he had already completed AP level work which meant he needed college level courses.)
In the town we live in, there are only 2 possibilities for dual enrollment that I'm aware of. One is the local CC and one is the local university. For the CC, you have to be 10th grade AND 16. For the university, you must be 11th grade AND 16. When I say "and 16" I mean that age or older. I talked to them directly and no exceptions will be made from my understanding.
Tabitha
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UA is one of the schools our ds will be applying to and I am absolutely NOT concerned about the AP label vs. non-label. When it comes to homeschoolers, course descriptions are going to matter across the board.
You are correct about labeling a course as AP xyz. However, labeling a course as "xyz with AP exam" is not claiming it was college-board approved, simply that the AP exam was taken at the completion of the course.
Also, I question your list's order of importance as AP, CLEP, and then dual enrollment. I would suggest that it depends. Our ds will have completed several 200/300 level university courses when he applies. I would strongly suspect that 300 level physics and 200 level math courses would be viewed as a more significant achievement than either AP or CLEP. (and typically, I don't know about UA, CLEP is not very well regarded as a significant achievement.)
My info came directly from one of my known contacts on campus. Of course I may have misunderstood, and I will keep researching. You may be right. I will file away your comments and keep researching.
There is a brochure they handed out to all the kids when dd was on campus for a function that basically said, "Also, list ALL the math and science you can, even if you are NOT going into a math/science major."
UA has its OWN philosophy about ALMOST everything. As a parent I talked to whose child is currently on campus said, "The thing is, everything about UA has gotten extremely competitive in almost every department. In my impression, they are trying to be #1 in the country in everything they can." Maybe not the parent's exact words, but that was the sentiment. Even the director of our homeschool umbrella, whose own daughter went to UA, agrees that UA has its own philosophy about almost everything. Things that will work at one university will NOT necessarily work at UA. For example, they accept almost every CLEP, AP , IB, dual enrollment, etc. etc., but NOT AP Music Theory or any transfer music theory credits. I was recently on campus and one of the kids was telling another potential student a story that she had transferred from XXXXX (very prestigious school with an outstanding music program) because she wanted to major in a particular thing in the music department at UA and study under a particular person. When she went to transfer, if I understood her correctly, she lost a ton of her credits because they wanted her to take those classes IN HOUSE, so it added quite a bit of time to her education that she hadn't anticipated--at least that was my understanding and impression.
My point is--in my research, I'm finding that what is "typically done" at most universities is not necessarily what is done at UA. So do your research so you don't get surprised.
My daughter is only a freshman and does not qualify for dual enrollemnt in our state yet anyway. I contacted the local community college, and though they will let her dual enroll in the 10th grade, they will NOT let her dual enroll until she is 16. She will be 16 a year from now (I need to change my siggy) and they will not make ANY exceptions to this, even for online classes for which she will not be stepping foot on campus, even though she's been in DUKE TIP, away from home, on many different college campuses for different reasons. I don't want to put off accruing her college credits just because of a technicality, and as you stated, CLEP doesn't seem to be very highly regarded, so AP is the only avenue left open to me at the moment.
Tabitha
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Could someone fill me in on why we should want to do this? I just have my transcript say course name with AP exam- much like 8 fill the heart. It is my understanding that they can take any AP exam they want so I am not sure of the benefit of the class listed as AP. Is there something I am missing? We are only at 8th grade so I haven' had too much experience with this yet.
Actually, I can fill you in.
My daughter wants to go to University of Alabama, and UA has its own ways of thinking about things, rules, etc., for EVERYTHING. In talking with some contacts, my understanding is the greatest scholarship considerations are given for kids who have actually taken AP exams WITH AP-approved classes. In the world of competitive scholarship consideration at that particular school, 1st is AP, 2nd is CLEP, and 3rd is dual enrollment when they look at your high school stuff. Couple AP classes and exams with SERIOUS SAT or ACT scores, and you have the recipe for good scholarship consideration.
My understanding also is (and someone may correct me if I am wrong) that the penalty for listing a class as AP without getting it approved is potential jail time and a fine, because AP is a registered trademark of the College Board.
Tabitha
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Has anybody with a high-school-age (or high school work level) child written an AP course description and/or syllabus and had the college board approve it? If you have, can you walk me through the process? I am specifically looking for AP Biology, AP Spanish Language, and AP English Lit for my daughter's transcript.
Thanks,
Tabitha
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Has anybody with a high-school-age (or high school work level) child written an AP course description and/or syllabus and had the college board approve it? If you have, can you walk me through the process? I am specifically looking for AP Biology, AP Spanish Language, and AP English Lit for my daughter's transcript.
Thanks,
Tabitha
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Has anybody with a high-school-age (or high school work level) gifted child written an AP course description and/or syllabus and had the college board approve it? If you have, can you walk me through the process? I am specifically looking for AP Biology, AP Spanish Language, and AP English Lit for my daughter's transcript.
Thanks,
Tabitha
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I majored in Music Education and managed to graduate in 4 years but that was with AP credits for Biology, summer school (American Lit, Economics, & History and routinely taking 21+ credit hours per semester. And often a 1 credit class (like marching band) took up so much more time than a 3 credit Sociology class. It was grueling indeed.
AMEN AMEN and AMEN. Grueling. Expensive. And no room for "I have no idea what I'm doing."
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I didn't realize that there were so many schools offering music therapy as a degree. One of my violin teachers is majoring in music therapy and has gone on to graduate school to finish it up, and she has said that it's difficult but a very fulfilling career option. She also teaches on the side, so she has fun.
Now here is my question, did you major in piano or vocal, or both for music therapy? I want to do guitar, but that is not an option for me right now, violin is definitely one option and I have a friend who is going to be teaching me piano soon. I hope this makes sense, I have a cold so nothing is making sense to me today.
I agree though if you want to major in music, do a double major just in case things don't pull through for your daughter or for anyone. That's what I was considering if things didn't take off for me.
Thank you!:)
My principal instrument was voice. That's the one I gave my recital on and I had 2 one hour lessons a week. My secondary was piano and I had ONE one hour lesson a week. But also I had to pass proficiencies on guitar, omnichord, autoharp, and a "working knowledge" proficiency for at least one instrument in each orchestra family.
If you aren't taking private lessons on an instrument NOW and never have, you ARE GOING TO HAVE A HARD TIME MAJORING IN MUSIC ANYTHING. I don't know if that's your situation but I have posted that here for others who may be reading this thread. I had ten years of private piano and six years of private voice with choir before I was in college and it was STILL hard.
Everyone must have a principal and a secondary instrument when majoring in music therapy. And if one of those isn't piano, you have to have class piano until you can pass the required piano proficiency exam. And everyone (except majors whose principal instrument is piano) has to pass a piano proficiency exam before graduation. You can't graduate without it.
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Just because you major in composition DOES NOT mean you don't also have to take lessons. I majored in music therapy and EVERY music major had to have both a principal and a secondary instrument even if they weren't majoring in performance. My principal was voice, my secondary was piano. I wasn't majoring in performance but I still had to give an hour long recital on my principal instrument my senior year. Performance majors just have a whole lot more performing to do than others. But even with that said, I had to take 8 semesters of choir, 8 semesters of another group performance thing was optional; 8 semesters of a principal instrument; give a recital on said principal instrument; 8 semesters of a secondary instrument; pass a piano proficiency exam; pass a guitar proficiency exam; pass a "working knowledge" exam on at least one instrument in each orchestra family (percussion and strings in group class, and then because one of my music therapy classes met at the same time as the required class in brass and woodwinds, I got to take saxophone and trumpet lessons for a semester each) pass a guitar proficiency exam; basic conducting skills class; and five semesters of music convocation class which basically consisted of attending twenty concerts a semester plus performing in a weekly class and several other concerts each semester besides just concert attendance. Oh and then there was performance in master classes and repertoire classes. So you get plenty of performance even if there isn't a performance major involved. Performance majors just get MORE.
Oh, and as to specializing too early? I was told it was a good thing I came to school KNOWING which specialization I wanted to do because it made for a shorter time there. My scholarship money was for four years and four years only. I had to go to school 2 summers even with that (2 summers that my scholarship did not pay for) to get out in four and a half, the final six months being my internship out of state. If I hadn't gone in knowing what I wanted to major in, it probably would have taken me six years to get out of school, because every music major I met, no matter what they were majoring in in the department, their degree was at the limit of the number of hours allowed for a bachelor's degree which back then was 150. Music majors are some of the most expensive, most grueling, most time consuming, and HARDEST majors ever. Most people I knew were taking at least 5 years to get out of school and if they changed their major whether in or out of department even once then they were taking 5 1/2 or 6. But I have a passion for music and wouldn't do anything else.
Hope you find something there that's helpful to you.
I would say that the hardest thing when I got out of school with my music degree was finding a job because the on-campus career center really didn't know which way to steer me. The business majors and accountants and typical people they KNEW which way to go with, but music majors just made them look puzzled, no matter which area of music they specialized in.
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I tried to list mostly eastern seaboard and mid-western schools but I couldn't list them all. So, if you google the American Association of Music Therapists (I think that's what it is called) and wade through their website, you'll find a full list of universities. I think Florida State was even on that list.
Keep pressing on!
Faith
It's the American Music Therapy Association http://musictherapy.org and yes Florida State is on that list. I did my internship in Tallahassee.
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I majored in music therapy in college and graduated from the University of Alabama with a degree in music therapy. You might want to google "educational common market." If there is not a music therapy degree program in your state, my understanding is that you can be an out of state student going to school for in-state rates if your state doesn't have that major. Also check out the American Music Therapy Association http://www.musictherapy.org for a total list of schools who offer programs in music therapy that are affiliated with our professional organization. go to the University of Alabama website at http://bama.ua.edu and look up Carol Prickett and Andrea Cevasco. Andrea is the Director of the Music Therapy program and Dr. Prickett is her co-chair. She is also head of the department of Music Education. Dr. Prickett was the director of the Music Therapy Program when I was at Bama and still is VERY much a part of the music therapy program. They deal with these issues daily and would be able to tell you directly what needs to be done.
The degree program is so full that you don't even have the hours left over to pursue a minor. Like I said on the other thread, the most difficult thing about majoring in music for me was not the degree, it was finding a job afterward. The career center on campus didn't know what to do with me/other music majors at the time so much as they did more "typical" majors. The accountants and business people and engineers yes, but musicians not so much.
My daughter may be majoring in music (course I have 5 more years with her) and if she does, I'm going to advise a double major so she can pursue her music degree and get a job in her second major while she looks for the real music job she really WANTS to do.
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Registration for grades 8 - 10 is earlier (b/c they already have their test scores from the previous year). I believe we had to apply at the end of January/first of February. Class offerings come out prior to that so you can see what will be available.
Their system doesn't sound very efficient when it comes to applying for the financial aid. I don't really know how significant that personal statement is. I have been less than pleased with the effort ds has put into that the last two years. However, it stands to reason that the quality of essays might matter more when one is competing for FA. I wonder, too, if there is an equal amount of aid spots given for both "Academy" and for "Center." I would just call and talk to them about how the process works and see if you can get a feel for how many of those financial aid spots are available, what the criteria for selection for them is, etc. I might ask if there are equal numbers of aid spots for both levels - they may not tell you, but they might. Gosh, I could feel your suffering as you described your standing there with little children trying to get a fax to go for several hours! Good grief. I am so sorry. I hope you can get it to work for her next year.
Thanks for the empathy. It means a lot even though there's nothing either of us can do about it. And your previous posts were very helpful in allaying my fears of her going if she HAD gotten in.
Given that all parts of her application were available to them the Thursday morning after registration opened on Monday and "all classes that you requested were filled at the time we received your application" I have to wonder if the number of people applying isn't a significant part of the equation here.
Ex. dd tried out for All State Band in our state back in January. They only seat one jr. high band in the state. She tried out on percussion and the audition process was very tight and very intricate. Each district is allowed ONE percussionist and ONE alternate percussionist to take per district and our district is made up of 3 counties with tons of band programs. Some districts only have a few band programs. Public, private, and homeschooled band members can try out. I can't even begin to name how many band programs might be in our district, let alone how many kids I saw try out there that day. DD was good enough that she made it through the entire audition (many did not, so I understand from what others who have tried out before tell me.) But yet she didn't make the cut because out of all these band programs, they are only picking 2 people per district on her instruments. That doesn't mean she isn't a good musician, but it also doesn't tell me where she was in the order of audition results. I can tell you she was at least 10th in line because when you try out for all state band you also try out for all district band and they seat 8 percussionists for our all district band. That means there are at least 9 people in our 3 county radius who are better than her, but it also doesn't tell me where she ranked. Was she dead last? Could she improve on her XYZ and get a better ranking next year? That and a ton of other questions wamdered though my mind. I can tell you that trying out for ASB and ADB made her a better musician because it wasn't something that was a given.
I have similar questions about Duke TIP. I would love for someone to tell me, "We had 5 bazillion kids apply, and 2.5 bazillion applied for financial aid and we only give out 1 bazillion awards. When applying for the program we look for...and when applying for financial aid we look for...and when we saw your daughter's application we thought this could be improved...OR we thought her application was fine and had no room for improvement, but we just plain ran out of spots and money because there's only so much to go around."
Let's just say that they told me her essay needed improvement, for the sake of argument. OK I could look at that feedback and say, "Aha, something to work on in school time." Just like all state audition results for band and chorus and criteria/results are to a certain extent kept confidential for a lot of different reasons, I could understand if they didn't want to tell me that though.
But just like band auditions and the whole process made her a better musician even though she wasn't picked, applying for Duke TIP, in my mind, is a lot similar to applying for college admissions. At least when she's applying for college it won't be her first time to go through something like this and the process won't surprise her, KWIM? So there is value in the outcome no matter what, ultimately, it turns out to be.
I probably will call TIP at some point and ask them some of the questions you raised. If I get answers, great. If I don't get answers, I don't suppose I'm any worse off and I won't be upset.
The only criteria that the website and the materials lister for FA was "students who demonstrate need" or some such wording, with the listed income cutoffs for each family size.
Thanks for dialoging through this with me. I appreciate it really.
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That is disappointing. I would suggest that you call them to ask ahead of time about financial aid for next year. Might put you ahead of curve, kwim? I do know that the classes fill up quickly. For the last two years, we have applied on-line on THE first available registration day. I do know it is a money-maker for the colleges that sponsor these, but I also know for a fact that some kids DO get financial aid. I called and asked about something else and found them very helpful.
Hope next year works out for you.
I didn't call because the instructions in the materials we were sent were very clear ie something along the lines of, "Applications will not be accepted prior to X date at X time." Financial aid students must submit {supporting documentation} and until both applications are received with all supporting documentation, they will not be processed."
Or something like that.
In our case, we submitted the online application (the student part) by the end of the first day registration opened. Not knowing there was an essay or "personal statement" requirement, it took her most of the day to think through that. If I'd have known that there was a requirement like that, we would have had it ready to upload at the beginning of the day rather than the afternoon/end of the day.
DH came home from work with all the required financial aid documentation. In our case the financial aid application and the supporting documentation was something like 21 pages or thereabouts. First thing the next morning (by the time we finished it, our local Staples was closed for the day) I took the stuff down to Staples and attempted to fax them at the given number. I stood there for something like 3-5 hours, trying to fax them over and over again. Somewhere in that time span I did call them and say, "I just can't get through." They told me to keep trying and gave me some additional numbers to attempt to fax. They were very courteous about this. After hours of standing on my feet at the Staples Copy and Print Center with 2 of my 3 kids in tow (one of them a 3yo in the basket wondering when I was going to be done) I gave up and took dd13 to band practice. Later that evening, dh went back and attempted several times to no avail on EVERY number I was given. Lines busy, faxes faulting, kicked offline for a poor line connection, etc. So he decided to overnight the financial aid stuff via UPS and actually paid less for that than all the faxes we attempted. They delivered the paperwork by about an hour after the campus opened for business on the third day registration was open. If I understood the letter I got correctly, "all the courses you selected were filled at the time we received your application." And another paragraph states that all the financial aid is exhausted.
Given that situation, a genuine question:
If I can't get through on the fax lines; online application for financial aid is not an option; and overnight UPS isn't fast enough, then HOW do I get my application in early enough for her to have a chance?
When I called the TIP offices, they were very courteous about my failure to get through on the fax lines but all they could advise me was to try the other numbers and keep trying.
It would seem that the only thing that's faster is to submit one's application for financial aid online (similar to e-filing a tax return I would guess) but that's not an option at the moment. The instructions were very clear: Option 1: Online application for student and snail mail financial aid application; Option 2: Online application for student and fax financial aid application; Option 3: Snail mail or fax for both.
I understand I need to do it faster next year but HOW to do it faster--that is the question.
And I want to state that my frustration is not with Duke TIP at all. They have been nothing but courteous and helpful through the whole process and a pleasure to work with. I am just at a loss as to what else to do for next year. Cause if I'm understanding the documents correctly, "next year" for summer studies for 8th graders is sometime in the fall/toward the end of the calendar year.
She was invited to do a mission trip with our church around the same time so maybe that's what she's meant to do right now.
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I went about this in a different way. I picked out areas of particular strength and did true high school courses with Calvin that led to public exams (roughly SAT subject test equivalent) which documented his learning. I wasn't aiming to have him graduate from high school early but to document his abilities so that his achievements would make him stand out to university admissions people, as well as keeping his brain fully engaged. Whilst we were taking these few subjects to high school level, the other subjects kept going at more age-appropriate levels.
So he took one high school exam (biology) when he was eleven and two at thirteen (Chinese and classical civilisation). He is now at school - he skipped one grade when he entered - and will be taking a whole slew of other exams, but those early markers will still look good and were fun to do at the time.
Laura
Thank you Laura for articulating what I think is my purpose here in starting this thread but what I could never put my finger on exactly. There was a time when we were almost sure she would graduate early--and I'm not ruling that out--but she's found some friends through church who are very dear to her and I think she'd like to graduate the same time they do. Yet I want her to go to college and the only way she's going is if she gets a ton of scholarships. And the only way she's doing THAT is to stand out from the crowd. Thanks for your insight. It was really terribly helpful.
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We got the letter today. She's been put on a wait list because every one of the classes she wanted was full. But even though my application was overnighted for financial aid (I never could get through on the fax lines not ever) and I completed her other application online, even if she gets off the wait list, I don't know how we would send her--unless 3400 dollars falls from the sky. The letter we got stated that all the financial aid has already been given out this year. It was a generic letter, so maybe that's their way of saying we didn't qualify? I don't know but I do know that we are so stretched right now it isn't funny.
I'm bummed for her. I tried three diff fax lines and never could get through on any of them.
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Another thought would be to replace the American history/lit, which is generally an 11th grade class, with geography and a more general literature and composition course appropriate for the 9th grade. In this case, I would get a high school geography text that you like (for example, I like what I've seen of TCI's Geography Alive text) and supplement with readings (fiction and nonfiction) and films/documentaries about areas of interest. For the 9th grade lit and comp, I'd find a 9th grade literature text and supplement with longer works (examples frequently encountered in 9th grade lit courses are: To Kill a Mockingbird, Lord of the Flies, Jane Eyre, Romeo and Juliet, A Separate Peace, Anne Frank, and Animal Farm). I'd do the same for writing as I would for American literature.
The lit. selections you mentioned--she's already read at least a third to half of those and more. Our lit. library you would not believe (or maybe you might.)
The comment about rushing through Algebra I made me laugh--not at you but it reminded me of a conversation dd and I had regarding Duke TIP Summer Studies Applications. One of the courses she was given the option of applying for was Algebra I--a whole year of Algebra I in three weeks with the final exam. She said "Oh, no, I'm not doing that. OW, the thought of doing that makes my brain hurt." LOL.
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OK, sincere request here:
This is NOT a snarky comment really. Truly. Honest.
Those of you who say my plan might be weak in certain areas--design me a stronger one then. I'm curious to see what others would come up with. I really am. This is a sincere request for input.
Need help with the sale and swap board
in The Chat Board
Posted
I am hoping that by posting here a community administrator, moderator, or someone else with some knowledge will see this.
I have been a member of the forums since 2008 with a 10 rating in my profile and have posted many times on the forums and on the sale and swap board.
However, now that I try to add a for sale ad to the board, I get a screen that says I can't access this feature and I must post at least once in the community. It automatically logs me out. I log back in. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. Same results. I hit the link to contact the community administrator and it would only let me do so under my old email address which I no longer have access to. So I hit contact us on the main page, described the problem as I am doing here, said it was for classified help, and included a valid email address and have heard nothing. Filled out the contact form Friday.
HELP.
Does anyone know how I can resolve this?