Study of Exceptional Talent

[RanchGirl]

If you have experience with SET, can you tell me about it? My son is eligible, but we don't live in the CTY area; will it still be beneficial for him? We're in the CTD area but I don't think they have a program like SET (please correct me if I am wrong).

 

Thanks!

[Kathy in Richmond]

Our experience with SET was a nice awards ceremony & a free subscription to CTY's Imagine magazine during their high school years.

 

We were in region & could easily drive to the ceremony. It wasn't so fantastic that I'd fly in long distance to attend (except for the year that Julian Stanley met each of the kids; that was kind of special).

 

Imagine magazine is full of cool ideas, but anyone can subscribe. Each month highlights a different area of interest (math, music, computer programming, etc) and is full of kids' experiences and lists of extracurricular and summer pursuits in that field.

 

Your kid will also get surveys from SET periodically, so the kids are useful to the SET folks as a means of data-gathering.

 

There is a also a SET newsletter that comes out a few times a year. They include a photo/paragraph that your kid can write about himself when he joins, & he can also send in an update now and then.

 

I remember one of my kids filling out a request for a mentor from SET, but nothing ever came of it.

 

ETA: I don't think that SET helps with college admissions. If you just need the test scores to apply for an enrichment program, then he already has that. What I would suggest for a kid scoring at SET levels is that you save the SAT scores. College Board automatically deletes scores taken before ninth grade unless you specifically request to save them. One of mine used those saved scores for college apps later on.

[RanchGirl]

Thanks for sharing your experience Kathy, I really appreciate it! We'll probably do the CTD award ceremony since it's closer. I read that SET offers letters of recommendation for college apps but I'm guessing that colleges will be more interested in what is accomplished during high school... I take it you didn't use their LORs for your kids?

[Kathy in Richmond]

No, we didn't use SET's offer to write college recommendation letters. They didn't know my kids on any kind of personal level & couldn't say anything about them except their SAT scores, which were already on the application anyway. Yeah, it's more important to have letters that can speak to what the kids accomplished in high school, not middle school. :001_smile:

[Barbara H]

SET if free and is open to students from outside the CTY area.

 

Another benefit is access to the Cogito online community. They offer occasional seminars or chats with experts from different fields. Also, there are private discussion forums where teens can talk about math and other geeky interests.

[Kathy in Richmond]

SET if free and is open to students from outside the CTY area.

 

Another benefit is access to the Cogito online community. They offer occasional seminars or chats with experts from different fields. Also, there are private discussion forums where teens can talk about math and other geeky interests.

 

Those are good points, Barbara.

 

I'd forgotten about the Cogito site. My dd did use it occasionally, but I didn't remember that part of the site required a SET membership. There's still a lot of useful info there for non-SET members, too!

 

Yes, since SET membership is free, there's no reason for qualifying students not to join.

[RanchGirl]

Thank you Barbara and Kathy! Sounds like we should go ahead and sign up.