ecmom123 Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 What is the benefit of talent search. Most camp and classes are expensive. Is there any extra benefit of joining one? Is is a plus for college application?Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EndOfOrdinary Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 Stalking the thread, because I would like to know as well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MM2 Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 The camps and classes ARE expensive and variable in quality -- often, IME, they are repackaged from other vendors (e.g. Thinkwell). Dc did one CTY camp, and it wasn't as high-level as they claimed or very well-supervised, so won't do it again. Still, we did CTY testing, and I'm glad we did it for the credential value. We homeschool to be independent, but the external validation from something like CTY has proved really useful as we talk to teachers, schools, and even neighbors: the CTY credential quiets a lot of the hostility we otherwise get (along the lines of, how can you possibly be doing a good job, etc.). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 One reason why we did the EXPLORE is that it's known-most schools recommend that their kids do TIPS if they're eligible (with some of the schools doing the EXPLORE in-house and then registering their TIPS eligible kids so they can brag on their % participating), so having that score gives my DD a point of comparison should she need it for school entry, and I've not found a way to take the EXPLORE without going through Talent Search. At the suggestion of some here on the board, we use BESTS, which doesn't add extra fees. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madteaparty Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 I don't have a gifted kid, so I really do not see the point in our case, but for this: there is a class offered by the Johns Hopkins program that I cannot find offered elsewhere for my kid's age (Arabic). So we will probably go through that song and dance for the privilege of paying a lot of $ for that class only. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaSprout Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 . If you don't have a teacher-pleasing child Sold! Sign us up... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EndOfOrdinary Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 Public schools respect test scores. If you don't have a teacher-pleasing child, you may be able to use that early SAT test score to wangle admission to an honors/AP program. My son is the one who is all for teacher pleasing, until he doesn't like what the teacher has asked/said. For a good day and a half, he's all in though! :lol: This makes a lot of sense. My husband works in a district with quite a wealthy tax base. They offer a few classes my son might want to sit in on. I could see test scores really helping here. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowbeltmom Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 Public schools respect test scores. If you don't have a teacher-pleasing child, you may be able to use that early SAT test score to wangle admission to an honors/AP program. :iagree: Test scores carry a lot of weight. When my son was 13, he enrolled in a class at our public school. Without his SAT score, there is no way the administration would have permitted him to take the class. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idnib Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 I went to CTY Chemistry when I was in jr. high. I'll date myself by saying that we watched the Iran Contra hearings while waiting for lab experiments to complete! I learned a lot of chemistry. It was rigorous. We were there I think 6 hours/day and there were another 3-4 hours of homework. I enjoyed using a college chem lab and the better equipment. It was humbling as there were some really accomplished kids there. In retrospect, the humbling was good for me. :blush: I also made friends and kept in touch with them after the program. We're no longer in touch, but we were for many years. It was a struggle to get my parents to agree to pay for it, but I think it was worth the experience and they would agree. There were kids there from out of state who had obviously flown in and depending on the price of airfare, that might have put it over the top for what I got. Fortunately we were close enough to drive, which saved money and increased its value. ETA: I don't think I received any other benefit from the test scores except increased confidence for the PSAT and later the SAT. We had a separate test for GATE, I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy in Richmond Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 My reflections on CTY talent search testing from a few years back in response to a similar question. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmstranger Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 My son is in CTY (and receiving an award for his scores in May--shameless brag!) and while we haven't taken any classes yet, I LOVE the choices available. He will be taking an online class this summer and we are debating one of the family weekend programs that is coming up in our area. I see it as a great opportunity to take some classes that he would not get otherwise. A friend of mine's son was recognized by his test scores and was offered a scholarship to a local private school, so that is another bonus! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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