- Feb 24, 2016
- 568
- 632
Least fun hobby ever: helping your kids with college applications. Maybe it's particularly a PITA b/c I have multiple Seniors in High School now, but Jeez-o-Pete it's a flawed process.
Note that this is clearly a TL/DR rant, so ya probably shouldn't read it.
It was a piece of cake back in the day. Filled out one application (to UF), mailed it in (I think with a paper transcript), and voila! Off to college! These days everything is obviously online, but most universities pick one of the 2 or 3 "standard" applications to use, they add their own customizations with short answer essays, etc. One standard app gets the HS transcript electronically like any non-moron would. The one UF requires, however, makes you enter every class and the grade in the class for the 4 yrs of HS! I mean, WTF? It's 2019, and no-need data entry is required when you know they're really gonna rely on an e-transcript at some point. That's actually all OK-ish so far.
Even some of the basic app questions are dumb. When did your parent begin establishing residency in Florida? Sh!t, do you want the day I was born, since I've lived here all my life? The day I turned 18? The day I bought my first house here? My current house? Google that sh!t and there's no real answer.
What is the Registration Number of the parent's car? Well, Mr. Application, there isn't one. My registration has a Plate #, Decal #, VIN, and Title #. Again, there's no answer to an incorrect question.
Next, you've got to rely on the High School staff to meet the hard deadlines for entering/delivering transcripts, teacher recs, Guidance Counselor recs (?) to multiple services/places. Bear in mind they may not have the same sense of urgency as you do. For example, the National Merit Scholar thing has a hard deadline of Oct 16, it's a flat out, no excuses, hard deadline. Our HS, of course, is gonna wait til the day before to send all the stuff out! Freaking really? Yet another thing I can't control but have to stay on. Really my wife does. That and make sammiches!
At the same time you've got the financial aid stuff, like differing requirements for the same scholarships at different schools. Scholarships that overlap with other scholarships at some schools, but they won't overlap at others. Even better, some of that sh!t is based on which school you list as your first preference! What?!? List a preference that impacts scholarships long before you know if they got in. SMDH.
That frustration doesn't even count the randomness of acceptance at UF. I have a couple of close friends with kids that were no better than average students (and average doesn't nearly cut it these days) that got in at UF. I mean real shockers, but they're going to G-ville. I've heard story after story about kids with the highest acheivable grades and top test scores that didn't make the cut at UF. WT actual Fvvk?
Also consider the many college application consultants who start advising kids in the 9th grade and later tell kids which activities to list on apps, how to write their essays, literally revising the students' essays for them, etc. Some write phenomenal student resumes for kids who were nothing but bumps on a log for their 4 years. My kids would NEVER even exaggerate what they've done, and they were irked that Mrs. GatorAuthor and I wanted to review their essays. Same time, there are well paid app advisors having the kids 100% make sh!t up and then writing essays for them. It's all beyond maddening. Enough to make me write a far-too-long rant on GCMB that nobody else will (or should) even read!
Note that this is clearly a TL/DR rant, so ya probably shouldn't read it.
It was a piece of cake back in the day. Filled out one application (to UF), mailed it in (I think with a paper transcript), and voila! Off to college! These days everything is obviously online, but most universities pick one of the 2 or 3 "standard" applications to use, they add their own customizations with short answer essays, etc. One standard app gets the HS transcript electronically like any non-moron would. The one UF requires, however, makes you enter every class and the grade in the class for the 4 yrs of HS! I mean, WTF? It's 2019, and no-need data entry is required when you know they're really gonna rely on an e-transcript at some point. That's actually all OK-ish so far.
Even some of the basic app questions are dumb. When did your parent begin establishing residency in Florida? Sh!t, do you want the day I was born, since I've lived here all my life? The day I turned 18? The day I bought my first house here? My current house? Google that sh!t and there's no real answer.
What is the Registration Number of the parent's car? Well, Mr. Application, there isn't one. My registration has a Plate #, Decal #, VIN, and Title #. Again, there's no answer to an incorrect question.
Next, you've got to rely on the High School staff to meet the hard deadlines for entering/delivering transcripts, teacher recs, Guidance Counselor recs (?) to multiple services/places. Bear in mind they may not have the same sense of urgency as you do. For example, the National Merit Scholar thing has a hard deadline of Oct 16, it's a flat out, no excuses, hard deadline. Our HS, of course, is gonna wait til the day before to send all the stuff out! Freaking really? Yet another thing I can't control but have to stay on. Really my wife does. That and make sammiches!
At the same time you've got the financial aid stuff, like differing requirements for the same scholarships at different schools. Scholarships that overlap with other scholarships at some schools, but they won't overlap at others. Even better, some of that sh!t is based on which school you list as your first preference! What?!? List a preference that impacts scholarships long before you know if they got in. SMDH.
That frustration doesn't even count the randomness of acceptance at UF. I have a couple of close friends with kids that were no better than average students (and average doesn't nearly cut it these days) that got in at UF. I mean real shockers, but they're going to G-ville. I've heard story after story about kids with the highest acheivable grades and top test scores that didn't make the cut at UF. WT actual Fvvk?
Also consider the many college application consultants who start advising kids in the 9th grade and later tell kids which activities to list on apps, how to write their essays, literally revising the students' essays for them, etc. Some write phenomenal student resumes for kids who were nothing but bumps on a log for their 4 years. My kids would NEVER even exaggerate what they've done, and they were irked that Mrs. GatorAuthor and I wanted to review their essays. Same time, there are well paid app advisors having the kids 100% make sh!t up and then writing essays for them. It's all beyond maddening. Enough to make me write a far-too-long rant on GCMB that nobody else will (or should) even read!
