Time to do the donuts. Time to do the donuts.

[kizmet_42]

Remember the commercial?

Well, in my case, it's time to do the FAFSA.

I took ED to college on Monday for a tour. Yes, she's only a sophomore, but she has to make some scheduling decisions now for next year, and those decisions need some planning.

Economics majors don't just happen, they're calculated.

Comments

[persephone_kore]

We're torn about taking post-secondary classes. Passing them guarantees getting the credit. Taking AP classes boosts the GPA but doesn't guarantee the passing score for the college credit. The University where D'Argo goes waffled on which was of more value in admissions consideration. "Do what the guidance counselor tells you" is not good advice when you know that the counselor is going to say "take AP" because it doesn't cost the school district anything and post-secondary does.

Is the university waffling about which is better for their admissions or in general? I'd think they should know about themselves. For others... well, I don't know what options your kids are considering, but you probably already know that there's a range of policies on accepting transfer credits or AP credits. (Caltech, IIRC, will consider AP courses in admissions decisions but doesn't consider them adequate to replace any of their rigorous introductory courses. I don't recall their policy on transfer credit. Most places are less picky

[kizmet_42]

Case Western Reserve University would not accept post sec classes if they were applied to a high school requirement, therefore D'Argo's English classes didn't count but his photography did. Carnegie Mellon University would accept the credit but were likely to require retaking the classes. OSU would accept everything.

Case, surprisingly, accepted D'Argo's AP Calc and allowed him to go directly to Calc II, but wouldn't have accepted a calc class from the local college. Craziness abounds.

Working with the high school debate team, I find that most of the visiting graduated debaters think that AP is a waste and it's better to take the college classes instead. Several didn't get the grade in the AP but then taking the class in college was essentially a waste of time and money for them.

[persephone_kore]

would not accept post sec classes if they were applied to a high school requirement

That's just weird....

Working with the high school debate team, I find that most of the visiting graduated debaters think that AP is a waste and it's better to take the college classes instead. Several didn't get the grade in the AP but then taking the class in college was essentially a waste of time and money for them.

That strikes me as strange. The AP exams, in my experience, were relatively straightforward if you'd covered the material and knew how to use the information they hand you as part of the test. It does help to be introduced to some of the question formats ahead of time -- the document-based question on the history exams especially. (I hated that the first time I encountered it; it was a take-home assignment and it turns out I way overdid it. Later I realized that it was one of the easiest essay-question types

[kizmet_42]

I've been talking to good students who scored 3 on the AP test- no credit. If they'd gotten a C in the college class, they still would have the credit. Our high school German teacher said she couldn't pass the AP German test.

From what I hear (and it's from all sides I hear this) the AP tests are harder than a college final exam.

Yes, Case's attitude remains weird.

[dr_phil_physics]

Is ED comfortable with not seeing her friends in school? Can she handle being on a college campus? I'm of mixed opinion on sending a junior to college. I was certainly capable of doing so, and being a geeky loaner I could've managed it. Whether it would've been good for me or not, it's hard to say. (grin) And I did take one night class at the local university while in high school -- appalled my friends when they found out I was in a class with our homeroom teacher. Carrying around a briefcase I already had some of the students thinking I was a teacher when I was a high school sophomore anyway. (double-grin)

Dr. Phil

[kizmet_42]

ED won't be taking post secondary until she's a high school senior. She's dying to get to college. High school is one big drain. Epic fail, ya know?

But if she takes the right classes next year, she might be able to do virtually everything she wants on a college campus instead of in high school. Thus the dilemma.

[mrs_redboots]

Your education system is so very different to ours that all I've really gathered is that your daughter is really rather clever!

Mine did statistics as one of her maths modules, but found it very hard going - ended up having to explain it all to me (who am basically innumerate) to help her understand it.

[kizmet_42]

Stats was one of my two proudest C's (average grade) in college. I worked my butt off to get it and I still never understood the point of it at all.