Are You Filling Out The Common App RIGHT NOW?

From the emails coming in this weekend it seems like a many of you have spent some quality time with the Common Application website this weekend! I have been chained to my laptop as well - writing recommendation letters, filling out forms, and answering many of the same questions about filling out the Common Application over and over again. Hopefully you will have more time to work on applications, essays, and homework this Wednesday while the juniors are taking the PSAT (aren't you glad to have THAT behind you?!). In the meantime, here is a summary of some of the FAQ's from the weekend.

How many seniors are in the Class of 2011? 120

Is my GPA weighted? Yes! Is there an unweighted GPA to report? No! Really? Really.

What is my class rank? GVPS does not rank.

But if I have been given an award that recognizes the top 20% of my class, can't I just list my class rank as Top 20%? GVPS does not rank - you should list awards in the section of the application that asks about Honors and Awards.

What is Visitation's school code? 090080

What is your title/phone extension/fax? It's listed under my signature in any email I have ever sent you.

Should I attach my resume to the end of the application? Maybe. There are differing opinions about this but I usually recommend not uploading a resume if it's mostly a repeat of what you've listed on the Common App activities grid. For example, if you've already listed your four year commitment to field hockey, lacrosse, and club ice hockey, there's really no need to tell them again on your resume. However, if there are activities that didn't quite "fit" the template provided for activities (service projects, Gold/White leadership, research at NIH, leading a session during Diversity Week would be good examples of activities that are difficult to format into the grid) it might be useful to use the extra space for that purpose.

My four year old asked me this weekend why I have been so grumpy. All I can say is...it's October. Hopefully you have been nicer to your family than I have!

Published by TSM

Five Minutes With Washington and Jefferson College

How great is this viewbook cover? Bethany Simmons, Assistant Director of Admissions at Washington and Jefferson College, visited our school recently and agreed to be profiled on the blog. We thought she would be a particularly reliable source regarding campus life since she just graduated from W&J last May!

If Washington and Jefferson had its own ipod playlist, what would be on it? The Wichi Coax (which she described as an "almost fight song"), Don't Stop Believin' by Journey

I wish that everyone knew ________ about W&J.
I wish that everyone know how strong our pre-law and pre-health programs are. W&J has a 90+% acceptance rate to law, medicine, and health related graduate programs!

How many applications will you read this fall? Probably around 1,500.

How long will you spend reading each one? About 20 minutes.

Popular guest speakers/entertainers on your campus in the last year or so? Cobra Starship performed at the annual spring concert last year.

This or That about your school...

Dining Hall or Eat Off Campus? Definitely the dining hall! The food is really good and there are tons of choices including 15-16 main courses and a wood burning pizza oven.

Dress Up For Class or Wear Sweatpants? This one is a 50/50 split. People do both; it depends on what time they have class!

Nearest Starbucks? About a mile from campus. Ali's cafe is a popular place for coffee that is right across the street from campus.

Students can name the quarterback or "we have a football team?" Students can definitely name the quarterback! The stadium is right off campus and games draw a big crowd. Team name: The Presidents!

If you have questions for Bethany, ask your counselor for her contact information.

Published by TSM

Team Fennessey in St. Louis

The blog has been quiet this week because Team Fennessey is in St. Louis. We are here for NACAC - a national conference for college admissions officers and counselors. We have been attending sessions and meeting and greeting college reps from all over the country. It's also great to hear what other high schools are doing. Best of all, we squeezed in two college tours during our stay! While the DC area has been drenched in rain, it's been 70 degrees and sunny here and we are loving the friendliness and laid back feel of the the schools we visited -Washington University and St. Louis University. Both of these schools could be a fantastic fit for Visitation girls.

Highlights from our SLU tour:

1) Vampire Weekend is performing on campus this weekend!

2) There is a gorgeous state of the art fitness center and a beautiful outdoor pool with a beach volleyball court and palm trees. Who knew?

3) SLU is like Visitation - it is a beautiful, self contained, green campus in the middle of the city. So many Visi girls want a campus like this. If you are looking at schools like St. Joe's, Loyola-Chicago, Fordham, Loyola-Maryland, or John Carroll, than you should be checking out SLU!

4) We learned about their unusual school mascot, the Billiken, and other fun traditions on campus. Walking around, it was clear that this is a school with a lot of character and spirit. And it's really beautiful. Here's one more picture!

Highlights from our Wash U visit:

1) When we were in college, we felt lucky to have Burger King and Taco Bell available to us in the Student Union. At Wash U, you seem to pass another amazing dining opportunity every five minutes - including the chance to enjoy a three course, sit down, dining extravaganza. And you are not eating in a standard cafeteria with a plastic tray - you could be seated in an outdoor pavilion or an oak paneled lounge with flat screen TVs on the wall.

2) We had gotten turned around on campus as we were looking for the fitness center and a very friendly student stopped to help us out. She pointed out not one, but two, athletic facilities - and then sent us on our way to the South Forty which resembled Main Street in Disney World. While Wash U is a little further away from downtown St. Louis than SLU, they have made sure all the modern conveniences of living in the city are just a few steps from your dorm. You can drop off your laundry to be washed and folded, get in your work out and get your hair and nails done at the salon with ease!

3) These students are smart, smart, smart! The library was full, students were on their laptops in the quad and they did not seem to be facebooking. This is not to say that campus was quiet, there was a buzz of activity, discussions, and intellectual energy all around.

It's been a busy week! We are excited to board the plane back to DC with bags full of college brochures and business cards - as well as some new SLU hoodies!

Published by TSM and KMH