April Is A Cruel Month

Seniors, the college odyssey is coming to a close for most of you. If you are one of the thousands of high school seniors in the country who is disappointed about your college news, I am sorry and I know how you feel. Trust me, I know. I've got the tissues on my desk and the battle scars of many years of talking to disappointed parents and students from the admissions side and now the high school side. I know from experience that there is absolutely nothing I can say to make you feel better. If you are willing, take a peek at Natalie Perry's post about going through what you might be feeling right now (she didn't get into her top choice school and truly didn't even have a second choice that she was happy about). You know how this ends: she is incredibly happy and hasn't looked back at That School That Was Ridiculous Enough Not To Admit Her. Their loss. http://lifeaftervisi.blogspot.com/2010/11/natalie-perry-08-on-tufts-and-why-plan.html And perhaps yesterday's NPR audiofile will help you to not take all of this so personally. http://lifeaftervisi.blogspot.com/2011/03/its-not-you-its-me.html

Finally, in this month of disappointment for many, there were two bright spots in my office yesterday that I'd like to share.

• A father of a current senior (who had emailed me over break, disappointed about his daughter's recent wait list news from one of her top choice schools) emailed me to say "please don't tell my daughter, but there's a Big Envelope from (school will remain nameless) in the mailbox!" He was so obviously happy for his daughter and couldn't wait for her to arrive home and open the envelope. This reminded me of receiving my own college acceptance a million years ago. The letter was in a thin envelope and my mom and I opened it together. We called my dad before we opened the letter and he was in the car. He was so nervous that he had to pull over.


• Also yesterday, a senior rushed into my office with her Mac open to a college's admissions portal. She had not received a decision letter from this school, but suddenly she had the option of clicking a link to "accept admission" and "pay deposit." She was desperate to know if this meant she was in. I was nervous. I have seen this happen to students before and it ends up that there's some kind of strange computer glitch. Without an official acceptance letter or email, you can never assume anything! And so we called the school (one of her top choices), and she is IN! We jumped up and down and we hugged it out.

Please be sure to share your news - good and not so good. If you are staying on wait list, we want to know about it. Email is okay, but we always prefer to see you in person!

Published by TSM

It's Not You, It's Me.

This is a fantastic "inside view" of an actual admissions committee meeting at Amherst College. I would hope that any senior feeling low about not getting into a school would feel better by listening to this clip. It truly demonstrates that not getting into college isn't anything that you should take personally or lose sleep asking, "why?" Most of the time, there is no "because." It's a process that's neither fair nor objective most of the time. And it's completely beyond your control. What is in your control? For juniors: choosing where to apply. For seniors: choosing which school is lucky enough to receive your deposit on May 1.

Here is the link: http://www.npr.org/2011/03/28/134916924/Amherst-Admissions-Process

Published by TSM

Another One Bites the Dust

News flash for juniors - The University of Southern California will join the Common Application next year.

You may be interested to know that there is a lot of spirited conversation/debate about the Common Application in the college admissions profession. For a quick primer about the history of the Common Application and why the newsflash above is more than just a point of information, read this excellent article from the Chronicle of Higher Education.

http://chronicle.com/blogs/headcount/the-gravitational-pull-of-the-common-application/27090

Do you feel smarter now?

Filed by TSM

Kelly Maloney '06 - Getting ready for Pilot training!

Here is Visitation alumna Kelly Maloney, Class of 2006, in front of an F-15 after her familiarization flight. As a graduate of Embry-Riddle, Kelly is off to pilot training with the Air Force. She is making Visitation proud! If you have any questions for Kelly about Embry-Riddle, meteorology or the military, just ask your college counselor for her contact information.




What was your favorite class at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University?


My favorite class was TV Weathercasting in which you learn how to be like the meteorologists on the news. You learn to produce your own forecast and every day you get up in front of a green screen and camera to give your forecast. The studio is just like professional studios and your professor records quality videos of some of your forecasts to use for job interviews. In the advanced class you have the opportunity to record forecasts used on local radio and TV stations.

What was your major at Embry-Riddle?
I majored in Applied Meteorology with a concentration in Research Meteorology. I chose to do the Air Force ROTC program and I was selected to be a pilot. Embry-Riddle focuses on aeronautics such as aviation (pilots, air traffic control, etc.), aerospace engineering, meteorology, safety science, homeland security, etc. ROTC is very common at my school, but the majority of students are not military.

What are your plans for next year?
I just arrived at Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi a few weeks ago and am waiting to start Undergraduate Pilot Training. Pilot training lasts for about a year and I will not find out what aircraft I will be flying until the end. It is decided by what aircraft are available and how well I do in my class.

When you were a senior at Visitation, did you know this would be your path or did you change your major during your four years?
I had no idea this is what I wanted to do until senior year when I first was introduced to the school and the thought of being an Air Force pilot. I decided at the end of my senior year to try it out and see if I liked it. Luckily, I LOVED everything about flying and the Air Force so it was a perfect fit.

What is your favorite Embry-Riddle memory?
My best memory is what AFROTC calls “Big Week”. During this week Headquarters releases the names of those selected for pilot training which is extremely competitive. Everyone in AFROTC gathers into the auditorium cheering as loud as they can and the Colonel announces the pilot selects one at a time. When he called my name it was the best moment of my life thus far. As I tried to make it down the stairs to accept and salute the Colonel, everyone stood up to cheer me on, congratulate me, and hug me, because they understood that it was the moment that I worked so hard for and that my dreams finally came true.

What is there to do on the weekend?
Embry-Riddle is in Daytona Beach so of course everyone goes to the beach which is warm enough almost year-round. It’s nice to get a group together to play volleyball on the beach and grill out.

Many of the students have their private pilot license so you can just rent a plane, go flying, and maybe grab lunch at a small airport nearby.
One of the close airports is world famous for skydiving so if you are up for even more adventure, join the skydiving club on campus and get discounts when you skydive.

There are also a lot of big events hosted in Daytona every year like Biktoberfest, Bike Week, the Daytona 500, the Rolex 24, the Wings and Waves Airshow hosted by our school, and of course the visiting spring breakers during March and April.

Were there any resources on campus that advised you about the possibilities after college?
My school has a really good career center with lots of opportunities on campus such as career expos twice a year, help with resumes, and job interview practice. I never used any of the services because I was contracted with the Air Force, but I know that most companies try to hire Embry-Riddle students because our school is renowned for our specialty in aeronautics.

Do you have any tips for current seniors about keeping things in perspective? Any advice you would offer from your current self to your 17 year old self about to apply to college?
Just make sure the school you pick is a place where you will be challenged and will fit your personality. Don’t just pick a school because of the name or because that is where everyone else wants to go/is going. Oh and just remember that you have a leg up on everyone else because Visitation taught you how to manage your time and how to write without sounding like a fifth grader – most college graduates don’t have either of these skills.


Filed by KMH

Scattergrams Got You Down?

Hey Juniors! By now, you have all received your login information to access our Naviance program with the oh- so- talked- about scattergrams. As I watched my counseling groups log in for the first time, I noticed that many of you looked at the scattergrams while peeking out from behind semi-covered eyes, similar to when watching a scary movie and you want to look, but you don’t want to look. While we understand this trepidation – seeing all that data in red and green can be intimidating – we want to encourage you to keep your heads up!

First, there is way more to you than just numbers! The scattergrams are just one tool among many to help you create a well balanced list. They offer you some Visitation specific statistics to complement the national stats found in books like the Fiske Guide or web resources such as collegeboard.com. While the numbers are an important part of the process, GPA and test scores don’t tell the whole story. Colleges will look at your personal qualities reflected in essays and recommendations and other subjective qualities like student leadership, interest, and co-curricular involvement.

Another important point to remember is that you are still in progress! Your Naviance profile shows Junior year PSATs from way back in October (you took that test before Fall Gold-White - think about how much more you've learned since then) and only 5 semesters of grades. That means you are comparing yourself to past Visitation applicants whose numbers represent the HIGHEST SAT scores achieved by seniors over several sittings plus SEVEN SEMESTERS of grades. What does this mean? This is just a starting point for you, something to help predict a possible trend, but it is not the end all be all for determining if you will get into college!

So don’t be afraid to use these scattergrams to help guide you in the beginning of your research – but talk to your college counselors to help you interpret the information and to help calm those nerves. Happy researching!

Filed by KMH