Understated, but no less elated

A came to us the other evening and said, rather casually, that he'd gotten in to Carnegie-Mellon. His enthusiasm was tempered somewhat by the fact that he didn't get into the most competitive C-M school, The School of Computer Science, but instead got into his second choice, The Mellon School of Science. And this is a bad thing why, exactly? Truth be told it's the better place for him. It will allow him to indulge his interest in computers, while still enabling him to pursue other interests in science and (I hope) writing.

This is all good. It's all great. Our reaction somewhat muted as well, however, as we do not yet have an acceptance letter in hand. Once we receive it, then I think excitement will set in big time. If he gets in nowhere else, Carnegie-Mellon is a place he can be proud to go. And a place we'd be proud to send him.

Clinging to CollegeData

This may have been a mistake: went online to collegedata.com and quickly became immersed in all of the minutia of the admissions process. The site offers a "calculate your chances" feature. Type in GPA, number of honors classes taken, test scores, and the number of extracurricular activities, and one is rewarded with one of three "answers:" "Reach," "Maybe," and "Good Bet." Two of A's schools came up "good bet," not surprisingly Rochester and Carnegie-Mellon. The remaining five came up as "maybe." Understanding that this is all a complete crap shoot, it was somewhat heartening that no school came up as "Reach." It's a reach to believe this, of course, but comforting nonetheless.

They don't call, they don't write . . .

Herewith my request that all future admissions officers be the offspring of Jewish mothers. Perhaps then they will better understand the angst parents (not to mention their kids) are feeling as we sit, waiting for the phone, waiting for the email, waiting for the post, or for any communication whatsoever from the schools our kids have been trying to woo. The silence is deafening.