The anxiety level will drop when the first acceptance letter arrives. You just have to hang in there.

Both my daughters heard early on. My youngest heard right away from a school that had rolling admission. She knew right then that this was a good choice even if she got rejected from all the others.

Without even knowing your daughter, I can safely say she will have many acceptance letters. Her only problem will be deciding on which one.

My senior applied everywhere early decision/early action, and though I THOUGHT he'd probably get in to all/most, you can never tell, right? He applied to five schools early and got into all of them, although the only one he cared about was Syracuse (he applied ED). Of course he got merit scholarships to two others, which makes me a bit crazy, but he is happy and we are all glad the process is over.

So I guess it's too late for my advice, which would have been to apply early action to at least one or a few, so you can get an early "yes." (I know someone who applied EA only to her safeties, and as a result she had four acceptances before she even sent the apps to the other schools.)

What helped our relatively short wait was just being busy with everything that goes on between Thanksgiving and Christmas, so I think all you can really do is keep busy and try to find other things to think about! Not easy especially since everyone in her class, so presumably her social circle, is also in the same anxious boat!

Good luck...

She's fortunate in that she doesn't have her heart set on a "reach" school. We were lucky in that none of our kids had a desire for any schools that were for them total reach schools with a most likely result of being rejected. Probably the most pins and needles was our oldest....our flagship public university became very competitive a few years before he was a senior. He had his heart set on going there with his best buddies from the get go. He did very well academically, lots of AP courses, etc. He fit in to most of the admissions parameters to get in, but it was definitely not a sure thing. Honestly, I think what helped him was NOT going to the top rated high schools in our top-rated school system in the state (and one of the top ones in the country). They have to select kids from all high schools. When admissions went out there was an article in the paper about all the irate parents from the two magnet programs and the two top-rated high schools whose kids did not get in. It was really startling but if they had just chosen the best and brightest they could have almost filled all the freshman slots from a handful of schools!

My daughter had her heart set on an out of state public u and we were maybe 80% sure she would get in....excellent academics but she struggled with the ACT/SAT....decent but not great.

Youngest wanted a specific program at a large public u where they only accept 25 freshman...he did not make the final 25 but did get into the school. He opted to go to another school which ironically had a better reputation for what he wanted but you apply at the end of sophomore year after taking the basic courses...he got in...but by then didn't want that major anymore....he ended up sticking it out since, through a special program, we were paying in state tuition and he would have had to go another year because most of his classes would not have transferred.

All three ended up loving the schools they went to and had great experiences and made lifelong friends.....tell her it will all work out how it's supposed to!

This is when she needs to release the matter entirely. It's out if her hands now and whatever happens is what is meant to be. Breathe.

Our DD applied to 22 schools! We had no idea she was doing it, she was at boarding school and completely ignored their "process." She got into all but two, and was wait listed at a third....honestly, I think she did it just to get the acceptance letters. No early decision, but several with rolling admissions, so she knew right away she would be going somewhere she liked. She got merit scholarships almost everywhere, and her final choice was between two wonderful schools--- one was DH's and my alma mater, which she passed up for an engineering university. I was leaving for Japan with DS2 around that time and made her choose before we left so I could get a deposit in somewhere on time. She was very happy with her choice and is an active alumna of the school and her sorority.

DS2 knew what he wanted to study and all were audition programs, so his choice was easy--- he went to the best audition program he got into. Ironically, after three years of this program and a semester studying in NYC at an acting school and a summer in London, he now wants to do something different! We told him he had to finish the undergrad program in his chosen program because he would essentially have to start again to do something else. It's baffling, he has no other skills or even interests. So go figure, all that training and auditioning, and he changes his mind 3/4 of the way through! And this one got into our state's most competitive university early action as his safety, and it would have afforded him a wide choice of majors, but was weak in his field----or what USED to be his field!

DS1 was an indifferent student (although arguably the most intelligent of the bunch) who wasn't motivated until he changed majors to something he really likes. His choice of school was dependent entirely on where his friends were going, which is obviously not a very good way to make a life decision, but not so different from kids who go somewhere just because their parents did.

Morals of our story--- there is more than one way to go about this, more than one way to make the decision, no decision is irrevocable, no interest is guaranteed to be long lasting, and I firmly believe that almost any school can yield a good college experience and education if the student is motivated. Good luck to your son, and try to downplay this over the waiting months if you possibly can.

Thank you all. It is very encouraging to hear both about the acceptances and about so many young people being happy with their choices and/or with moving on from them.

I am also a believer that you can have a positive experience and get a great education at almost any school--I really loved my college years and at the time attributed a lot of that to the particular school I went to--I thought I stumbled upon a real gem. Looking back from here, though, I can see that I would have enjoyed almost any place just as much: it was the time of life and the interesting subjects that I enjoyed, and those are everywhere :)

My husband and I were more stressed than my children. I think we had read more info on the competitive nature of colleges today. Hopefully, you will hear from some schools (rolling admission) before the end of March. As soon as you have ONE acceptance, the stress level drops significantly. Good luck!

I agree with Goldie's advice. It's not easy to do, but it *IS* totally out of your hands now. The letters should be arriving soon and then she'll just need to decide which place she truly wants to go of those acceptances.
Lynn

With the economy as it is ,the students who can no longer afford the highest tier schools, have bumped down a notch creating more competition for the lower tier schools.

Also, high ranked state schools are accepting more out of state students who can pay full tuition.

That being said, if you chose wisely and it seems like your daughter did, you have nothing to be worried about. It's highly unlikely that she will be rejected from every school she applied to.

Good luck! I don't have anything to do with admissions, but I meet with prospective students and their parents all the time, either at open houses, or one-on-one if they are in town for a campus visit. So, don't be afraid to ask to visit or talk to faculty in your kids' areas of interests.

Also, see if there are any programs/days for admitted students, especially those who are undecided about committing.

Thanks, all. Gscience, we are planning to do some visits and so far the schools we've been to have been great about letting her meet with faculty in her area and sit in on a class. I am hoping for the best.

Just an update: she got her first acceptance yesterday, from a school with rolling admissions. I am relieved--I can't really say that she is relieved yet...but I am so glad her first response was a positive one. Whew!

Great news! It definitely takes the pressure off doesn't it? I'm sure she will get more yeses and will have at least a few to choose from...how exciting!

Great news leafy! Who hasn't had this thought after the first letter comes:

"Whew! She's going to college"....

Good luck and hope she gets in to her favorite! My youngest is heading towards the finish line!!

Bee

See, we told you so! :)

Excellent!

Great news that will make waiting for the rest to come back, so much easier.
Lynn