Friday, January 27, 2012

Early start & honors classes needed for CSU and UC entrance - Guest Mom

In many states, the state funded University systems are highly competitive and a great venue for those who would rather not pay high private tuition.  While many parents think that graduating from high school is enough to be eligible to apply to these state schools, that is not the experience of many moms. In Race to No Where a Berkeley University admissions person explains she agrees the stress kids are under to be president of multiple clubs, perform outstanding in athletics, and have good character in volunteer work is tremendous.  In the next breath she explains that in order to apply to University of California Berkley the students need incredible extra-curriculars as well as above a 4.0.


How do you get above a 4.0?  You need to start early.  Perhaps 7th grade.  And in high school take the correct honors and advance placement (AP) classes.




GUEST MOM:


I am a surviving veteran of this process and now have a daughter in her sophomore year at a CSU (California State University). I can tell you that she is a happy camper both socially and academically.  I couldn't be happier that she is where she is at in school and I couldn't be happier than where she is at as a person.

We did private school from K-12 as we felt that when she started K that private would keep her safe and get her off to a great start and from there we would readjust. For many reasons we stayed at the school (but that's another story).  We learned by freshman year at high school that your child did need to be 'on-track' early.  If you don't get situated to take the Honors and/or AP classes you can't get the 5.0s needed to get your GPA up. The requirements for UCs (University of California) in 2010 were out of this world.  They state 3.0 but the reality is closer to 4.0, oh and did I forget to mention that your child must walk on water in the extra-curricular arena?  We attempted to petition UCSB and were told that the waiting list of students had GPAs over 4.0 and not to bother. 

Our experience was 2 years ago and the UC/CSU schools have had to cut costs and I'm sure that that means fewer students from California and more from out of state where fees are quite a bit higher.  Then there is the problem of fewer classes so it is very typical to have to go more than 4 years to graduate.  This means more costs for the end goal of a diploma and it also means more students eating up slots.

The stress that kids are under to over-achieve in school is absolutely crazy.  It no longer surprises me to hear about parents appealing to the teachers to give their child the A+ rather than the A they had received or all the organized cheating or the abundant use of drugs to stay alert. Kids aren't allowed to be kids any longer and it is truly sad. There is no doubt that going to a designer named school does help one get a job at graduation but the costs (mentally, physically & financially) of getting into some of these schools for the typical kid are out of this world. 

I think as parents it is really important to think about what is right for your child and that many years down the road that they will be thriving but also thankful for your guidance.
Linda

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