Last night was a parents scheduling night for incoming high school freshman. Let me be clear, this is absolutely surreal to me. How do I almost have a high schooler? I don’t feel old, hell I don’t feel a day over 30. But alas, I not only have a teenager but one that is about to attend high school.
As we took our seats in the auditorium, I looked down at the chair in front of me to be met with a gigantic drawing of a penis with the word FUCK, thoughtfully sketched underneath.
‘That student is doing great things right now,’ I said to myself.
When we left the meeting, here is how my husband and I felt:
We felt as if we were missing something or behind. What if he takes the wrong classes? Should he start college credit classes now? What if he does something super stupid to ruin the rest of his life?
Here’s the deal, Parker has an astronomical brain. He’s in every gifted class and is labeled by the school a superior cognitive. I absolutely hate that label because I think of the 3 albinos in the baby pool in the Tom Cruise movie Minority Report.
So guess where Mr. Smarty Pants wants to go to college? Stanford. That’s right folks, the farthest college possible away from his family, on the other side of the country.
Stanford University
Did I mention the acceptance rate and cost? Oh you’ll love this. The acceptance rate is 5%! The out-of-state tuition (btw, just now I’m spell checking and the mother of a Stanford hopeful, just mispelled tuition) that we could never afford is over $51,000! Yes, $51,000. A 4-year degree would cost more than our home.
I did the only reasonable thing one could do in this situation and Googled the following: HOW TO GET ACCEPTED TO STANFORD. Yes, a very strategic move on my part, I know. I was met with a short YouTube video of a cute young girl with a French accent walking the campus of Stanford giving little to know real advice on how to enter Stanford.
Next I text my cousin F the following:
Me: Do you know anyone that went to Stanford?
F: Chelsea Clinton
Me: Dude, U don’t know Chelsea Clinton
F: I know of her!
Me: How much wine have you drank?
F: Ha ha. None.
Next I decided to go directly to the source, the Stanford website but like a 7-year-old that pays attention only to the pictures, I lost interest after 5 minutes and logged off. I went online and checked how much we have saved up for him and Carter for college.
‘Well, we have enough to afford books at Stanford,’ I said to myself. ‘That’s something right?’
So obviously this whole blogging gig has to pick up speed as I need to make $200,000 before the fall of 2023. For anyone with little children, I’m finally understanding the whole “it goes quicker than you think it will”. When you’re sleep deprived, changing diapers, feeding, bathing, clothing, carrying and rocking a little one, you simply want to slap the shit out of anyone that says that to you. But ok, now I get it.
Stanford….gulp!
My youngest child turns 20 in less than a month. How’s that for time flies? Lucky for us we live in Germany, her schooling is free here. Does your child speak German? It’s an option, even people from other countries get schooling here free (just some fees involved, around 2 3 hundred a semester…minimal compared to actual tuition).
Well, he’s deciding on if he should take 4 years of Spanish or German. After you said that, I kinda want to explore that option. Do you know if its tougher to get into those colleges? And wow, 20? If I’m not doing well with 13, you’ll have to commit me when they turn 20!
I dont think they are anymore difficult to get into than an American university. It’s really worth checking out. Even if he did some study abroad, that would help his chances of getting into some of the big schools in the US
That’s so true and I def will! Do you have an extra room for him? LOL!!
LOL. I do have pull out couch…..in my dining room. It’s a multipurpose space LOL
I could just tell him that’s how they do it in Germany! Lol!
Hee Hee!
WHAT! How can ONE YEAR cost SO MUCH MONEY!?!?!
I took 5 years to do my undergrad instead of 4, and did summer classes for 3 summers, and then took an extra year for teacher’s college and all of that cost me less than one year for your son. I only lived out of home for the last half of my last year and then teacher’s college so I saved a LOT of money that way Move to Canada.
My God that’s amazing! It’s that expensive bc we would be paying out of state tuition. Now, if your parents make less than 125k, you can go for free so I told my husband I would need to stop working.
I don’t understand the out of state tuition. But then again I never looked at any schools that would have taken me out of province haha. Even for teachers college I only applied within Ontario.
Yep, each state charges an exorbitant amount for students if they don’t live in that state. You’d think they wouldn’t in an effort to attract the best students. I think the caveat is living in the state for 1 year then applying so you get the major discount.
Oh wow I had no idea! Thankfully I did my undergrad one city over (we are actually like a dual city) so I could live at home. And then teachers college at the same school because it was the best in the province and I lived with friends. I still had to pay rent and stuff but at least it was a fair price and no stress.
WOW, sounds like those boys need to get scholarships to Stanford!!
And, yes, I don’t know Chelsea personally, but she’s the only one I could think of at the time!!
Yeah, I’ve told him I challenge him to obtain at least 1 scholarship a year worth no less than $1000. I don’t know if I’m setting the standard too low though. I just want to talk with someone that went to Stanford to get the inside scoop of what it takes to get in.
That’s just ridiculous. And why Stanford? Is it because it’s in CA? That’s no way to pick a school; based solely on location. Does he even know what he wants to study?
It is ridiculous. I think he’s attracted to the challenge of getting in? The prestige? Who knows. And I did ask him a few days ago what he wants to do when he grows up and he has no idea. I told him he needs to decide on what he wants to do then look at the colleges that offer the best programs. I think a lot of it has to do with living in California. After visiting last year, not only did I fall in love with the state but my sons did too.
Ah yes… the land of fruits and nuts… and the produce is a big export too. ? Hope he changes his mind or doesn’t get accepted for your sake. ?
I mean…I want him accepted at an amazing school. Just not the school that you have to be a gabillionaire to attend. Or willing to commit to a life of poverty to pay the debt!
Oh wow! That’s an insane amount of money. How easy is it to get the blog to go viral right about now to secure yourself a couple of book deals, interviews, magazine covers etc?!
That would be a dream come true! If I knew how to make it go viral, I’d be all over that. I think it’s a combination of perserverance, hard-work and dumb luck. And that’s only if people consider you talented.
Ok, not to be the Voice of Treason or anything, but did I miss the part about room and board versus tuition? Call me skeptical, but $51k/year seems too cheap…does it include the cost of the dorm and a meal card?
Please tell me that is sarcasm. $51k doesn’t seem cheap to me. That does not include room and board. I just can’t believe how much college costs!
I know. I think one year of college for your boy is gonna cost more than my entire matriculation.
I’ve been back burner thinking about this since yesterday. I’ll bet room and runs another $2k a month. That’s what my nephew pays, but he’s at a school out in Central Oregon where tuition is *only* ~$27k a year.