hSDN Class of 2012

The 2011-2012 college season is about to open with CommonApp starting up tomorrow. Good luck to everyone as they begin to apply to colleges! :luck:

Members don't see this ad.
 
The 2011-2012 college season is about to open with CommonApp starting up tomorrow. Good luck to everyone as they begin to apply to colleges! :luck:

:eek:

Where has the time gone!

Back from my trip to Florida, it was great. Going to Ann Arbor in 4 days!
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Senior workload is pretty heavy and I've had band practice, so I've not been posting much.

Just reporting that I was accepted to the University of Alabama today!
Exciting :D
 
Congrats, Doxorubicin!!!

And hello everyone:D It's been a little while since I've been on. How is the beginning of senior year going for everybody?
 
Congrats Doxorubicin! It must feel great that you don't have to worry about college acceptances for senior year.

Hopefully everyone has had a good start to the year. My senior year is starting off pretty well. Have a great teacher for AP Chemistry and I was able to get into an honors VHS class in Anatomy and Physiology this semester. Of course, our school told the junior class that they'll all be getting iPads next year for school (not to mention that they'll be in a new high school). Our consolation is that we'll be the last graduating class for the old school :)roll eyes:), but whatever.

Hopefully everyone has a good senior year and a successful search for their undergraduate college. :luck:
 
Wow! iPads for all of them? Holy cow. The AP Lit class gets Kindles at my school (we haven't gotten them yet but will soon apparently), but that's about it. Glad to hear things are going well for you so far, though! My year has started off pretty well also. I think my favorite class this year will be honors physics (we don't have AP physics :/), the teacher is a really cool dude and it's been interesting so far.
 
Wow! iPads for all of them? Holy cow. The AP Lit class gets Kindles at my school (we haven't gotten them yet but will soon apparently), but that's about it. Glad to hear things are going well for you so far, though! My year has started off pretty well also. I think my favorite class this year will be honors physics (we don't have AP physics :/), the teacher is a really cool dude and it's been interesting so far.

Well, they're "supposed" to. One of our vice-principals thinks that the only thing the kids will have to bring to school is the iPad, so I doubt it'll work out that well. Once the iPads are broken/stolen/lost, I have a feeling our school will change the way they handle things.

Sounds like you're having a great year so far. Haven't taken physics in high school, so really can't speak about it. But at least you have a decent teacher for it.
 
Well, they're "supposed" to. One of our vice-principals thinks that the only thing the kids will have to bring to school is the iPad, so I doubt it'll work out that well. Once the iPads are broken/stolen/lost, I have a feeling our school will change the way they handle things.

Sounds like you're having a great year so far. Haven't taken physics in high school, so really can't speak about it. But at least you have a decent teacher for it.

Wow! iPads for all of them? Holy cow. The AP Lit class gets Kindles at my school (we haven't gotten them yet but will soon apparently), but that's about it. Glad to hear things are going well for you so far, though! My year has started off pretty well also. I think my favorite class this year will be honors physics (we don't have AP physics :/), the teacher is a really cool dude and it's been interesting so far.

Wtf? Your schools have money for fancy electronics? My high school is at least $30 mil in debt thanks to education cuts and Robin Hood :(
 
Haha, oh trust me, I was quite surprised when I heard about the Kindle thing last year. We're a fairly small school (only 800ish students total) located in a somewhat rural area and have experienced some funding cuts as well, so we don't have a ton of money lying around either from what I understand. I'm excited about getting to use the Kindle though, I've been contemplating getting an e-reader of some kind so I'm looking forward to trying one out.

AntiHouseMD said:
Well, they're "supposed" to. One of our vice-principals thinks that the only thing the kids will have to bring to school is the iPad, so I doubt it'll work out that well. Once the iPads are broken/stolen/lost, I have a feeling our school will change the way they handle things.

Ahhhhh, I see. I would doubt it would work out that well also. It'll be interesting to see what impact technology like the iPad has on education in the future, though.
 
Haha, oh trust me, I was quite surprised when I heard about the Kindle thing last year. We're a fairly small school (only 800ish students total) located in a somewhat rural area and have experienced some funding cuts as well, so we don't have a ton of money lying around either from what I understand. I'm excited about getting to use the Kindle though, I've been contemplating getting an e-reader of some kind so I'm looking forward to trying one out.



Ahhhhh, I see. I would doubt it would work out that well also. It'll be interesting to see what impact technology like the iPad has on education in the future, though.

Same here with the iPads. I thought we were broke since we can't even repair some parts of our high school, but apparently we have money for new iPads. May be part of the new high school budget, but I'm not entirely sure. I definitely agree that iPads will have an interesting impact on education. However, I would think that colleges and medical schools (all postgraduate schools, for that matter) would be a much better place to experiment than a high school. But, who knows?
 
Last edited:
Have you guys started working on your CommonApp essays? Right now, I can't decide between several essay topics, and I wanted to know whether any of you guys had any suggestions one way or the other. Here are some of the topics that I've thought of doing. My ideas are in bold.

. Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence. (My grandfather, who's played a big role in who I am today. Worried it's too common, though.)
. Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence. (Leaning towards Pope John Paul I, not the II. Possibly either Sherlock Holmes or Watson also from Doyle's books, even though it sounds really weird).
. Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you. (My work at the local newspapers, covering sports and what I have learned as a result).

So, as you can see, I'm somewhat stuck. I'm leaning towards Option 1 with my grandfather, but I just wanted to see what you guys thought.
 
Have you guys started working on your CommonApp essays? Right now, I can't decide between several essay topics, and I wanted to know whether any of you guys had any suggestions one way or the other. Here are some of the topics that I've thought of doing. My ideas are in bold.

. Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence. (My grandfather, who's played a big role in who I am today. Worried it's too common, though.)
. Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence. (Leaning towards Pope John Paul I, not the II. Possibly either Sherlock Holmes or Watson also from Doyle's books, even though it sounds really weird).
. Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you. (My work at the local newspapers, covering sports and what I have learned as a result).

So, as you can see, I'm somewhat stuck. I'm leaning towards Option 1 with my grandfather, but I just wanted to see what you guys thought.

If they're all well-written, it shouldn't matter what you write it on. I would choose the second one; it gives you an opportunity to show off both what you know and who you are. If you're applying to selective colleges, I think the second essay would put you in a "scholarly" (for lack of a better term) light.

Just my $0.02.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Have you guys started working on your CommonApp essays? Right now, I can't decide between several essay topics, and I wanted to know whether any of you guys had any suggestions one way or the other. Here are some of the topics that I've thought of doing. My ideas are in bold.

. Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence. (My grandfather, who's played a big role in who I am today. Worried it's too common, though.)
. Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence. (Leaning towards Pope John Paul I, not the II. Possibly either Sherlock Holmes or Watson also from Doyle's books, even though it sounds really weird).
. Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you. (My work at the local newspapers, covering sports and what I have learned as a result).

So, as you can see, I'm somewhat stuck. I'm leaning towards Option 1 with my grandfather, but I just wanted to see what you guys thought.

I'd rec Option 3. It'll give you an additional chance to enhance and go more into depth about your resume.

In other words, it'll give you a chance to "show yourself off"
 
In other words, it'll give you a chance to "show yourself off"

:thumbup: Your newspaper stuff sounds pretty cool and definitely worth expanding on. Plus, there's a lot of students out there who could probably show off their knowledge of historic figures (though your ideas for that prompt do sound impressive), but probably not nearly as many who have had that opportunity. In the wise words of one of my teachers, "There's a lot of smart kids out there. Make yourself unique."

How's the application process going for everyone? I've started one of my apps but I'm waiting for my ACT results from this past Saturday before I finish the rest. Speaking of, did anybody else take it this weekend?
 
I've started one of my apps but I'm waiting for my ACT results from this past Saturday before I finish the rest. Speaking of, did anybody else take it this weekend?

I did, I can honestly say that the science section on that particular test had me dumbfounded. And the after effects of that kinda got to my essay as well. Did you find it awful too?
 
I feel ya. It was definitely pretty rough. It wasn't as awful as the one in June in my opinion, but still pretty gnarly. How did you feel about the rest of it? The math section didn't seem too bad to me this time.
 
I didn't think the rest of the test was bad at all, the english and math I felt were easier than normal, and the reading was about on par to what it usually is. I'm just hoping I somehow managed to pull my 29 up to a 30 or 31, cause that's where the scholarship money is at.
 
Hey guys. How is the college search/application process going for you? I wrapped up my college essay a few days ago :)soexcited:) and getting ready to send in my CommonApp and various supplements to a few schools. Was able to get two of my teachers (one of which is head of our science department) to write recommendations for me. Just have to hope that my guidance department doesn't screw anything up. If all goes well, I'll know by Christmas whether my top choice accepted me. Good luck in the process!

On a side-note, AP Chemistry is going great and my A&P class is also pretty good.
 
I'm gathering all my stuff together to apply for Campbell and their pre-pharmacy program.

Classes so far are really easy, I don't need to buckle down until next semester, then I'll get AP Statistics and AP Chemistry to contend with.

Overall, I should be fine. I got a 3.92 cumulative weighted GPA and good AP scores from last year. And my Spanish teacher is an alumna, so I'm going to get her to write a recommendation for me. =D

I think I'm taking the ACT in December, but I haven't registered yet.
 
Hey guys. How is the college search/application process going for you? I wrapped up my college essay a few days ago :)soexcited:) and getting ready to send in my CommonApp and various supplements to a few schools. Was able to get two of my teachers (one of which is head of our science department) to write recommendations for me. Just have to hope that my guidance department doesn't screw anything up. If all goes well, I'll know by Christmas whether my top choice accepted me. Good luck in the process!

On a side-note, AP Chemistry is going great and my A&P class is also pretty good.

My app process is going pretty well, I have 2 of my four essays done, I have 1/4 letters already written, and will submit my Eagle Scout project proposal this week.

I'm loving AP chem at the moment, and have a pretty good grasp on my calculus concepts. My hardest class right now is Honors Adv. Biology though. It's by far, the most fast-paced class I have taken/am taking. About 1/3 of the students are failing right now, and I'm glad I've treated it like a college class from day one. That being said, I have a scientific Research paper rough draft due next Monday and I haven't started it yet :scared:.

Anyways, good luck to everyone in their college application process!
 
Here's hoping the applications are going well!
Got a few honors college notifications in the past week. Band still takes up 90% of my life, including the occasional 11 hour weekend rehearsal... but it'll be over in November so hopefully I'll have a life then!

Best of luck, everyone! :D
 
Just wanna remind all of those EA/ED applicants that November 1st is less than 3 weeks away.

Good luck with your apps.
 
I've decided I will be attending the University of Alabama for the next four years!

Beautiful campus + beautiful facilities + free degree + good research = Me gusta :)
 
October SAT scores in; got a 2250.. up from low 2100s last time.

I hope this will allow me to get into my state flagship university after my tumultuous high school career.
 
Officially a college applicant!

Me too. All of my colleges have received my transcripts, so I am now officially an applicant. Now I'm stuck in the waiting game. How long do you have to wait for your schools? Most of my schools said around Dec. 16th for a decision.
 
Me too. All of my colleges have received my transcripts, so I am now officially an applicant. Now I'm stuck in the waiting game. How long do you have to wait for your schools? Most of my schools said around Dec. 16th for a decision.

I think that Michigan's latest date is Dec 23rd.

Already accepted to state school though, so I'm not exactly sure about how this works.
 
Hey fellow AP chem students, or anyone for that matter, I have a quick question about intermolecular forces. On a test I took friday, I put that SI2 molecules had London dispersion forces between eachother instead of dipole dipole forces, and a lot of people chose the latter. The reason I chose LD forces was that the electronegativity difference between Sulfur (2.58) and Iodine (2.66) was rather small. It's been bugging me for a while now. Am I right, or am I missing something?
 
Update: I was right!

Anyways, how's everyone doing? The thread has been a little quiet lately... :(
 
Update: I was right!

Anyways, how's everyone doing? The thread has been a little quiet lately... :(

Doing okay. Officially applied to 4 of my 5 colleges (still haven't done a safety), so now I'm just waiting. Now having some regrets over not doing a lot in high school (a lesson for younger hSDN'ers) and wishing I had become involved in some school stuff. At least now I'll make up for it in college.

How's AP Chemistry going? I'm doing okay with some bumps along the way. Everything else is going pretty good.
 
Now having some regrets over not doing a lot in high school (a lesson for younger hSDN'ers) and wishing I had become involved in some school stuff. At least now I'll make up for it in college.

This. I didn't do National Honors Society and am beating my self up for not applying. Hopefully the deadline isn't over.

How's AP Chemistry going? I'm doing okay with some bumps along the way. Everything else is going pretty good.

AP Chem is going great. I love my teacher, she used to teach at our local university, and teaches the subject really well. On Tuesday the entire class is going to tour UNMC in Lincoln.
 
Great to hear that AP Chemistry is going well for you, GammaKnife. Our teacher (who ended up at our high school after a biochemistry PhD at Oxford, for some odd reason) has done a great job with teaching it. Now working on bonds.
 
Last edited:
Great to hear that AP Chemistry is going well for you, GammaKnife. Our teacher (who ended up at our high school after a biochemistry PhD at Oxford, for some odd reason) has done a great job with teaching it. Now working on bonds.

I'm guessing that he prefers teaching high school students, that's why our teacher quit teaching at the college. By the way, is your class a full year or semester?
 
Can someone please read over one of my essays? I would greatly appreciate it.
 
GK, full year class.

Oh, ours is a semester class, but I guess that a year class would make it easier to take the AP test.

Anyways, interesting story with my UNMC visit... Never happened. At around 9:10 AM Central time, our bus was rammed into a barrier by a semi who was trying to merge into our lane. The bus jumped up onto the barriers and slid on them for about 30 feet before stopping. The front of the bus was ripped apart from the rest of the bus. Aside from shock, headaches, and minor bumps and bruises, my teacher broke her finger, my other teacher fell out of the bus and is currently stable, A girl broke her hand in three places, and their were a few concussions. So yeah, pretty interesting day.
 
Oh, ours is a semester class, but I guess that a year class would make it easier to take the AP test.

Anyways, interesting story with my UNMC visit... Never happened. At around 9:10 AM Central time, our bus was rammed into a barrier by a semi who was trying to merge into our lane. The bus jumped up onto the barriers and slid on them for about 30 feet before stopping. The front of the bus was ripped apart from the rest of the bus. Aside from shock, headaches, and minor bumps and bruises, my teacher broke her finger, my other teacher fell out of the bus and is currently stable, A girl broke her hand in three places, and their were a few concussions. So yeah, pretty interesting day.

Wow. That puts me getting lost while going to Saint Michaels in perspective.

Hopefully you guys were okay and everyone else wasn't critically injured.
 
Wow. That puts me getting lost while going to Saint Michaels in perspective.

Hopefully you guys were okay and everyone else wasn't critically injured.
Everyone's doing okay, but apparently I broke my nose during the crash. Didn't really notice it until this morning, but X-rays confirmed it.

New topic: Are you taking Calc this year?
 
Everyone's doing okay, but apparently I broke my nose during the crash. Didn't really notice it until this morning, but X-rays confirmed it.

New topic: Are you taking Calc this year?

Yep. I'm taking Honors Pre-Calc this semester, and then I'm taking Honors Calculus next semester. The calculus teacher at my school is really good, so I'm looking forward to it.
 
Yep. I'm taking Honors Pre-Calc this semester, and then I'm taking Honors Calculus next semester. The calculus teacher at my school is really good, so I'm looking forward to it.

Nice, I just started this term because we have a weird schedule for the class (3 terms). My teacher's pretty good, and explains things very well. The only thing I don't like about the class is that we got new TI-Inspire calculators this year, and it seems like we waste half of the time messing around with the features. So, does your school use a block schedule or a traditional/both?
 
Nice, I just started this term because we have a weird schedule for the class (3 terms). My teacher's pretty good, and explains things very well. The only thing I don't like about the class is that we got new TI-Inspire calculators this year, and it seems like we waste half of the time messing around with the features. So, does your school use a block schedule or a traditional/both?

We have 4-blocks at 84 minutes each. Every two weeks, the first and last blocks switch (no idea why, though). Four terms with two semesters, and most classes last a semester. The AP classes go on for two semesters, though.

EDIT: This may seem like an odd question, but do you guys use notebooks or binders for school? I've been going back and forth between the two for the entire year, and I'm trying to settle on which one to use this weekend.
 
Last edited:
EDIT: This may seem like an odd question, but do you guys use notebooks or binders for school? I've been going back and forth between the two for the entire year, and I'm trying to settle on which one to use this weekend.

Depends on the class. Notebooks for Chem and Calc, because a lot of the assignments are out of the book, and a binder for Bio, because there are a lot of handouts and worksheets.
 
AntiHouse did you get my PM? i sent you a message but it's not showing up in my sent messages tab in my message center.
 
Yep. I have it. I'll try to have it back to you by tonight or tomorrow morning.
 
God I suck at just sitting down and studying/doing homework.... I'm a horrible procrastinator, it took a lot for me just to finish half of my homework before school.

My homework schedule usually is:

2nd Block - 3rd Block homework

3rd Block - 4th Block homework

4th Block - 2nd Block homework.

I really need to change this, anyone have any ideas/in the same boat? It hasn't really affected my grades, but it's probably not the best strategy for college.
 
It's official. I'm going to be going to college (don't know where yet, though) next year. I received my acceptance letter from the University of Vermont today. 1-1 so far.

:soexcited:
 
First post on SDN.

I got accepted to Rutgers and Pitt (full tuition). 2/2 so far. :D
 
First post on SDN.

I got accepted to Rutgers and Pitt (full tuition). 2/2 so far. :D

Welcome to SDN, and congrats on the acceptances and scholarships! What's your top choice so far?
 
Top