Tuesday, February 7, 2012

UVA Twitter Posts - Round 2

It's been about a year since I posted my favorite UVA Twitter posts.

Well our UVA Dean has been at it again, twittering like crazy these past couple months as he and his staff have read thousands of college applications.

A lot of good stuff. Some absolutely over the top tweets.

So here is my second round of favorite UVA Twitter posts.
(Bold = twitter post; lower case commentary = my short ramblings).

1. I've been reading essays about Harry Potter for 10 years & just read the best one. It can't be topped. Topic is retired. (Thank god! now you can move on to a new topic - 10 years of essays on Hunger Games)

2. Looking at a transcript with a GPA over 4.0 & C's and a D in core subjects. GPA is meaningless without context. (Some parents are shocked to learn that not every school uses a 4.0 scale. We use a 4.33 scale by the way).

3. Reading an application from a school where the top average in the graduating class is 123.6%. (Can you say massive grade inflation?)

4. Students, we're happy to talk to your (*helicopter) parents, but we really love when you contact us yourself with questions! (*my addendum to tweet)

5. Dear Florida, we really don't need elementary and middle school work on the transcript. (I wonder if all elem./junior high awards, honors, and medals for "good sportsmanship" are on there?).

6. Reading an app from a school where cheering is graded & has the same credit value as core subjects. A higher GPA with every basket toss! (To take a swipe at cheerleaders is to wake a grizzly bear mamma from her winter slumber. So no comment on this one.)

7. I don't have a preference when it comes to weighted/unweighted GPA. As long as the profile shows methodology, I'm happy (Click here to find our school profile to see how we explain our"weighted" GPA methodology).

8. If you write about a subculture that has lingo, don't use the lingo in your application essay. I'm interested, but lost! (So maybe one needs to translate the lingo for the non-native speaker?).

9. I've seen so many transcripts with straight A+ grades this year. Once upon a time, an A+ was a rarity. (At Casady this is still the case. We've had one A+ student graduate from Casady in the last 5 years.)

10. Came across a school that has a craft curriculum. Even offers Honors Crafts. Where were these courses when I was in school?!? Also; we don't really look too hard at electives. (Core classes always count - English, Math, Science, Humanities, Language).