Parents Have So Many Questions For Admissions Dean Eric Furda

The Choice is not something we have an easy time reading. We struggled through the college admissions process, and everything turned out great but, man, it is not easy to hear about it now! It's what it must be like for an alien abduction victim to read an alien abduction blog. They must say, "Living through the beaming up and the poking and the prodding on the ship was enough, so no thank you, we do not need to read about how abductions are going these days." Totally the same thing! That's why we don't check in very often.

But then yesterday, they opened up the comments section for questions directed toward Eric J. Furda, Penn Dean of Admissions. Obviously, we had to see what was up. As you could imagine, parents were all over this. Let's check out some of their questions.

"People say it’s critical to take the most difficult curriculum available at high school. If a student is really an English focused person…does she have to take AP Chem and AP Calc to be considered by Penn — considering she’s not into math at all?"

"I read that out of the 8 Ivy League schools, Penn’s endowment performed the best and was least affected by the economic events over the past year or so."

"Students are involved in so many things in this day and age. Their guidance counselors advise them to take honors courses, advanced courses, SAT prep courses, service activities, a job, sports and on and on. Most of the students in my daughter’s high school are doing it all! So what really sets them all apart?"

"How closely does the admissions office tracks the academic careers of students? What are the strongest predictors of academic success at Penn? The SAT score? The strength of their high school and the student’s performance at that high school?"

Cut the “one instrument, one sport, one language…” idiocy, and quit focusing on a prestigious college –

— focus on your CHILD.

Not their “qualifications” — RAISING YOUR CHILDREN.

Make good, smart, human beings. Spend time with them. Answer their questions. Challenge them. Teach them to be good, honest, creative, thoughtful, responsible people.

You won’t have to worry about which college. AC

AC? Could it be that a certain someone grew up, cut his hair and is now super wise, dropping cyber-knowledge on the worried and uncertain? Yes, yes it could.