Lucas

I don't particularly want to post a picture of Lucas on my blog, so we have this other guy named Lucas instead.

Lucas is 17, a senior, and about to apply to colleges for next year.  He's a smart kid and a pretty good student, so his list of colleges is impressive:  MIT, Stanford, UC Berkeley, Cornell, University of Washington, and maybe UT Austin.  His first choice is MIT because it has a reputation as the best engineering school.  He would really like to go there; everything else is second.

First thing to note is that he will probably not get into MIT or Stanford.  The truth is, almost no matter who you are, your chances of getting into those schools is low.  Perfect grades, 800 on one of your SATs, it doesn't matter.  MIT and Stanford will reject just about anyone.  To be in the top 75% of the students who enroll at those schools, you need an SAT average of about 780 or so.  Lucas isn't quite there.  That said, his test scores are slightly better than the 25th percentile at each school, so it's reasonable to say that he isn't out of the running, which is impressive enough from my point of view.

He has a pretty good chance at the other schools, and any of them would be a fine choice, so barring a big surprise, he will get into a good university.  UW isn't bad at all for a fallback plan.

Before I say a little about his other strong points, let me be honest about some weaknesses.  Lucas is not the most driven kid.  He gets stuff done, but he has a tendency to do just enough, just soon enough to get by.  Not as bad as me, but not great.  Some of what he has achieved can be credited to his mother's persistence more than his.  His grades last year were good, but not stellar -- he seems to shoot for an A-.  He likes video games too much.  He doesn't take the initiative often.

As far as other strong points, colleges say they want more than just classes and good grades.  Here I think Lucas has a compelling story or two.  Still could be better, but it isn't bad.  First, his education has been untraditional, a mix of home schooling, online classes, and two years of running start classes.  He has not been in a traditional classroom since second grade.  Despite home schooling, or maybe because of it, he started his online high school two years ahead in math and one year ahead in English, took honors courses, and then went to running start at a local college starting his junior year.  Second, he is an accomplished archer who competed in tournaments across the country and is nationally ranked.  Also, he will become an Eagle Scout sometime this year.

It's more than I ever did.

If I have any advice for him, it is this:  you have been given a good mind and a good start.  Don't waste them.  Do something with your life that you can be proud of when you're done.

Fortunately, Lucas doesn't seem like the type to let things slip away.  He tends to choose a goal and then pursue it, maybe without too much energy, but he keeps at it.  He wants to be an electrical engineer, and I expect he will be one day.  The first step -- which school he goes to -- should be decided by the middle of March.