The Waiting is the Hardest Part
81 Essays, 17 Portals, and One Very Proud Mom 🎓
They say patience is a virtue, but they clearly didn’t have a high school senior waiting on 17 college decisions.
My oldest is currently in the thick of it. We’ve had a few Early Action (EA) wins (shoutout to those excellent state schools!) and one "thanks, but no thanks" already in the books. But now? We are officially in the "Great Wait" for the remaining 17 Regular Decision (RD) schools.
It’s a state of high-stakes limbo. We’re all collectively holding our breath, waiting for a portal update to change the trajectory of the next four years. Meanwhile, my mom’s groups are talking about their student-athletes signing their letters of intent and the Early Decision kids who have already bought the college sweatshirts. They know exactly where they’re heading. But for the rest of us? We wait.
The Planner vs. The Parent
As a financial planner, I’ve been preparing for this moment for nearly two decades. I have professional-grade software. I have the color-coded spreadsheets. I even have the 529 plan that I opened while I was still pregnant with this now-giant of a teenager.
But even with all the preparation in the world, looking at the reality of a multiple-six-figure expense over the next few years is daunting. It’s a big deal.
In 2026, the "sticker price" for many private universities has cleared the $100,000-per-year mark. Even for families with a significant net worth, writing that check feels like a major life event. It’s a strange paradox—a time of immense excitement and "the world is his oyster" possibilities, paired with the sobering reality of a major financial decision.
Times Have Changed
I can’t help but contrast his 81 essays with my own experience. I applied to one school. I wrote exactly one essay. That was it. My grand "backup plan" if I didn’t get in? Becoming a flight attendant. I pictured myself traveling the world and handing out peanuts, which felt like a perfectly reasonable career path for a 17-year-old in 1990.
But somehow I managed to YOLO it to NYU, much to the chagrin of my parents and guidance counselor. Today, the stakes feel higher, the word counts are longer, and the terminology is practically a second language.
Not in the “Waiting Room” Yet? Here’s How to Prepare
If your kids are freshmen, sophomores, or juniors, you might be watching this senior-year chaos from a distance. My advice? Don’t wait until the 81st essay to look at the numbers.
Freshman/Sophomore Year: Focus on "aggressive" saving. If your 529 isn't where it needs to be, now is the time to course-correct before you have to shift to more conservative, "enrollment-ready" allocations.
Junior Year: Start running Net Price Calculators for the schools on their "dream list." It’s better to have the "State School vs. Ivy League" budget conversation now rather than in April of senior year.
The "Merit" Hunt: Look for schools where your student’s academic profile is in the top 25% of the applicant pool—that’s where the "coupons" live for high-net-worth families.
Bonus Tip for Grandparents: If Grandma and Grandpa have been saving for the cause, recent rule changes mean that distributions from grandparent-owned 529 plans no longer count as untaxed income for the student on the FAFSA. It’s a huge win for family-wide coordination.
My lo-fi college spreadsheet was a hit
The Road to May 1st
Even for our high-net-worth clients, we always recommend completing the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and the CSS Profile.
These forms often feel like a formality for families who know need-based aid isn't coming. However, some schools are more generous than you might expect, and most require these forms to be on file for merit scholarships. When the bill is $100k a year, you want every "discount" available.
Keep in mind that while the "Regular Decision" letters will drop by April 1st, the real finish line is May 1st. That is the universal deadline to put down your enrollment deposit and secure that spot.
A Note to My Fellow “Waiting Room” Parents
I watch my son check these portals, and I am hit with how incredibly proud I am of him. He has worked so hard. To get to this point, he wrote 81 essays. Eighty-one! On top of that, he studied for the SAT like a beast, grinding through more practice tests than I can even count.
He’s navigated an admissions landscape that is exponentially more competitive and complex than the one I faced. Watching him handle the "no" with grace and the "yes" with excitement has been the real ROI of this process.
If you’re in this admissions intermission like we are, try to remember that the "where" matters less than the "how." How we support them through the waiting, and how we plan for the investment that is a modern college education.
The waiting is hard. But the planning? That’s the part we can actually control.
Is your "Waiting Room" stress keeping you up at night? Let’s make sure your 529s and brokerage accounts are ready for that May 1st deposit.
The information presented in this article is the opinion of Cultivating Wealth and does not reflect the view of any other person or entity. The information provided is believed to be from reliable sources but no liability is accepted for any inaccuracies. This is for information purposes and should not be construed as an investment recommendation. Past performance is no guarantee of future performance.
