Education in Apple Valley, Part 4

What and Why
I decided to do a series on how education in Apple Valley works, especially with the forthcoming changes. We will explore education from elementary school to obtaining an advanced degree. I wanted to move away from excessive skilling in my game and focus more on character development. This serves two purposes, one, it allows me to hone in on each sim's individual personality and preferences, two, it prevents excessive success. Right now, most sims are able to obtain a level 7 job without any trouble aside from making friends. This leaves very little room for variety in the game and most sims are financially well off. To ensure that I stay focused on this, I have now decided to try and do away with most toddler skills-instead focusing on teaching them how to walk, talk, etc.

FSBS-Lingo
The primary ways of educating the sims in all levels of education are skills, hobbies and interests. I often refer to skills as scores on "skill exams" (the number of skill points they have in a certain skill) or "core skill evaluation"-CSE (the number of total skills they have). Hobbies and interests will also be referred to in a similar manner. Now that the background is out of the way, let's move on.

Bachelor's DegreeToday, we're discussing obtaining a bachelor's degree. Unlike in real life, students only get one chance to attend university for a bachelor's degree. If they decide not to attend university after high school, then there are no second chances.

Students attend Pierce University for their bachelor's degree. Currently the campus in within the hood which offers some options for students in terms of housing. Pierce University offers an array of extracurricular activities that students can get involved in. Students can join sports teams such as the championship soccer team, debate team, drama club, greek life and more! Pierce University also offers students chances to hold internship positions during summer breaks within thier major to explore career options. These internships are located both within the hood and in other nearby hoods.

I have limited access to Pierce University via three methods: entrance exams, cost, and space.

Entrance ExamsSims must have a certain score on their entrance exam (which consists of the summation of several scores, including skills, hobbies, etc) in order to qualify for entrance to the university.

High School GPA (3pts=A, 2pts=B, 1pt=C)
+ # Extracurriculars (1pt each)
+ # Skill points
+ # Hobby Points
+ # Years Work Experience
======
Entrance Score

Students must have a minimum of 15 on the entrance exam to qualify for admission to the university.

CostIf students meet the entrance exam requirements, , they must have funding for their
university degree-upfront. Yes, upfront. This forces my sims to really save and plan for university. This funding can come from savings, scholarships (MAXIS and
Apple Valley's) and/or loans. Currently tuition is §8000 for the entire degree.
Any grants earned during university are nullified either by making upgrades to
the campus or via family funds. Since the university is now within the hood,
students have more housing options. If they chose to stay on campus, the room
and board fee is §2000 for the entire duration.
- §8000 for tuition plus fees for private housing and board provided by the
student
-§10000 for tuition, room and board.
Students can earn the standard MAXIS scholarships and/or custom Apple Valley
scholarships. The Inter-hood Affiliate Scholarship is available for students from affiliate hoods and is a one time §1000. The Needy Sims Award is a renewable scholarship for §1000 a simyear. It is limited to students whose family pays Tier VI taxes (poverty level) or pay Tier III taxes (lower class) and their net worth is less than $10,000/sim. For example, the Doe family has a net worth of $40,000 however there are six sims in the family, which is less than $10,000 per sim. Their children would qualify for the scholarship until the financial circumstances change.

There are a few work-study options for students, including positions in the cafeteria, labs, gym, tutoring department and more. Finally there is a Military ROTC program (Verde Herendez took was the first to take this option). In exchange for a service commitment, the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program provides the student with full tuition and a stipend of $2000 for room and board. Students must take all required military courses and training along with their other college courses
and, upon graduation, enter the service as a commissioned officer.

SpaceOnce a student has passed the entrance exam and secured funding, then we look at if there is space in the university. I only have room for three males and three females to reside in the dorm, then students must reside at home or in an apartment. If a student can pass the first few hurdles, then as long as they find housing (including going to class from home) they should be able to attend.

During university students must pass their CSE with a score of at least 20 and their CIE with a score of at least a 5 in the area associated with their major.
Interests and Majors
Animals = BIOLOGY /HISTORY /MATHEMATICS /PHYSICS /PHILOSOPHY
Crime = ECONOMICS /PHILOSOPHY/ POLITICAL SCIENCE /PSYCHOLOGY
Culture = ART /DRAMA /HISTORY/ LITERATURE
Entertainment = ART /DRAMA/ LITERATURE
Environment = BIOLOGY/ MATHEMATICS/ PHYSICS
Fashion = ART /DRAMA
Food = BIOLOGY /PHILOSOPHY/ PSYCHOLOGY
Health = BIOLOGY /MATHEMATICS /PHYSICS /PSYCHOLOGY
Money = ECONOMICS /PHYSICS /MATHEMATICS/ POLITICAL SCIENCE
Paranormal = DRAMA/ HISTORY MATHEMATICS /BIOLOGY /PHYSICS /PSYCHOLOGY
Politics = ECONOMICS/ POLITICAL SCIENCE /PSYCHOLOGY
School = PHILOSOPHY /PSYCHOLOGY
Sci-Fi = PHILOSOPHY /PSYCHOLOGY
Sports = PHILOSOPHY /PSYCHOLOGY
Toys = PHILOSOPHY
Travel = DRAMA /ECONOMICS /POLITICAL SCIENCE
Weather = BIOLOGY /HISTORY /MATHEMATICS /PHYSICS
Work = ECONOMICS /POLITICAL /SCIENCE
Study Aboard
Students also have the opportunity to study aboard in Kimikura. Students must apply for admissions to Kimikura University. Students must have a score of at least 15 on their entrance exam, at least a 3.0 GPA, and at least 15 skill points to enter.

+ # GPA points (4pts-4.0, 3.9 pts-3.9, etc)
+ # Extracurriculars (1pt each)
+ # Skill points (1pt each)
+ # Hobby Points

Each class is limited to two sims each.
Tuition for Kimkura University: §4000/year

Senior Year and Graduation
During a student's senior year they focus on perfecting their studies and finishing their senior project. Students are assigned a project depending on their major, for example art majors will need to present an art exhibit, science majors will need to publish a paper, etc. Senior projects have no effect on grades and serve to add more depth to game play. After completing their projects, students graduate with a Bachelors Degree and a dandy little diploma to hang on their walls. Their options have now opened to the darker green sections on the career table, but not the darkest green. Those options are reserved for those with an advanced degree.



In summary,

Bachelor's Degree
-20+ CSE on graduation
-MAXIS style
-senior year projects/internships
-interest generation 5+

Education in Apple Valley, Part 3

What and Why
I decided to do a series on how education in Apple Valley works, especially with the forthcoming changes. We will explore education from elementary school to obtaining an advanced degree. I wanted to move away from excessive skilling in my game and focus more on character development. This serves two purposes, one, it allows me to hone in on each sim's individual personality and preferences, two, it prevents excessive success. Right now, most sims are able to obtain a level 7 job without any trouble aside from making friends. This leaves very little room for variety in the game and most sims are financially well off. To ensure that I stay focused on this, I have now decided to try and do away with most toddler skills-instead focusing on teaching them how to walk, talk, etc.

FSBS-Lingo
The primary ways of educating the sims in all levels of education are skills, hobbies and interests. I often refer to skills as scores on "skill exams" (the number of skill points they have in a certain skill) or "core skill evaluation"-CSE (the number of total skills they have). Hobbies and interests will also be referred to in a similar manner. Now that the background is out of the way, let's move on.

Associate's Degree
Today, we're discussing obtaining an associates degree. I wanted there to be some variety in education levels of the sims. Either you went to college or you didn't, according to MAXIS. Even if you didn't go to college, you could be a doctor...um, how about no.

Sometimes sims are unable to attend university. Their options would be severely limited to only the jobs that are light green.

Now, some sims are content with that and their goal isn't to be a famous lawyer, so being the receptionist is great for them. Other sims want to excel in their careers a bit more. It could be that they had a life change later, or simply that they can't afford university, or in rare cases, are labeled "doofus" and are limited in the amount of skills they can earn.

Any resident of Apple Valley without a degree may undertake a correspondence course with Pierce University at any time. Tuition is $5,000 for the entire degree program and students must have at least a score of 15 on their entrance exam (Score on Core Skills Evaluation + #simyears work experience).

To complete their degree, students must graduate with at least a score of 17 on their CSE. Assuming the lowest possible CSE score of 13 from high school graduation, the student will be required to earn 4 skill points.

Students are able to chose one of seven associate degrees. A student's degree choice determines which skill and interest they will focus on increasing.

• Associate of Fine Arts: creativity/Culture, Entertainment, Fashion
• Associate of Culinary Arts: cooking/Food
• Associate of Business Administration: charisma/Money, Work
• Associate of Technology: mechanical/Weather
• Associate of Applied Science: logic/Animals, Environment, Paranormal
• Associate of General Studies: cleaning/School, Sci-Fi, Toys, Travel
• Associate of Public Service: body/Crime, Health, Politics, Sports

In level one, students must score at least a four on their skill exam correlated to their major and a 17 on their CSE (ie, a student focused on the Associate of Culinary Arts must have at least 4 cooking skills and at least 17 skill points total).

In level two, students focus on refining their studies. Students must earn at least a 5 on their CIE in their focused skill. Using the example above, our Culinary Arts student must have at least 5 interest points in food. If multiple interests are listed, students chose one interest to focus on. Students will use magazines and sharing interest conversations to earn interests.

In level three, students focus on perfecting their studies and finishing their senior project. Students will use Monique's computer to write 2 term papers on their core (2 different articles on the their focus skill). After completing their term papers, students graduate with a Associates Degree and a dandy little diploma to hang on their walls. Their options have now opened to the medium green sections on the career table.

In summary,

Associates Degree
-17+ CSE on graduation
-SE 4+ in focused skill
-CIE 5+ in focused interest

Magnetic Couples

Hopefully I haven't missed the whole let's look at couple's chemistry for Valentine's Day, so here are my top 10 couples in Apple Valley. I only did 10 since I have only 18 couples and that included former couples as well. I ranked them by attraction score instead of overall score.

 

10. Ginger Grey and Tobi Sweeny, 65

Close friends since they were teenagers and nursing secret crushes on each other for about as long. Their romance was short-lived and they went their seperate ways leaving Tobi with a divorce and Ginger in marriage counseling.

9. Suzanna and Bradford McMillian, 66

Suzanna traveled from Eden to visit little brother, Jesse, and to take a break from her stressful career. During her stay, Fiona introduced her sister-in-law to her "hottie coworker" and her brother made her promise not to drool over the man.  Who wouldn't fall in love with the handsome man and his cute daughter. The couple was fire from day one and quickly discovered that their fire had produced a pregnancy. Suzanna immigrated to Apple Valley and the duo has been on fire eversince, proving that you can find love later in life.



8. Susie MacAstral and Bill Carr, 71

Susie is one hot mama on campus and Bill just had to get a piece of the action. Well he did and he broke her heart into pieces. Sometimes you simply just get burned.

7. Brandon and Ilila Peterson, 73

The newest couple to immigrate to Apple Valley. They met while he was in basic training, she was the daughter of his drill sargent which also meant that she was off-limits, not to mention the fact that she was still a senior in high school. After her college graduation they bumped into each other at a different military base in the commisary's produce aisle. She walked away with more than a bag of apples that day.



6. S'Ahmisa Warwick and Verde Herendez, 77

Young love is always the hottest. Best friends since the beginning of junior high school. She continually beat his butt on the soccer field, but eventually he worked his way into her heart. She declined his proposal to go steady-claiming they were too young, even now, S'Ahmisa's the one to put the brakes on in the relationship, shooting down any talk of marriage as they're still too young. Hopefully their romance will last during the turbalent university years.


5. Jolie Dawson and Grex Grey, 87

They both still can't explain what happened that day nor which sim took the photograph and blackmailed them into leaving for the Plains. It was hot, it was quick and their romance left a huge trail of damage.

4. Anthony Wren and Susie MacAstral, 97
It's new and very promising, we'll see where this couple leads us. At least we know that it's going to be hot!

3. Julio and Rebecca Wilsonoff, 98
They liked each other as teens, but his age kept her at a distance. When Rebecca entered university and was finally legal, Julio wasted no time in claiming her. They've remained one of the most stable (and sometimes boring) couples in the hood.

2. Ginger and Grex Grey, 98

Their romance started as teens and during the great flood they couldn't help but build thier love while spending time in the close quarters of the shelter. Four children, six pregnancies, two affairs and several deaths later, this couple is still clinging to each other.

1. Antonio and Carmela Herendez, 137

Somethings father does know best. Antonio accepted an arranged marriage so that he could gain the family business. Years later the couple is growing hotter and hotter. It's an unconvential type of love, in fact they wouldn't even call it love, but it's working.

---
Any surprises?

Education in Apple Valley, Part 2

What and Why
I decided to do a series on how education in Apple Valley works, especially with the forthcoming changes. We will explore education from elementary school to obtaining an advanced degree. I wanted to move away from excessive skilling in my game and focus more on character development. This serves two purposes, one, it allows me to hone in on each sim's individual personality and preferences, two, it prevents excessive success. Right now, most sims are able to obtain a level 7 job without any trouble aside from making friends. This leaves very little room for variety in the game and most sims are financially well off. To ensure that I stay focused on this, I have now decided to try and do away with most toddler skills-instead focusing on teaching them how to walk, talk, etc.

FSBS-Lingo
The primary ways of educating the sims in all levels of education are skills, hobbies and interests. I often refer to skills as scores on "skill exams" (the number of skill points they have in a certain skill) or "core skill evaluation"-CSE (the number of total skills they have). Hobbies and interests will also be referred to in a similar manner. Now that the background is out of the way, let's move on.

Secondary School

Today, we're discussing secondary school. All secondary students, grades 6-12 (ages 12-18), attend Apple Valley Academy and are taught by Jesse Kent.

The goal of secondary school is that each student graduates with at least a score of thirteen on their CSE (fifteen for honor students) , have an increase of 3 points on their CIE (core interest exam) and have an increase of 3 points on their CHE (Core Hobby Exam). Secondary school is the place where students will continue to explore their hobby and begin to focus on their post-secondary plans.

The typical day for an secondary school student is upon entering the school, their current score on the CSE is checked. If they are lacking any points, they are directed to skill or listen to a lecture on a skill. In cases where the skill can be combined with hobby exploration, then the student is directed to explore their hobby. This is done such that the student can increase their CSE and CHE scores at the same time. Students also spend their school days earning additional interest points in their top interest via reading magazines or sharing interests with other sims.

Since most secondary school students are beginning to think about post-secondary plans, the secondary school dismisses early so that students can hold part-time jobs or internships. In addition to focusing on relationships and building hobby interests, secondary school students continue to expand their extracurricular activities.

When students enter their senior year, they are responsible for a senior project, in addition to individual class projects. Students can chose from the following projects:

• Science and the Natural World=Collect a 15 insect specimen
• Art =Bring in 3 photographs displaying the theme of "Apple Valley's Best..."
• Music & Dance =Perform a 15 minute solo recital
• Home Economics=Participate in three regional cooking contests
• Simmish & History=Write a three page paper on Monique's Computer and prepare a 15 minute speech on life in the old dimension
• Simmish Literature=Read and discuss three books with teacher.

The projects must be completed prior to graduation. In addition to the senior project, students can receive assistance in making their post-secondary plans whether it be attending university locally or aboard, or entering the workforce.

In summary,

Secondary School
-13+ CSE on graduation/15 CSE honors
-CHE 3+
-CIE 3+
-Senior projects

Extras, Birthday Style

It's my birthday so I thought I would share some extra shots that didn't make it into stories.

I'm not sure what Julio is examining in this photo, but I agree, Nicole does have some nice legs.

Uh oh, looks like someone is trying to convince Rojo to consider his career options.

Why wouldn't he like to join ranks with this guy and pick the pockets of unsuspecting sims.

Little sister Serendipity doesn't think he can handle. "Dude, it's not that serious! I call everyone lettuce brain!"

Umm, perhaps Carmela should have changed before helping Rojo with his homework, maybe he would take it more seriously if she didn't look like an extra from a bad music video.

A streaker visits Krissy, but the show goes on deaf ears and blind eyes since Krissy is dead tried from maintaining that 3.9 GPA.

Look, she has feelings! True, they're not "Omigoodness, he's having an affair!" feelings, more like "Omigoodness, he doesn't want to woohoo in the photo booth!" feelings. Um...I think he might have been busy Krissy.

When I moved the Peterson's into the hood, who should be their welcome wagon? None other than Fiona and her sister-in-law. Makes perfect sense.

Looks like Susie has stopped caring about Bill,

maybe it was because she was expecting a little company from her spring break fling.

Looks like he got around during his trip to visit Susie. Yep, that's foster sister Faith sinking her claws into another goodie. I hope these two don't share men all their lives.

As soon as I moved the Warwicks back to the hood from their overseas assignment, what did they do? Yep, dance to some good ol' classic simmish music. Hey, you can't dance like that to kimikurian music.

Cute Cameron wanted to go birdwatching. She's so quirky at times that I wonder if she's not missing a few marbles.

The sisters-in-law comparing pregnancy bellies. I think Suzanna wins.

Jesse hanging out with his twin girls. He better not have delivered another set of twins to Fiona's uterus. She's been haunting my dreams. "Why did you do this to me?" Um, Fiona, I had nothing to do with it. Somehow you two snuck off and got knocked up. "It better not be twins again!" Um, you might have to take that up with your hubby.

Education in Apple Valley, Part 1

What and Why
I decided to do a series on how education in Apple Valley works, especially with the forthcoming changes. We will explore education from elementary school to obtaining an advanced degree. I wanted to move away from excessive skilling in my game and focus more on character development. This serves two purposes, one, it allows me to hone in on each sim's individual personality and preferences, two, it prevents excessive success. Right now, most sims are able to obtain a level 7 job without any trouble aside from making friends. This leaves very little room for variety in the game and most sims are financially well off. To ensure that I stay focused on this, I have now decided to try and do away with most toddler skills-instead focusing on teaching them how to walk, talk, etc.

FSBS-Lingo
The primary ways of educating the sims in all levels of education are skills, hobbies and interests. I often refer to skills as scores on "skill exams" (the number of skill points they have in a certain skill) or "core skill evaluation"-CSE (the number of total skills they have). Hobbies and interests will also be referred to in a similar manner. Now that the background is out of the way, let's move on.

Elementary School
Today, we're discussing elementary school. All elementary students, grades K-5 (ages 5-11), attend Apple Valley Academy. Currently they are being taught by Johan Shazad until they can find a primary school teacher to take his place.

The goal of elementary school is that each child graduates with at least a score of six on their CSE, and increase of 1 point on their CIE (core interest exam). Elementary school is also the place where students will begin to explore the world and perhaps find a hobby. Children can also be identified for the honors program starting in grade 3 (some exceptions allowed).

The honors program allows for more rigorous course work which results in higher scores on the CSE. In fact, students must have a score of eight on their CSE to remain in the honors program. Entrance into the honors program comes after a successful interview with the headmaster. The honors program requires an entrance fee of $1000, though some scholarships are available.

The typical day for an elementary school student is upon entering the school, their current score on the CSE is checked. If they are lacking any points, they are directed to skill or listen to a lecture on a skill. In cases where the skill can be combined with hobby exploration, then the student is directed to discover their hobby via music class, art class, dance class, PE, science lab or simply playing at recess. The academy has at least one opportunity for each hobby (exercise equiptment=fitness; cafeteria=cuisine; books/class movies=literature & film; ballet barres, musical equiptment=music & dance; basketball court/catch=sports; remote helicopter=tinkering; hunting for bugs=nature; art & pottery class=arts & crafts; ant farms=science; recess/computer lab=games). Students also spend their school days earning additional interest points in their top interest via reading magazines or sharing interests with other sims. During elementary school, the basic requirement is an interest increase of one in any interest. Students also focus on relationships and building hobby interests.

In summary,

Elementary School (K-5)
CSE=6/Honors CSE=8
CIE=+1 in any interest
Focus on Hobby Discovery