<p>Big warning that I have not read even the cited article. However, I don't entirely agree that financial reaches should never even be visited. I just don't think the idea of those visits should necessarily be initiated by the parents: the act of doing so implies, to the dependent, an indirect sponsorship of the concept of attending, which in turn implies financial sponsorship on the part of the parents. I remember these implications very much from my own childhood. When my parents brought me some place on their own initiative, I had reason to assume that they could afford to pay the current or future admission price.</p>
<p>If a student wants desperately to visit a financial reach (one or two, maybe), because of established attraction or out of curiosity, I think that the parent should agree to be the escort, as long as full disclosure is made. Sometimes the visit produces an effect different than expected: the student DOESN'T like the campus, or is less in love than previously. A surprising number of students are quite sensible about cost themselves, & will often on their own come to the conclusion that a slight or even much greater appeal of Private College X (even after a visit) is not worth the cost differential vs. public college Y. What's bad about that life lesson?</p>
<p>Also, reversals of fortune (upward) are possible, if not likely. I've read of them here on CC, heard about them among experiences of friends & acquaintances. Sometimes, between the time of application to a college & Decision Date, a parent's disposable income increases, or something else happens.</p>
<p>But even that is not my biggest reason for supporting visits, within reason. Visiting a variety of colleges -- in size, in location, in emphasis, in culture -- is part of the decision process & both directly & indirectly aids that process. It's just as important to know what you don't like in a college, or factors that you can least tolerate, as it is to know what's most realistically affordable. Sometimes a student has no concept of what is even involved in college life, until one visits. One of the most often-overlooked factors is dormitory life & its choices (or lack thereof). For many students, that would not be a deciding factor, but it is for many more students than some parents realize. You can love your classes, but if you hate your living environment & the library has limited hours or is far from your dorm, We Have a Problem, Houston. Another example: some students do not realize how essential a 'campus life' may be to them until they visit one without much of a campus life. Others may find a campus way too "activist" for their taste, & cannot experience that prior to a visit. Etc. Not everything in life is about book knowledge. So the result of visits may have less to do in some cases with the particular campuses as with providing concrete reference points to utilize as guides.</p>
<p>[editing for further clarification: visiting dissimilar colleges (including moderate to expensive privates) can help even a student looking at dissimilar colleges within a narrow affordability range -- such as a variety of UC campuses, etc. It can make the decision process more efficient & clearer.]</p>