<p>After going to about five college for visits, my daughter had no interest in info sessions or tours; I agree that they are sales jobs and they often say a lot of the same things, or you can get the same info going to the web.</p>
<p>What she found most valuable during visits were overnite stays and attending a class; she really got a sense of the kids and the environment.</p>
<p>I think the advice is excellent. Like mountandog, we have popped in to visit campuses informally on various vacations. Plus, the kids have attended music programs and the like on various campuses, some right near home. </p>
<p>I plan to use the strategy in reverse this winter. D is a great student, but I really don't think she appreciates the enormous expense awaiting the family. So I will wait for a bitterly cold February day to "tour" the various campuses in Newark, NJ. Wind sweeping across the cement grounds will leave quite an impression on her, I hope. Then threaten her to get moving on those Fastweb type sites & try to bring in some $$$ or end up in Newark.</p>
<p>Son, like mom, is enamored of all things Notre Dame. D went to lax camp there this summer & he was in heaven just seeing the sites. I often ask him, "I thought you wanted to go to Notre Dame?" when he produces a careless or sloppy assignment. (With ADD, there are plenty of those!) He's ten. Maybe it will sink in before he's a h.s. senior.</p>
<p>Some of you guys make me feel like a moderate! The only thing that got repetitive, imo, was the info sessions. By number 20, I felt we had over-learned the importance of taking the most rigorous coursework available. The tours I found to be as unique as the campuses.</p>
<p>We started out taking photos but haven't used them. Each place was so distinct. The drive-away notes we have used in the "Why xyz college?" essays.</p>
<p>As a bit of a conclusion, my oldest visited Vanderbilt on a lark because we had nothing else to do on a beauftiful sunny Saturday afternoon after a competition in Nashville during his high school sophemore year. He ended up applying purely because of the visit and was accepted. He never would have applied had we not been in Nashville for another reason. We took advantage of our proximity. He loved Vandy, but it ended up as choice #2 and he ultimately chose a school less than an hour from home, which was always his #1. </p>
<p>Go figure.......but at least the process of visiting all these schools helped him validate his original and first choice, so in the end I don't think the time or effort was wasted.</p>
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What she found most valuable during visits were overnite stays and attending a class; she really got a sense of the kids and the environment.
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<p>For our D also. One school shot itself in the foot by not permitting high school juniors to overnite; she came away from those that did with quite positive impressions.</p>
<p>Re: Vanderbilt. We had planned to see the campus when we were in Nashville one summer. However, it was so oppressively hot, like a sauna in hell, that we skipped it.</p>
<p>Yeah - we were at Vandy in late October. Was really nice. Spoiled me, I'm a Northerner and 75 degrees in the fall is like a free vacation. I envy all you "Southerners" that time of year. But I agree with Stickershock - you can keep July and August. -- no reason to counterpost -- just light humor.</p>
<p>None of the schools we visited arranged overnights for HS Jrs. S had only one, arranged by a coach. We'll have to do second visits where he wants overnights.</p>
<p>When my children were young and we went on vacation, we always included a college to explore while on our trip. We were never on campus for more than an hour, but we always made a trip to the college bookstore to buy a tee shirt or a small stuffed mascot, etc. We would always try to find out something interesting about the school. Now they are all young adults and two are still in college, but we frequently talk about those little "tours". My kids really liked those visits. My purchase was always a little pennant from each school and I hang my pennants in my middle school classroom. It opens up so many conversations with my students and many of them come from families where they would be the first generation to go to college. I always think of them as my little "dream" pennants. I can't take my students on real tours, but I can get them to start thinking about going to college.</p>
<p>I've got some advice too, let them travel and don't call them every 10 seconds. And make cookies.</p>
<p>Wish I'd thought of the pennant idea. All of the hats, sweat pants, tshirts, sweatshirts that I've bought. We look like the UN of collegiate wear in our house. I think the pennants would have been a cheaper solution. LOL</p>