S18 is currently a junior. We are planning to visit one of his reach schools in April. He’s been to campus for a tour and an overnight summer camp at least twice already, so it seems like the next step is for him to attend a class and have an admissions interview. In talking with the visit coordinator, she mentioned a student who interviews his junior year cannot also interview his senior year. While I wasn’t necessarily planning for him to interview more than once, that did make me stop and think: Is it a bad idea for him to interview at his top 1 or 2 schools in the spring of his junior year? Or should we wait til senior year to do this?
We live about 5 hours from the school in question, and S18 plays a fall sport, so not sure we’d be able to get back to campus until December of his senior year at the earliest. S18 is outgoing and personable, so probably would not have issues with the social aspect of an interview. But he does not have a clear direction in terms of major / career plans at this point, so I wonder if another year would give that a chance to develop more so he could talk about his goals better. But does that matter all that much?
Go ahead and interview. Interviewing in Junior year or the following summer is quite common. Most schools only allow one interview (many don’t interview at all). Not having a clear direction about major / career plans is quite typical.
Tip: before interviewing at your top 1 or 2 schools, consider interviewing at some schools that are lower in the list, so that the process of interviewing with a college is no longer a new thing once you visit his top 1 or 2.
Generally I agree with most of what is said above. I personally wouldn’t do it as a junior. Firstly, while that college might be the top choice now, it may not be by the time he is a senior. If he becomes more interested in another school, you and he might feel that the ten hour drive wasn’t warranted. Secondly, you do NOT need to drive five hours for an interview. Most colleges have well-oiled alumni networks, and alumni interviews are probably how most students are interviewed anyway. Check to see if the college even offers campus interviews. Quite a few don’t. Thirdly, spring is a pretty busy time for many juniors, who are taking SAT, ACT or AP tests. Let your child focus energy on that. He will have all summer to then research and learn much more about his college choices. Finally, as you stated, he isn’t even sure of his direction or goals. He doesn’t need to have final goals or a planned major yet, of course, but if he has plenty of time to research what really matters to him, and that college is still a top choice, then it will come through in an interview. IMO, you are doing him a favor by waiting a while.
I had an interview with a school I thought I was interested in during the spring of my junior year, but by end of the summer that school was no longer on my list. I would wait to start interviewing in the summer before his senior year- trying to get most interviews done over that summer is the best way to do it, IMO (just from my own personal experience.
I would wait. 1 of my kids really thought things through far more when they did all the app essays and interviews after that process was complete would have been far better than before. They did a few apps over the summer and going back later and comparing essays we could see so clearly how much better things were later in the process.
I don’t think there’s a problem interviewing in the spring of junior year, particularly if he’s considering the school for ED and plays a fall sport. This may be the last chance he’ll have before the ED deadline to get the vibe of the school while it’s in session. If he’s personable, he’ll be fine.
If he’s applying RD, you can always interview over the summer (or request an alumni interview as he has already visited) then visit again next spring if he’s accepted. I’d be wary of investing too much time in visits to any one school, especially a reach.
The only caveat I might have on this is if he is being recruited and will need to prioritize the schools that have an interest. Then the need for on campus "data collection " might be greater.