<p>Trying to decide if it's worth having my kids take off from school for Admitted Student Days that aren't during our vacation. In a way, I think it would be more beneficial to see the school as it really is, and not with all the bells and whistles that I imagine go on during these special sessions. However, I can see that it would be fun to be there with other kids who may be their peers in the fall. Any thoughts?</p>
<p>I’ve heard the advice to go on a non-hoopla day as they are just selling you the school and you may not get the true feeling of the school but my D has also said she’d really like to get a sense of the classmates she would have so that makes a good argument for admitted students day as well. I think for us it will more more dependant on when we can go given the constraints of a time intensive spring sport but I see the value in both.</p>
<p>If possible, you should look at the admitted students’ day schedule and then decide. A lot of the utility depends on what you are able/interested in doing. If it’s just going to be campus tours and big lectures then it might not be worth it. But often there are parent panels where parents can ask questions that might be of interest to them, activity fairs, special tours of certain departments or facilities, or major fairs where professors can talk one on one with students interested in studying in thier department. You can’t get any of those things on a regular visit day. </p>
<p>But, I tend to be a fan of going on a regular day. Having been a tour guide and worked both the major events and the weekly tours, its a lot easier to connect with the campus on a weekly tour. If your tour group is not that large, your guide may be able to tailor the tour to your interests, and you can often schedule time to meet with a professor or attend a class while school is in session. Plus, you can observe students behaving naturally. A lot of times on the big admitted students days they’ll hunker down in their dorms or get off campus to avoid the crowds.</p>
<p>I think it’s also valuable to make the circumstances of the visits the same. In other words, if you’re going to an accepted students day at college X, it may be unfair to compare that with college Y if you aren’t going or can’t go to college Y’s accepted students day.</p>
<p>I have visited our DD’s school multiple times now. I would say that going on the admitted student day is easier. Because they would offer free parking, have someone at each corner to give direction, and they make a set of activities for the students to participate. Other than those, visiting during any regular day is about the same.</p>
<p>The school ground should be just as clean, professor teachs the class the same way. </p>
<p>During our DS’s overnight at one of his potential school. The hosting students took all of the HS students to a party. DS told me that one of the HS girls was 100% totally wasted from drinking. The next morning, DS’s host left the dorm at 7:00 AM for a trip so DS was unable to go to breakfast.</p>
<p>During admitted students day it is easier to ask questions, they have forums set up for parents to ask questions and just as when on tours I learned alot from other parents/students who asked things I didn’t think to ask.</p>
<p>It was also a nice opportunity to talk to other students who were in the process of deciding.</p>
<p>We did both “event” type visits and regular day visits with our D. All of us thought the regular day visit was much more effective. Most of the things discussed at the events were already available on the website, in the college literature, etc. A big part of the visit is to just absorb the vibe of the school to see how it feels. D would take a tour, we would usually eat lunch at the school, maybe meet with a professor or a student, depending on what admissions set up. Then just wander around for a while.</p>
<p>Worked well for her.</p>
<p>I thought the Admitted students days were better, as did D. A complaint I heard on CC was that the school pulls out all the bells and whistles. Well, it’s not as if the entire student body was out there rah-rah-ing the news students! For the most part, everything was basically the same as a regular day except that current students and profs were available all day to ask questions, etc. and the tours were a bit more polished. As DadII said earlier, it’s just easier…</p>
<p>I think if you can only do one the admitted students days are more informative. There are more students to talk to, there may be deparmental tours or presentations, often there will be some sort of EC fair. The only thing you might not get is a taste of the normal cafeteria food.</p>
<p>I would go for the admitted students day because there’s usually a lot more set up for you to learn. I have an admitted students day coming up, and the itinerary contains far more than a normal info session and tour day.</p>
<p>We found that the quality of the admitted student days varied. </p>
<p>At one, it was a bit of a cattle call, mostly one large forum after another in which school reps talked endlessly about the great history of the university. No opportunity to meet with professors or current students. There was one special tour of a research building for students interested in science and math, and that was very nice. The overnight dorm experience was a great big negative. Overall, the visit did not impress me. We had been to the campus for visits two other times already, so it didn’t destroy son’s interest altogether, but it might have if that had been the first visit.</p>
<p>Another one, however, was very well done. Many professors available and circulating during a great lunch, current students moving from table to table to answer questions. Students were broken into groups according to prospective major and met in small groups with professors. Parents had meetings just for them, and the students went off for other activities. </p>
<p>If I were giving advice on this, I would say go the accepted student day because if you are treated like nothing special, maybe that tells you something.</p>
<p>We always went on whatever day fit our schedule. There are pluses and minuses to going on an Admitted Students Day. More important that you make the visit period.</p>
<p>(And how many are you going to? DS#1 was easy because he’d narrowed it down to two schools, so we only re-visited them. Neither visit was on an admitted student day, but they were back-to-back, so it made for an easy comparison.)</p>
<p>It is impossible for D to get to any of the admitted students days. I wish she could go, as one of the schedules looks like there will be good information about different dorm atmospheres, freshmen seminars, meeting profs, etc. I guess it depends on the school. Coincidentally, her second choice has admit day on the same weekend, about a 10 hour drive away. Maybe it’s a good thing that she can’t get to California that week…</p>
<p>Yes, there may be some staged experiences at some schools for admitted student days. But, really, the university ambiance, the basic under-gradness of the students, etc. will not be appreciably different. And you will have good parking and the presentations will be less about “how to and why you should apply” and more “this is what we offer to you.”</p>
<p>Do whatever works best with your schedule. D went to one admitted students day on a weekend and it was so crowded it was impossible to get all questions answered. She went to first choice school on a regular day because she had a conflict on admitted student day, had a knowledgeable guide, spoke to people in her intended major. It was far more productive. YMMV</p>
<p>Admitted student days usually provide an opportunity for the student to stay in the dorm with a host and you won’t get that on a regular day. It’s the best way for your child to get a feel for the school. And not every information session will be packed. I remember one for my daughter’s intended major that was only 10 or 12 students meeting with the department chair to ask questions. Those opportunities may be harder to arrange when you go on your own. If possible, I agree that you should compare school X and Y based on the same type of visit (admitted student session or not).</p>
<p>Try posting the question on particular college website. (Do a search first… I’ve seen the question discussed on Mudd, Carnegie Mellon, and possibly other.)</p>