<p>Every college admission session and tour I have attended had the following four individuals in attendance:</p>
<p>Father who thinks he is going to get his kid admitted by impressing the tour guide with his witty banter</p>
<p>Father who acts as if he is the one who will be attending the school and feels the need to constantly provide his own view on things</p>
<p>Mother who asks the same exact questions that were just answered in detail by the admissions rep</p>
<p>Mother who insists on asking specific financial aid questions to the exclusion of all else regardless of the subject matter at hand</p>
<p>All of these characters were in attendance at each college. I suspect there may be a casting agency that provides out-of-work actors to play these roles. (In one particularly impressive tour-de-force performance one guy played both of the male roles simultaneously while also providing a dead-on imitation of Robert DeNiro in The King of Comedy.)</p>
<p>I have had several people confirm that these characters were also represented in other tours/info sessions that they attended. Has anyone else experienced these theatrical performances and what other consistent characterizations have you witnessed?</p>
<p>There’s always one mom who asks about alcohol and co-ed bathrooms.</p>
<p>Hysterical - and very accurate. I will add a few.</p>
<p>Father who is an alumni of the school and keeps up a running commentary on what has and has not changed since he attended in the 70’s.</p>
<p>Mother who is concerned that the school will not be academically challenging enough for her son since he has taken 10 APs and wants to double major in biology and neuro science.</p>
<p>Mother who is worried about adequate health and counselling facilites and gives way too much info on son’s health issues.</p>
<p>One of the things I always enjoy most is watching the pushy parents who HAVE to be at the very front of the group - so that they can reach out and touch the tour guide. Then the tour guide shifts direction and suddenly the pushy parents are towards the back of the group. Watch them elbow and navigate their way back to the front of the group. This can be a timed event.</p>
<p>There’s also usually the simpleton who asks “What is the cost?” obviously never having heard of the internet or any of the 724 college guides out there.</p>
<p>The winner is definetly one father who asked on a Princeton tour “What is the application process?”.</p>
<p>I will add to the cast of characters the geeky girl that ask about research opportunities (which were just discussed at length by the speaker).</p>
<p>And yes, we did have the same cast of characters on our tours and a few more!</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/900464-pet-peeve_-if-student-parent-not-registered-tour.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/900464-pet-peeve_-if-student-parent-not-registered-tour.html</a></p>
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<p>lol, truth.</p>
<p>Also: The father who tries to get the tour guide to admit where he did and did not get admitted by asking, “So you obviously had to pick between several great schools…why’d you chose X?”</p>
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Or mother but hahaha so true. </p>
<p>Also, I’ll add two that I often see.</p>
<p>Mother/father dragging along a 4-8th grade student at the front of the tour who spends the entire session asking what factors got the guide in x school. </p>
<p>and</p>
<p>Mother/father that laughs way too loudly at every slight attempt at humor by the tour guide.</p>
<p>Some college tours are depressing. It’s like everyone walks with his head down, and people don’t even change their expressions in response to what the tour guide is saying. “Questions anyone?” <em>silence</em> “Okay, let’s move on to the next building, which is built in the historical 1800s…”</p>