Colleges your child crossed off the list after visiting, schools that moved up on the list. Why?

I can share some Summer '22 visits. Full disclosure-- I’m writing this as the prospective student so it’ll be lacking the entertaining observations parents make about their kids on tours :rofl: this is still my favorite CC thread though and some of these schools get brought up pretty often on here so maybe some helpful info?

UGA - Did a self-guided tour and wow was it miserably hot (can’t hold it against the school) and difficult to get around (definitely holding against the school). I’m someone who LOVES to walk around/explore places but besides one pretty area, the campus felt nearly unwalkable and cumbersome to navigate. There’s a reason they stick y’all in shuttles for the official tour.

Carleton - Town is nondescript but safe and cute. Info session was decent. Tour guides were great. Very funny and seemed to genuinely like their school. Campus felt small and contained, pretty but not super memorable. Definitely a sense of “we work very, very hard and we’re proud of it,” but more laid back as opposed to competitive. Personally, I left with an overall positive impression of the school but just could not see myself there at all. Note: Didn’t get a chance to see the abortorium but it’s supposed to be fantastic.

St. Olaf - Heard so many great things and really wanted to like it! Info session was good, tour was odd. There were lots of tour guides and not a huge number of kids/families, so many (including us) ended up with a personalized tour. I like being able to observe and blend into the background a little so this wasn’t ideal for me, although I realize it would be for some. Tour guide was actively taking notes on me which sealed the deal as a no. Pretty campus. Friendly admissions counselors that were happy to talk with kids and parents were waiting after the tours alongside water and other refreshments. It was a super hot day so that was nice.

Macalester - Favorite location of the Minnesota LACs. I liked the info session, and the campus is underrated IMO. Our tour guide (plenty of people on this tour, thankfully) was majoring in what I would be majoring in, and was super nice when talking afterwards, but that conversation ultimately made me realize the department wasn’t focused on what I was interested in, so I took it off the list. Also a little too artsy/alternative/political for me, plus felt really small. The school did provide water after the tour, which I always appreciate.

Smith - Immediately off the list since I a) don’t fit in with the super political set of kids and b) there are almost zero places that I have visited and wanted nothing more than to leave, but Northampton is one of them. Cool housing system though

Hampshire - Tour guides/student staff were so nice!!! Charming info session. The school itself (which I also found too small/quirky) has been described as “summer camp-y” which isn’t inaccurate. It’s not what I want in a school but I’m sure some would love it. If you go, be sure to visit the absolutely wonderful children’s book museum!

Mount Holyoke - Despite how I felt about Northampton, I liked South Hadley. Campus is BEAUTIFUL: collegiate Gothic towers, lots of red brick, jaw-dropping library. Seriously, it might have been a little too intense for me. Oh, the dorms are nicer here than most if not all of the other schools detailed here. Good info session-- they were very upfront about being need-aware, which some may want to keep in mind-- and they really emphasized the culture and benefits of a women’s college as well as their many traditions (overwhelming from my perspective but not inherently negative). Still probably won’t apply but compared to the rest, MHC was probably my favorite school I toured last year.

Middlebury - The most “elitist” school we visited. During the info session, the lady said they wouldn’t compare a private New England school to a public school in (where I’m from) :joy: It felt like my area was being used as the “poor area” and I thought it was hilarious! the attitude was “you’ll be lucky if we accept you, and we know you’re coming if you get in” (don’t they take like 70% of their class ED? Because it showed) they also drilled in the fact that they don’t give merit aid. The other kids in the info session also felt more already “connected” with the faculty and staff; one girl on our tour ran into a teacher she recognized. Our tour guide was great, very outgoing, gave an engaging tour. The campus and buildings are gorgeous, and the interiors (just as if not more important imo) equally so. There was an acknowledgement of the fact that the school is most well-known for it’s language offerings, but environmental science/studies was definitely being pushed. Great sandwich shop in town. This tour is when I realized “hey, maybe I don’t like LACs.” Second favorite school I toured, still won’t apply.

Marist - We went up to see Bard and Marist had an open slot the day before so figured “why not?” Was never really a contender and didn’t become one, but impressed with what they had to offer. Skewed pre-professional. Had the best info session of any school I toured. Campus was pretty, right on the river, almost too perfect/manicured. Tour guide was clean cut and seemed to represent the student body well. This school is the anti-Bard.

Bard - Went in expecting to like it and was disappointed when I didn’t. No info session which wasn’t a good first impression. The other kids on the tour were not kids I would jive with, and their parents were relentlessly asking the tour guide questions. The tour guide was an international student who the school appeared to be overworking with tours (too many people on ours)-- I don’t think she had the full English ability to deal with the condescending questions from a few of the parents (not her fault AT ALL; those parents seemed to be trying to put her in a hard place). She didn’t have too many great things to say about Bard, not that I blame her. Seriously side-eying the school after that. As for the tour itself, we only went into one building.

Last year’s tours were very helpful in finding out what I didn’t want from a school, so hopefully I’ll find one I really click this semester. I’ll be posting the rundown on those visits after they happen!

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