Loved HC as well, they are certainly pumping a lot of money into that campus.
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I took three rising juniors on their first college tours last week. It is summer so no students around. We were just looking at local-ish schools to help the students get an idea of what college is like. We all felt that the tour guide really influenced how we saw the schools, especially as there were no students around. So if any of the schools become real contenders, the kids agreed they’d need to do a longer visit while in session.
TCU: UP and DOWN. I was impressed by the campus and community feel that the guide conveyed. We went inside the cafeteria, student center, and a classroom. The school is beautiful and really seems to support students. The guide downplayed greek life (which is big there) and emphasized religion more than I had heard from other graduates. I knew it was a religious school, but she really emphasized it. That and the emphasis on football means it likely won’t be on our lists, even though we all liked it more than we expected.
SMU: DOWN. Another beautiful campus. All three kids agreed that nothing seemed special about it. Unfortunately our tour guide seemed to showcase every stereotype we’d heard about SMU. Lots of talk about fraternities and traditions, George Bush, and business school. Definitely a great school for the right person, but not for the group of kids I was with.
UT-Dallas: UP. This one we did not get an official campus tour, but we did get to see a freshman dorm. The dorms are amazing. We had no idea what to expect from this school. We did self tour the campus and were impressed - it was much nicer than I knew. This will probably be an in-state likely option for my CS child, so I was happy that we all liked it. Of course, no students were around and we didn’t get a full tour, but it was a pleasant contained campus that felt very new.
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just finished up our 8 college New England college tour with D23 and S23 (5 reviews above, last 3 here)
Wesleyan: DOWN.
This was a very disappointing visit to me and D23, though my husband really liked it. Campus was not well maintained at all. The lawns were in very poor shape. Everything felt spread out and haphazard and stark. The architecture wasn’t cohesive, etc, etc. Our tour guide was fine and took us to see the right things though and the building interiors were better than the exterior so that’s something. D did like the tiered housing structure and the “sports quad” with the hill for chilling. We didn’t get much feel for the academics which should be the focus at a LAC I would think. We did get the feel that students were smart but not competitive or stressed out overachievers and we liked that vibe. The worst part was that I had been talking with the Film department for months to line up a personal tour of their program. This is why D toured Wesleyan and not one other LAC-- their excellent film program. Well…they stood us up. No one showed up for work that day and no one contacted me. I was not happy. D was not happy.
Trinity College: UP.
We didn’t know what to expect and hadn’t done much research on Trinity but we were pleasantly impressed. The info session was personal and conducted by a senior student who was very accomplished and articulate. The campus tour was very good and we saw everything. The campus itself is beautiful, though like most campuses, gets less so as your go outward for the oldest part. Our guide was cheerful and authentic and very likable. We had expected a preppy party vibe and just didn’t walk away with that impression at all. I am not sure I like the new curriculum they are touting as it seems a little watered down. They are trying to introduce more preprofessional opportunities I think. It was just introduced this last fall so time will tell.
Syracuse University: WAY WAY UP.
This was a last minute addition to our trip as the CC community suggested my D23 look at Syracuse. It did not fail to impress. We did the general info session and tour first. We were greeted by tons of students in orange and the administrator was friendly and struck that right balance between “your kid should feel lucky to be here” and “shameless sale pitch”. Our tour guide was amazing. She could answer every question, was definitely smart but also down to earth and genuinely thrilled to be at Syracuse. The campus was stunning with large beautiful buildings and green spaces. Campus life sounded awesome and there was strong evidence of massive school spirit everywhere. We have not experienced this level at a private school before. Then we toured NewHouse (Communication/TV/Film). We were welcomed with snacks by another friendly administrator and students. We were assigned a tour guide based on interest and he showed us the facility. Best we’ve seen hands down. Huge, modern, and definitely geared towards placing students in the industry careers. We were just floored. Sadly, the city of Syracuse didn’t do much to sell itself. Felt like something between and pit and a ghost town. This worried D more than me (why would you ever leave campus?)
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The Wesleyan guides have to do a better job of explaining the “Wild Wes” permaculture experiment which is smack in the middle of the tour route (and completely student-run):
And, of course, there’s no excuse for no one being on duty at the CFA. So sorry that happened.
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Good list and comments about your experiences. Only two questions. What was school number 8? (I only saw 7) Why do you say BU lacks identity and community?
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BC, BU, Brown, Holy Cross, Dartmouth, Wesleyan, Trinity, and Syracuse. We have twins and almost no overlap in school interest. Makes for a LOT of visits.
I don’t know that BU lacks community/identity but its a concern since the campus didn’t seem to have a real gathering place and we just didn’t hear much about school spirit or community-building traditions.
I guess I forgot to write up Brown. I will correct that now!
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Brown: DOWN
We had high hopes and thought D23 might ED to Brown. Nope. Campus was very nice-- beautiful buildings, lush landscaping, compact organization. It’s a little off putting that they don’t take you indoors at all on the tour. I would hope the interiors are nice, but we didn’t get to see them. Anyway, our guide was pretty good. He knew stuff and I think represented the school as it really is: a great place for those who want to save the world while simultaneously being involved in about a dozen different activities, jobs, service, etc. All the guides came across that way. I couldn’t tell if they were all genuine; it kinda felt like they drank the Brown Koolaid a bit. (Note: same impression at UPenn, but not at Dartmouth). Not a fit for my kids. I knew about Brown’s open curriculum but didn’t realize they don’t have GPAs either. And you literally cannot fail a course. It just disappears like you never attempted it. I like the idea of having 3-4 P/F options through 4 years to support risk taking and getting out of your comfort zone, but Brown’s approach goes too far IMO.
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Most of the kids that attend Brown don’t “abuse” the system. The vast majority come from a fairly rigorous academic background. Typically P/F is utilized on a fairly limited basis and my kid (Recent grad) wasn’t aware of anyone having an F expunged.
The OC is well suited in my experience for students that are extremely well defined in what their areas of interest are or those on the other end of the spectrum that are truly unsure. For those with specific interests OC allows for an extremely tailored deep dive and for those who are unsure OC allows for exploration. In my kids experience he came to Brown with a commercial venture in mind. All but a very limited number of “curiosity” classes were specifically chosen to advance his professional ambitions. His advisors and professors ultimately helped create a customized curriculum that he could have only experienced at Brown.
Here is the schools GPA statement…
Stated simply they care about how the game is played not how the score is kept. Works great for some and not a good fit for others. In my kids situation Brown uniquely allowed him to explore and refine his professional and personal ambitions in a manner that would have been hard to replicate at most peer schools.
Wishing your kids well and a good fit for their individual needs and wants!!
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These are the schools my D23 has visited so far and her impressions - these were all top contenders before we visited:
Lehigh - UP! She loved it. DH is an alum. Absolutely stunning campus, friendly students, programs she is very interested in. Bethlehem is really changing (for the better!) and it still remains a top contender.
Boston College - WAY WAY WAY UP! It is her top choice. She absolutely loved the campus feel, the programs they offer, the access to boston but not right in the city of Boston.
Boston University - DOWN - she liked it, but will not apply. Didn’t like the fact that there was no green space, no common gathering space. Campus did feel safe, but she did not like the super high rise dorms and just how it was so busy. Off the list.
Northeastern - WAY DOWN - oh she hated it. Didn’t even want to get out of the car. Campus was extremely crowded, hated the co-op program, just yuck. We all hated it.
Dartmouth - WAY UP - she loved it. Is also a top choice. Loved how friendly and outgoing students were, loved the way their school year is scheduled, loved the flexibility in curriculum. Campus is remote and small and quaint, and she loved that.
Georgetown - DOWN - she was not a fan. Going into the tour, she anticipated loving it. She did not. The main quad area is absolutely stunning. But beyond that, we found campus to be dirty and ugly and just not kept up well. Also, it was VERY loud (right under the Reagan flight path) and we had like 75 people in our tour and could not hear the guide. She also was not a fan of the core curriculum. Off the list.
GWU - UP! Surprisingly up. She loved it. Although it doesn’t have a traditional campus feel, it feels like everyone in and around campus is a GW student/staff. Friendly faces, nice buildings, beautiful dorms. Has exactly what she wants to study. I anticipate it will be a top choice for grad school, but perhaps not for undergrad.
Its all very overwhelming for her! She hasn’t started her essays yet, but has ideas started. I think she will likely apply ED to Boston College.
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University of Pittsburgh-Up slightly. Was not on the radar at first (too big) but my son liked the Honors Program and felt it could help make the school feel smaller. Attended a Blue & Gold Day and we were impressed with the facilities, students and programs. A big negative is the lack of diversity (65% white, 9% Asian, 5% Hispanic, 4% Black) but they do offer generous minority scholarships (my son is Hispanic) so they are clearly trying to increase diversity which is a positive. He felt the theme of “Hail to Pitt” was a bit over the top (felt it was cult-like) but he’s not looking for a “rah rah” school so I’m sure it would be seen as a sign of school spirit for most. My son wants to be in or near a cool city, so loved the city itself. He decided to apply and keep an open mind, but it’s not at the top of his list.
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Michigan State University — down
You will be paying for your own parking while on the tour. First time I visited a school that required us to pay to park.
The tour was 2.5 hours on a hot day with not even water provided. Most other schools offered us drinks and/or food at the start.
Second, I saw about 13-15 guides and 2-3 admissions staff. They were all white. It didn’t make sense because most of them stated their pronouns in their intros and the dining halls serve food that meets religious guidelines. It seems they are working toward diversity and inclusion yet not there yet.
Good things
I can envision the energy and excitement of a football home game day. The stadium is huge and seats 75,500.
The Wharton (Wheaton?) theatre hosts shows like Hamilton, comedians and more.
Other
23 did not like the lack of a central green space. Buildings are spread out. This means a lot of walking or hopping on campus shuttles.
It’s true that we did walk a LOT. I’m someone who walks a lot for exercise and even I found it hard to keep going with no water on a hot day to building after building.
Lots of opportunities and room to grow and change majors, if needed.
The ice cream is probably good as at other land grant institutions.
MSU left us without sense of their professors or their research interests. We also don’t know what the students do or what is happening in Lansing. You would not even know Lansing is nearby, because it wasn’t mentioned.
We were not shown anything created by students whereas at other schools we saw evidence of that.
I started out feeling hopeful, because it reminded me of where I attended school. At the end, I had to say that the presentation left me uninterested.
23 doesn’t like it and won’t apply even though generous merit would be received.
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Michigan State — reduced. It was lower on our list after a visit.
One of the reasons was the lack of hospitality upon arrival. The day was hot and water wasn’t provided. I can understand not providing plastic bottles. I’ve been on tours that still provided liquids without using plastic bottles, though.
And they sell drinks in plastic bottles, so it doesn’t seem like they are anti-plastic bottle.
Someone flagged this as off topic yet three others here gave it a thumbs up.
I guess someone was offended I didn’t agree with them about plastic bottles? I don’t know. 
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Michigan State is a public university and I’m sure gets tons of kids and families coming through on tours. Bottles of water add up! Every school is going to do things differently. UVA , another public university, for instance, mentions bringing your own water bottle and the availability of filling stations.
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The cool thing is you can choose schools you like. You don’t have to like what I think and you can still go on and live a good life.
I listed good things about MSU, and I see you did not reference the good things I said. Interesting.
My review includes the good and the bad as I viewed it. That’s what this thread does. We are making assessments based on a few hours of experience with the college.
Someone above didn’t choose Swarthmore, because the presenter said “um” more than 60 times. We are allowed to assess schools based on any conditions we want.
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That is so smart of UVA to do that. Maybe more schools should, and it would save a lot of bottles. 
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Let’s move off the off-topic conversation of bottles please.
Feel free to continue it in the off-topic thread, just not here
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