Sorry- replied below but did not attach for some reason- it’s 6-7 posts down
That really stinks for your D and there are a lot of similarities with my D17 at another LAC in NY. So very hard and isolating for so many freshmen. However, at least my D already had her friends established, has been able to continue with one of her outdoor activities, and is living with friends in a suite (was in singles prior to this year) so it makes it tolerable. That’s why it is going to be so tough for @homerdog and daughter to assess vibe (which I agree has more to do with the social scene and opportunities for most students) because things are so different. I almost think it would be most important to talk to as many juniors and seniors as possible at each school to get a feel for what it was like pre Covid. For example, my S19 was absolutely loving Vandy and his freshman experience pre Covid, much more than he thought he would (thought they would all be “nerds” 
). One of his high school teammates who is a year behind him and was high school valedictorian ended up choosing Vanderbilt (in spring 2020 after covid hit) with input from my son. However, the friend’s experience has been night and day difference from what my S had freshman year, so talking to him to assess fit would be a lot different from talking to upperclassmen. I do think the friend is very happy with his choice, but has no idea what it will really be like when things are back to normal.
I also think part the experience of fit depends on how flexible the student is with handling social roadblocks and other disappointments and challenges. My D’s reaction to having a bad roommate or not getting into a club or a part in a play would be quite different than my S’s. He would just go with the flow, continue to try to join other things and keep going until he found his people. When he didn’t want to go on college visits and said he didn’t care much about fit and would be happy at any college, I believed him.
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I agree. We are avoiding talking to freshman. They don’t know what the schools are really like.
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Actually, I think you helped make the point that visits aren’t that important and a lot of the college experience will be both random and unpredictable.
I think most colleges are going to be very far from normal next year. It won’t be as drastic as this year, but I expect colleges who were very strict this year to still have many restrictions in place. If having a “normal” experience is important to you, I would look very closely at how the various schools responded this year.
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Nope. Bowdoin saying that, with vaccines, they are planning everything for fall as normal. Why would schools not be normal? I see zero evidence that they’ll have to have these rules anymore.
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I’m concerned that covid variants might mess up the progress made by the vaccines, but I’m hopeful that with so many people vaccinated, the variants still won’t have the same reach as the original virus.
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We will see come fall. I think things will be improved but not anywhere near what most of us consider “normal.”
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Do you have some inside info? I see you’re looking mostly at bigger southern schools and I agree that those may have different falls. Many have large classes that might remain online because those schools found that convenient. I don’t think the schools on D’s list, where the in-person experience is tantamount to why kids go there, will be remote learning next semester.
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Richmond draws much more from MATL than Davidson (31% vs 17%) but it’s one state closer. Richmond draws 8% less from the West and 3% less from New England. They’re both geographically diverse.
Richmond gets 41% of enrollees come from ED vs 55% at Davidson, 54% at Lehigh and 59% at Colgate. Lehigh’s overall yield is pretty low considering the high percentage it enrolls from ED.
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First off, congratulations to your daughter. She has some amazing options. I wish her good luck in deciding.
Now, as for school in the fall – I would say every student needs to be prepared for any class to go remote at any time. I base this upon what one of my own kids has experienced this spring. They have an in-person class that met in-person once over the first 6 weeks of the semester. The reason had nothing to do with the college in question. Rather, the professor has an elementary school aged child and there were issues there. The prof had to stay home to provide child care. These kids won’t be getting vaccines in 2021 and there’s no way to predict what will happen. Yes, it’s one-off, but it can happen.
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I didn’t specify that I thought remote learning would be the default. I just don’t believe that things will be normal. They are talking about social distancing being in effect well into 2022. Most of the impacts will be on the social side IMO. As I said, we will see come fall.
FWIW, most of the high schools around us have announced their plans for next year. They are retaining the virtual option. That doesn’t scream “normal” to me.
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I wonder how much FA affects yield too. Davidson for example is pretty generous.
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A “silver lining” of the pandemic for K-12 has been the discovery that some kids have thrived as online-only students, for a variety of reasons. Districts may be retaining it for that reason, not due to worries about in-person.
By August every single person over the age of 18 (and quite possibly 16) who wants to be vaccinated will have been fully vaccinated. The vaccines are incredibly effective, even against variants. There really shouldn’t be any questions about normalcy on college campuses in the fall, IMO.
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Let’s check back with each other in October.
The schools around us have specifically called out COVID as the reason for continuing to offer virtual school (our state has always had the option of virtual academies). 
What are schools around you doing?
That may be, though it may be more efficient for such students who prefer full-time online to register for the online high school that may have existed for years in their state/district. I think the only reason to keep online as an option at brick-and-mortar high schools via hybrid scenarios would be quarantine and contact tracing situations.
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I think any student most likely needs to be prepared to get a vaccine before returning to school.
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Oh, I don’t disagree. But when a prof has to take care of their 8 year old due to quarantine, what happens to their class for 2 weeks? Remote, I’m, guessing. Vaccines won’t change that for the elementary school set as I understand it. I’d be happy to be wrong. Oh, and I’m more looking at LACs where there wouldn’t be a grad student to take over the class.
I think professors are going to be expected to figure out child care. Professors at LACs are there because they want to teach in person and connect with students. They aren’t going to be allowed to work from home forever.
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I’m guessing there will be instances where maybe a prof will have to teach remotely for a couple of weeks in a situation like that.