<p>My daughter and I recently toured schools in New England. Although we liked all of them, the schools we liked best also had the best tour guides. Does a good tour guide influence your feeling about the school?</p>
<p>My daughter really clicked with one tour guide. She was bubbly, outgoing, played the same sports as my daughter, and pointed out some of the cute boys on campus (a big plus for my daughter :D). She talked about the school in very favorable terms and relayed personal stories about her first couple of weeks on campusstories that exemplified how both the faculty and students were supportive of new students. She spoke of the friendly community and it was borne outstudents saying hi to her, waving to her when we peeked in classrooms.</p>
<p>Conversely, at another school, the tour guide appeared bored, and the tour was BORING. She was a senior, and I got the impression she signed up to be a tour guide this year only because it would look good on her college applications. She said the school was very friendly, yet she did not say hello to one person while we were walking around. She had nothing in common with my daughter, and we both got the impression if this was a typical student, my daughter would not be happy at the school.</p>
<p>What do you guys think? Do you think the tour guide makes a huge difference in how you feel about the school?</p>
<p>I don't know how it works at other schools, but at my school key club members are chosen by the faculty. They are supposed to be the friendliest, smartest, and most knowledgable about the school. if someone visited here and didn't like their tour guide I don't think that they would like the school because key club members are supposed to represent the best the school has to offer.</p>
<p>I'll muddy the waters a little:</p>
<p>A bad tour guide probably influenced my view more than a good tour guide did.</p>
<p>And, if I'm honest with myself, I think my view of a school influenced my impression of the tour guide.</p>
<p>This is interesting because we were just talking about tour guides the other day. My sons ( one a graduate and the other a freshman at prep school) were laughing while they were remembering their tours. Of course, they really got to know the guide that showed them around the school they ended up attending, and felt in each of their cases, that he was not really a "true" representation of the student body. I think what they really meant was he was probably not someone who they would hang out with. But once they got to school they found a student population with many different types of kids and plenty of kids that shared their interests.
So, if you are touring, be careful not to make a decision based only on your tour guide, I think it is better to try to look around at the other students and see how they are interacting with one another.</p>
<p>I would have to say absolutely it influenced us. Some schools use their "best" students but at some anyone can sign up and it fulfulls their work requirment.<br>
I think the best are when the school can match students of like interests and I have to say that I don't think ANY school gave us a lacrosse player for a tour guide (we visited 12 schools).<br>
One school has a student in the admissions office to answer questions you may have - tells you a bit about his experience at the school, does the Q&A and then the admissions officer (and most of them are alumni) gives the tour. I feel we got probably the best tour from that person since it was an adult.<br>
Two schools that we are not applying to we may have considered more seriously had our tour been better.</p>
<p>I don't think the tour guide should influence a student's interest or decision on a school. When I toured the boarding school in which I am attending right now, my tour guide was boring and seemingly uninterested. But it didn't matter because the tour was for me to get to know the school more, not for her. So I asked a lot of questions about the school and it was mainly I who talked the most. I mean, if you are interested in a school, you shouldn't judge how good or whatever it is based on the interest of the tour guide. That's absurd because the tour guide could have been having an awful or stressful day. Who knows? The truth is that every school has kids who are either uninterested or who are jubilant and outgoing and assertive. It depends on whether you are fortunate to come across one at that certain day but a boring or interested tour guide shouldn't play an role in determining your interest in the school--unless she/he reveals something very negative his/her experience there. THEN you reevaluate your opinion of the school.</p>
<p>Tourguides definetly influenced my decision of what schools i liked best</p>
<p>Yep me too. But my final decisions are going to made on revisit days, because i don't even know which school is going to accept me with FA</p>
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unless she/he reveals something very negative his/her experience there.
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Bingo! It does reflect on the school.</p>