<p>'Tis the season, fa la la la~, and we're getting holiday greetings cards from BS that DC has applied. I hate to excite some of the parents in CC ;) but should DC reply with holiday cards? We don't want to be rude but these cards are basically one liners and appear to be mechanically written in haste. I wonder if hundreds of reply cards will ever be opened, especially when things get increasingly busier in AO.</p>
<p>On the other hand, some schools have sent DC, in addition to holiday cards, personalized letters praising some of DC's accomplishments. Some are from the same AOs who sent the cards, and others are from someone else in the office, who might have read application file. (It was a bit surprising to learn that someone other than interviewers had started reading applications with deadlines still a month away.) I feel DC should reply to these letters.</p>
<p>Would you agree? This is more of a polling question rather than solicitation of lecture ;), so simple replies would be appreciated.</p>
<p>I would send greeting cards in response to those sent to your daughter. The more personal ones I guess. It seems just good manners to me.</p>
<p>My daughter has had a couple interviews and has been in contact with her interviewers. She sent a Holiday card to one who mentioned several times he/she wanted an update on an upcoming event in my daughters life, so she sent that up date in the card. Another she has seen several times and they email back and forth so it seems courteous to me that she send a holiday card.</p>
<p>If the relationship and the thought are sincere, I dont see a problem with it. JMO…</p>
<p>We were in the same boat last year. D did not respond to either impersonal or personal cards, because we really didn’t know enough and didn’t want to appear “pushy” (hey, what did we know? We were new to the process and were winging it, to some degree—other than lurking the CC boards ;-)). </p>
<p>I tend to agree that if a card received from an AO one met, AND it’s a detailed or personal message, it doesn’t hurt to reply. I’m not so sure about random notes from office staff whom your dc did not meet; I’d tend to think of that as just one more “top of mind” marketing contact from a particular school (i.e. you should keep THEM at the top of your mind, not the other way around). </p>
<p>Just our experience/my opinion… no lectures! Good luck whatever you decide to do.</p>
<p>We didn’t add or send anything and the results were still good. Forgive me for saying so, but a box of chocolates won’t get you into prep school ;-D</p>
<p>@hailu, girlgeek Thanks for your input. I think we are on the same page on this issue. </p>
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<p>Sorry but I wasn’t clear in OP. The way the letters were written, they were sent by senior AO staff who must have read or been briefed for DC’s application file. So I’m inclined that DC should reply to them.</p>
<p>@Friendly… HAHAHA? That never even occurred to me! </p>
<p>@ Sharing - okay, I get it a little more. The thing is, depending on the school, the “marketing machine” is quite personalized (Blair and Exeter come to mind—we had several correspondences that seem to have been triggered by SSAT scores, music involvement, etc.)… unlike other forms of correspondence, I still think holiday cards are a gray area. For us, clueless as we were, it simply didn’t occur to us that the cards were really a prompt to respond. I don’t feel that our d would have had different admissions outcomes had we responded. I truly think that she ended up with acceptances to schools that were, or could have been (since we had to choose only one), good fits.</p>
<p>OTOH, I don’t see how it could <em>hurt</em> to reply. It certainly shows courtesy.</p>
<p>I do recall my daughter getting lengthy letters from Exeter and maybe Andover as well. They seemed to be part of “the marketing machine” you speak of so we never even contemplated a response.</p>
<p>I think if something was written as a personal note, most adults would know the difference. If it feels right, like others have said, it certainly wont hurt.</p>
<p>On another note, while a box of chocolates will not get you in, certainly they will be eaten just the same ;)</p>
<p>Okay - I hope you all know Joshua is being facetious. I’m not quite sure of his “status” (student, parent, current admit, etc.). So caveat emptor.</p>
<p>But, IMHO sending a box of chocolates is not a good idea. A note or card is fine, but gifts - at this stage of the game - may not work in your favor. :(</p>
<p>FWIW - DS received holiday cards from almost every school he visited. He did not send a reply to any of the schools. He was accepted at all the schools where he applied.</p>
<p>I don’t think you need to add the task of writing holiday cards to an already busy time. Focus your energy on submitting an excellent application.</p>