Info Sessions: Please don't waste everybody's time

<p>OK I had to revive this thread. Numerous times I have recommended skipping info sessions becasue they are mostly a waste of time where the presentor lists stats available on-line and then parents ask inane questions … that was until today.</p>

<p>Today SecondToGo toured Bowdoin and we arrived early so we went to the info session which was TERRIFIC. An hour long session. The first half the director of admissions, with the help of a senior talked … not spouting the stats available on-line but explaining what they thought differentiated Bowdoin and on what traits Bowdoin students seem to share … explaining he did not think his job was to “sell” Bowdoin but to help students to undertand what life at Bowdoin would be like … and that in return he wants applicants to not try to give the “right” answer but to be open and honest and let Bowdoin know who they are. The last half hour they took questions and explicitly made sure the students got the first crack to ask questions … and when asked to explain why Bowdoin was better than Colby and Bates he refused to say a negative word about another school.</p>

<p>I’ve always been negative about info sessions … but now that I have seen what they can be … I may have to give them a chance again.</p>

<p>We always attended info sessions, but with my second child we had learned to sit near the back so when the child-specific questions started we could leave. I found some helpful, some not.</p>

<p>In my case - and I suspect in the case of many CC parents, though few will admit it - <em>I</em> had done the online web research, but my DD had not. I kept telling her she needed to LOOK at these college websites, but after she looked at one school’s website that I thought was a great fit for her, she said, “I don’t wanna go there. Their website is boring,” So I quit telling her to look. (IMHO, their website was quite friendly.) So while I could look at the website and gather all the info, DD would learn it all from the info session. </p>

<p>Its not that DD wasn’t invested in the process - just that her learning style is different from mine. I love to read and gather info that way. D is much more hands on - she’ll learn a lot better from HEARING and SEEING. So while an info session was re-hashing what I had read, if D had read the info at all it wasn’t REAL to her until she SAW and HEARD someone saying it. In the end, she ended up at a college known for “Engaged Learning” where they emphasize discussion, hands-on, and service learning. The perfect place for her. And how did she become interested in this school? From a relative who had gone there and told her about it. </p>

<p>We did pick up some occasional bits of good info at Info sessions, but mostly for me it was about seeing what they chose to emphasize, and what they skipped. </p>

<p>Now my S is applying to be a tour guide, and I worry a bit about some of the negative comments I read about tour guides. Yes, I know every campus has a blue light system, study abroad and intra-library loans, but if the tour guide doesn’t mention it, someone on the tour will assume that means they don’t have it. I know some of the parents will ask the alcohol/drug question just to see what the school’s official line is, and if a student will pretend to believe it or not.</p>

<p>I like info sessions. Yes, some are run better than others, but, to me, that says something about the college.</p>

<p>I like info sessions, too.</p>

<p>We recently went to a regional forum for Yale, MIT, etc…</p>

<p>and one parent went on a tirade about "looking around this room…and the “professional test takers…blah blah SATs…” We were across the room–didn’t know her nor anyone in the room (not our kiddos hs…) so we have no idea who she was taking about…</p>

<p>Another asked about AP credit! …??? HELLO!!! ???</p>

<p>First of all–the students should be asking the questions and secondly–do your research on the web site—</p>

<p>All I can think is it must take an incredible amount of self restraint for these Admissions Officers to hear these same lame questions at every info session, coast to coast and to have to repeat themselves over and over again…</p>

<p>I just want to say to these parents something like…“If your kid doesn’t have those answers and he/she hasn’t taken the initiative to research the school on the web site–he/she is NOT ready for college at these schools…”</p>

<p>On the flip side of things–almost every info session we went to was good-- It was the question period that is misery…</p>

<p>UPenn’s infor session–she gave great accounts of dos/don’ts of essays
Columbia’s - gave great accounts to the reasoning behind the curriculum and the benefits of being in NYC to supplement the coursework
GWU - let you know they count the love…
MIT’s was straightforward about the stats and if you listened carefully you understand how they pick their students…</p>

<p>etc etc</p>

<p>I have found myself really picking up on what these admissions officers are saying—Carefully listening about “fit” , process, the somethign special about a good fit candidate etc etc…</p>

<p>The difference is about what we hear with critical listening skills vs what a person thinks they hear…</p>

<p>Info sessions can be great…we have done more than a dozen and very few were poor because of admissions speakers…it’s often the poorly prepped parents/teens that make the rest of us roll our eyes…</p>

<p>I do like info sessions. It just seems that if you are going to the trouble of visiting a school, you should do info session and tour if possible. </p>

<p>Yes, some info is redundant if you have not done all of the research. But for many families the parents and/or students have not researched as much as the average CC member. I for one am happy to sit through questions where I know the answer because I’ve also heard some unknown gem-answers. </p>

<p>In some cases it is the student that did most of the research. In other cases the parent or nobody. (In our case the mom/bill-payer with spare time did more research because student was really busy being a successful student. He didn’t have the experience/maturity to appreciate the value of advanced research.)</p>

<p>My son has generally done no research on schools he visited, other then at my instance reading the few pAges in the confidential guide. So although he finds them repetitive he does get something out of the info sessions. For example he ruled out cal tech based on the info session which really made him understand this was a school only for those firmly committed to a scientific career. In any case he never asks questions…</p>

<p>I generally dislike info sessions, but was really impressed with one. The University of North Carolina info session was awesome! The movie they showed was very well done and truly showcased the best aspects of the school as it pertained to individual students. It focused on the experience, which really had an impact on my daughter. The school was one of the largest she was looking at and I think the movie helped her to see that it could feel as big or as small as she wanted it to.</p>

<p>A previous poster alluded to this: sometimes it is desirable to ask an admissions representative about something that is addressed on a website in order to get a more complete answer. For example, a question I have is whether a certain type of religious organization is active on campus. The website might list campus organizations, but such a list doesn’t really tell a reader how active the organization is. I have asked these questions privately after an information session, but I can certainly understand someone asking them during the session.</p>

<p>At two campuses, the admissions officer couldn’t name one, leading me to believe that the organizations exist in name only on those campuses.</p>

<p>I recently took D1 to an “8 of the Best” regional session. D1 wanted to talk to the admissions rep for one specific school so she could ask a few questions about things not mentioned on the website. She was really ticked off about having to wait while parents (not students) took up time asking for info that was readily available online, e.g. “How big is your school?” </p>

<p>My gripe: after attending a handful of these types of things over the past two years and always getting free parking, I was annoyed to find that I had to pay for parking for this one. It was especially annoying since the invite hadn’t mentioned this and therefore I didn’t have enough cash with me. I hate having to pay ATM fees. </p>

<p>Also, colleges: can we all agree that you all offer study abroad programs? We really don’t need to see that in all eight of your slide shows, one after another. It’s like personal ads mentioning romantic candlelit dinners and walks on the beach.</p>