Is it worth attended an admitted student day versus a general visit?

Applying to College
21

You won’t be able to go to all of them, but going to a few may help clarify what matters.

We went to one closer to home that was not high on her list at that point, but she left with great questions to ask of the AOs or professors at the other “finalists” on her list. It also provided some relief that if Covid went in a really bad direction or going far away did not work out, she had a great option close to home that kids from all over the country wanted to come to.

The best ones had events to pick and choose from. We had a tour of a few of the STEM facilities with a great Dean and a few TAs who were doing research. They interacted with others along the way in a haphazard and completely unplanned fashion. It was refreshing that he was most excited about the new exhaust system in the Chem labs. It was very authentic and not something on a typical college tour and info session.

The student panels were hit or miss - you could do those virtually or ask for a student in the same major to reach out.

We ended up not going to a few on our road trip because she already was sold at that point. Spots were tight at events last spring and many accepted student events had waiting lists. She was great about immediately releasing those booked events so someone on the event’s waiting list could go. We had benefitted from the good karma of getting off waiting lists for schools she really wanted to see. (Translation- please do not be greedy and book a bunch of accepted student event slots and then no show.)

Definitely spend time around campus and the general area on a non-accepted student event day. That helped separate out the razzle dazzle of the dog and pony show with top professors and fancy new buildings. Walk/drive around to get a sense of what day to day will be like.

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22

My kids didn’t apply to a single school without visiting. That was long before COVID. So we had done all those info sessions and tours long before acceptance.

We just felt that the admitted students days may have put a better face on a school than a regular day, that there was a lot of marketing going on. Even at a place like Harvard. Again, we got a better true feel for schools with post-acceptance visits that weren’t so choreographed, with overnights and attending classes and hanging out on our own.

23

It’s the students that matter, not the parent activities or panels or extra bells and whistles, etc… If your student can only attend on certain days, try to make it a day when other students are on campus.

My daughter did have a good experience at an admitted students event and deposited at that college, but took a waitlist offer at another college where she hadn’t met students (other than the guide and the kids on the tour.) So really, it was her own research using Fiske, niche and other sites, along with one summer visit, that gave her enough info to determine that the college was a good fit for her.

I definitely wouldn’t spend excessive money or take much extra time off school, etc…to make time for an admitted students event. It’s very difficult to do more than a couple once you get past March. Only attend admitted students days for the two or three top choices.

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