<p>D is going on an overnight here shortly. It is part of the scholars recognition. She hopefully is staying in the honors dorm and much of the day revolves around classes and seminars. She is looking forward to it and we are close enough to drop her off and then go back the next evening for the scholars dinner recognition. She is excited as this is her dream school and she has spent 3 summers there in middle school for a gifted program.</p>
<p>I did an overnight stay at two schools. At one, I was placed with a really fun, outgoing girl who took me shopping downtown, introduced me to her friends, and paid for my meals at both the dining hall and a fun local restaurant. The next day, one of her friends who I had met previously took me to a couple of her classes because my host only had a lab.</p>
<p>At the other school, my host was antisocial and hung out with her boyfriend, who also was hosting a student. The other prospective student and I had nothing in common and he was quite shy. We basically sat around and watched our hosts play video games together. The highlight of my entire visit was eating at the dining hall and running into a guy I knew from high school.
When I met back up with my parents the next day, I told them I had a good time although not as good as at the other school-- I didn't want them to be disappointed. Fortunately, the admitted students open house we went to was amazing. I met a lot of people that really seemed to love the school and decided that my overnight was a fluke. Four years later, I'm about to graduate and am quite pleased with my choice.</p>
<p>I also was a student host. Though I drink socially, I felt very uncomfortable taking the prospective students drinking. A typical night with me consisted of a tour if they wanted one, dinner at a local cheap eatery, going bowling in the student union with some other students, catching a midnight movie at the union theater, getting late night munchies at the dining hall, and then going to bed. In the morning they would either come to a class with me or a friend (depending on interest level) or meet back up with their parents and go to the open house activities. I thought this was a much better way to show off what the school had to offer than taking them to a fraternity party, even though I'd probably have been doing that if they weren't in town!</p>
<p>I went to an honors program overnight at my top school when I was a HS senior...and I can honestly say it was the worst weekend of my life.</p>
<p>Fortunately it was nothing that was the result of the school. I went there all the same, and 4 years later graduated with my admission to medical school in hand. In another 14 months (Early May 2009) I'll have graduated from the school's College of Medicine. Today, I laugh when I think about that weekend, consider going to my alma mater the best decision I've ever made, and am one of the proudest alumni you'll ever meet.</p>
<p>Bigredmed, please "pm" me. This exact thing just happened to my son.</p>
<p>The deal is, even if your hosts are not good, you can still get a sense of the school's social life if you walk around and talk with people and check out the activity on campus. I think it is a good idea for kids to attend some accepted student's days or spend nights on campus.</p>
<p>Each of my sons stayed overnight at their top choice schools. Fortunately, a current and very happy William's student warned that his William's host did not speak to him or acknowledge him during a visit - so don't let the host have any impact on your choice. Clearly this description does not describe the typical William's Student!</p>
<p>Both of my sons switched from what they thought was their top choice school post overnight visit . It was not their hosts but the classes and what the students talked about at meals that solidified their choice. But of course this was after they had ruled out any school that did not have a reputation for great food.</p>
<p>Which brings me to another question - is there possibly a male/female difference here?</p>
<p>The food thing was important to my D. Can't go to a school that has bad food!</p>
<p>D did an overnight at her 1st choice school and unfortunately was placed with two girls who hated the school and told her not to come! And furthermore they told her if she did come to not live in the all woman's dorm because she would have no friends.
She was able to see beyond her miserable hosts and ultimately chose the school anyway and loves it! She did end up in the women's dorm so worried all summer. But that too turned out to be the right choice for her.
Why do unhappy students volunteer to host?</p>
<p>My girls never got the chance to have overnights anywhere.
We did , however visit one school late on a Friday and found out that quite a few people leave on weekends. It had some of the nicest dorms I have ever seen, but probably a little boring if so many people vacate on weekends.</p>
<p>My D chose another route to make her decision. She had a friend a year older attend the flag-ship University located near our home. She spent a couple of weekend nights with her--she would share with me some of her activities--which I thought helpt her develop a sense of what "college-life" was really like. Her friend taught her the importance of keeping track of her spending, have coins for laundry and showed her how to "balance" a budget. It made more of an impact than what I had tried to "teach" her....DD did visit several colleges AFTER she was accepted, but either both of us, or her father or me was in tow. Her decision-and it worked for her.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your experiences. Keep them coming. This a lot for me to think about. I knew that there could be some pitfalls in the overnights, but I did not even think about some of these situations. </p>
<p>mstee, your D is like both of my sons. When we visit a school we try to eat a meal in one of the main dining halls. My older son turned down one school only because he did not care for the food. We ate 2 meals there, just to be sure, and I cannot say that I disagree with him. He told me that there was no way he could eat that type of food for 4 years.</p>
<p>At a small Lac, My D was taken to a frat party with her host and offered alcohol. And all the other prospectives were there with their hosts. A planned event I guess. I always wondered if the admissions office knew about it. It was crossed off my D's list.</p>
<p>Seriously, Applicantmum? The fact that there was a frat party on campus took the school off her list? College students at every college drink, and if the school has frats, a lot of that drinking probably happens at frat parties. If there aren't frats, students probably drink in their rooms or at local bars that don't reliably card. The presence of underage drinking is a ridiculous reason to not consider a college.</p>
<p>I went to overnights at Princeton and Caltech. Both were a lot of fun, with lots of activities and such. Drank a lot at Princeton, not at all at Caltech (Rotation Rules and all...). The Caltech one was actually probably better than the Princeton one - it certainly made Caltech a lot more competitive with Princeton for me, but it wasn't better because of the lack of drinking (worse, actually).</p>
<p>Corranged,</p>
<p>Obviously parents and students know there is drinking on almost every campus. My point is that because of the OVERNITE my D concluded this was the wrong match for her----she was only introduced to drunk students. And this was a Tuesday nite. There are so many little things that can tip a 17 year old one way or the other. </p>
<p>HS seniors can also cross off schools due to tour guides, the weather etc. So an overnite can lead to good match schools being elininated.</p>
<p>
[quote]
The presence of underage drinking is a ridiculous reason to not consider a college.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Actually, depending on the circumstances and the individual, it can be a very good reason. I chose a college in a consortium, but as a prospective student, I toured other schools in the same group. At one of them, a very well-respected school, the guide made frequent references to alcohol on campus--not the type of references that indicated "We have some," but the type that indicated "We have a lot, and everybody loves it," including laughingly pointing to discarded bottles around campus. I knew that there would be drinking anywhere I went, but the social "vibe" I got at this particular school was a big part of what led me to cross it off my list. Unfair? Probably. But after spending four years near that school, I know that it would have been a terrible match for me, partially for the reasons that caused me to nix it in the first place. Don't underestimate the intuitive abilities of a 17 year old.</p>
<p>The mere presence of underage drinking might, in many situations, be a ridiculous reason to take a college out of consideration. But as applicantmum suggests, so are many other things--a bad tour, a bad overnight host, an excess of email contact, a stupid mascot, a lack of prestige, climate--but (1) something has to pare down the list; (2) what seems ridiculous to one person might be quite meaningful to another. Some people think "Bad weather...so what? Put on another layer," while for others, it can mean months of actual depression. It's partially because of all this that I don't mind overnights. Yes, they have the ability to move a good school off a student's radar, but so does anything else, and it's usually better to be basing one's decision on more info than on less. I think that the lasting effects of an overnight are more likely to be helpful than harmful. </p>
<p>Obviously, if a student ends up with no acceptable schools because she's eliminating them all for what seem like silly reasons, then she needs to re-evaluate her priorities. But after a certain amount of research, students seem to have more trouble paring down their lists than building them up.</p>
<p>If the criteria were objective, we wouldn't have CC :p</p>