<p>Do parents get interviewed with the students? What are some questions they ask? Are parents allowed to sit in and listen to the interview?</p>
<p>You will get a number of different answers here. We were unaware of being interviewed by the two schools where we were present (walking around at the TSAO event) while our son was having formal interviews. When we came back to pick him up, each of the AOs just chatted casually with us, the way you would talk to a friend in the grocery store, but gushed over him saying how they could see him perfectly fitting into their communities and what amazing conversations they had with him. For the other two schools, we never saw the interviewers (one was with an alum at a nearby Starbucks). In all cases, ChoatieKid was interviewed alone.</p>
<p>FWIW: The two schools that gushed over him both rejected him outright. He attends the school where he interviewed offsite with the alum and never set foot on campus until revisit days.</p>
<p>When our son visited schools (4 in total), each interviewed him alone for an extended time. Then each much more briefly interviewed us. As I recall, they asked us a couple of things about what we were looking for, maybe something about why their school might fit, and mostly whether we had questions. Maybe one place asked about his strengths and weaknesses. To me it seemed mostly that they were just trying to get a sense of whether parents are reasonable and whether they understand the school a bit. Other than that, they wanted to let parents ask questions. We never felt like they were asking any probing questions or that our answers would particularly affect the admission decisions-- though maybe different schools do it differently. Or maybe they’re looking for any red flags in terms of annoying parents, or parents that are pushing a kid toward a school he/she is not actually so interested in attending.</p>
<p>Do they still ask if you will be full pay or financial aid in the parent interview?</p>
<p>My son applied to 4 schools. After he’s done with his interview, we were asked to come in and had a parent interview at 3 schools. We didn’t at one school. So, it really depends as each school has different format. Some schools just have a casual chat with parents but many schools would have a rather formal parent interview as a part of the application. I would say the main purpose of the parent interview is to know whether parents would support the boarding school education. </p>
<p>I remember one or two interviews when a kid was brought in and then the AO would come out ( give me a quick appraisal ) and invite me to join them for the last 10-15 minutes or so. Most of our BS interviews were separate:</p>
<p>30-45 minutes for them and 15-20 minutes for me seemed to be the norm. </p>
<p>Also- when my kids met with coaches in the reception area or in another room, I never joined the conversation. I would move away or sit/stand there and let my kids do all the talking. If I had questions, I’d wait for the conversation to end before I’d ask. I think my kids ( and maybe some coaches ) appreciated that. </p>
<p>We had one parent interview where the AO said that he’d had a great conversation with our daughter, they’d covered a ton of ground, and then asked “is there anything you’d want to add?”
Umm, hello? If I wasn’t part of the conversation and you don’t tell me anything more than you “covered a lot of ground,” how on earth could I know what there would be to add?<br>
That one was a struggle. The parent interviews that I’ve liked the best have been the ones where the AO recounted in some detail what they talked about with our daughter – both because it helped me see that she really was doing a good job of getting some key points across, and also because then we could follow up and chime in on some specifics.</p>
<p>Every school we went to interviewed parents. On one interview, my son and I were interviewed together. I was not able to go to all of them, but when I did they interviewed both parents together. The tone was very nonjudgmental. The interviewers seemed to focus on the positive attributes of my son and how he could fit in at their school. There was a vibe of subtle recruitment for most of the schools. Financial aid did not come up. Choatiemom’s experience is interesting to me - I will let you know whether the same thing happens to us.</p>
<p>Every school I’ve visited with my kids brought me in after meeting with the kids. I think they’re just trying to get a read on whether you support your kid going to boarding school or not. Oh, and to see if you’re crazy. :)</p>
<p>When my I went through the process with my son each AO met with him alone for roughly 30 minutes, then met with me for roughly 10 minutes. I went through the process twice with my son as he was waitlisted everywhere he applied the first time through. First year FA never came up, second year I brought up as I was considering not applying for aid to help his chances. About to go through the whole process again with my daughter with a different mix of schools, it will be interesting to see if the pattern changes. . @ChoatieMom is not interviewing on campus common at Choate? I’m headed there with my daughter in a few weeks.</p>
<p>@RedSoxFan18: Choate prefers onsite interviews for applicants within a 200-mile radius. We are 2,000 miles away.</p>
<p>My daughter interviewed separate… and then I had my turn… mostly I got to ask questions and get a feel for the school. I asked about financial aid as it was crucial to her attending (I didn’t see the point in avoiding it,) her school is need blind. This was a friendly conversation and I was directed to speak with the head of FA afterwards so I could ask more details about the process. </p>