<p>My S will be applying to a number of schools for admission as a sophomore. My question is, is there one question that you asked prospective schools that really made a difference for you in helping your child decide which schools to apply for?</p>
<p>We live in Wisconsin and will be able to visit a few of the schools but not all of them.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>"You just interviewed my son/daughter. Are you interested in him/her as a student here? If so, why? What is there about my kid that makes him/her a good fit for this particular school?"</p>
<p>Well if they so no, its just kinda awkward..</p>
<p>I really think you have to see any school you are seriously considering. Nothing in the brochures, on the internet or in any chat rooms will give you as clear a picture of the school and, equally importantly, of the students. You can eliminate some schools based on your child's interests, academic record and test results, and preferences as to size of school, geographic location, single sex vs. co-ed, etc. Sometimes you can see a school without having an interview at that time. This may help you piggyback more schools in a limited visit if you are in the area and already scheduled to see other schools. But you really should see the schools.</p>
<p>I don't know about just one question but I did like to ask - I see you offer A and B activity, can a person do both? What is the top class available in X?</p>
<p>I often found out that the things my daughter imagined being able to do, based on the view books, were not actually possible to do (like taking dance and art or singing and taking film.) And I wanted to know what class she would end up in by year 4.</p>
<p>I brought a long list of questions that I asked each school. I wish I could remember what they were. I know one was if they had counselors to deal with homesickness. But what helped me was asking each school the same questions and seeing the different ways they responded. Then after the interviews (not during) I sat down either in my car or in my hotel room and wrote copious notes and then I taped or stapled the business cards I was handed into the notebook. This way I was able to keep track of the seven schools we visited in five days. But I agree about visiting the schools. At least one of the schools I thought would be our favorite actually did not seem so great in person.</p>
<p>To Grejunin's point, I would go even further and talk to heads of departments if your child has specific, strong interests. Sometimes the admissions folks won't know the lay of the land as well.</p>
<p>I got to the point (after about 2 school visits) where I did as laxtaxi suggested. I asked something like, 'assuming her academic record fits the school's expectations, do YOU see this school as a fit for my daughter, based on your interview with her?' If the answer had been no (for whatever reason), I would have wanted to know that so she didn't bother applying. If I had to pick just one question, that would be it.</p>
<p>^Exactly. If they say no, wouldn't you want to know that?</p>
<p>But would they ever say "no"? I can't imagine an adcom doing so. Don't they want as many apps as possible? Reminds me of a Seinfield episode where, as Elaine is shaking the hand of the lady who just interviewed her for a job, smiles and says, "I don't have chance, do I?" and the lady smiles back and says, "not at all."</p>
<p>neato - some actually said that they thought she should wait a year (per her birthday, d is youngest of class).</p>
<p>We asked about catholic church, life on campus, college choices, dance, alternatives to AP, international bac...</p>
<p>Along with taking notes, I would take a camera and take pictures to help you remember each campus. We did not do that on first visit, but did on second and it helped a lot (they all kind of roll together).</p>
<p>Scotland, You MUST visit the schools you are interested in. Whether you interview at time of visit (ie holiday, weekends, etc) - vs having alumni interview in Wisconsin is not as important as your seeing the school. It is where your child will spend the next four years. They are way different from the PR literature they send.</p>
<p>We didn't outright ask the question "would our son be a good fit" most of the time, the first few things they said were re-caps of their interview with him and then something like "I think he'd fit in nicely here." Or "I see him doing well here" one even told us what classes he'd probably be taking.
However, one (where we had all pretty much decided on the tour it was not a good fit) - the interviewer never said that. He said he did well in the interview, he was mature, knew what he wanted and epressed himself better than most kids his age, but he never said anything about him in relation to fit and the school. Clearly, it was obvious he was not a good fit there.</p>
<p>The applications are hard work and expensive. If you are not getting good feedback I would absolutely ask the question.</p>
<p>I see what you mean.</p>
<p>I had two experiences where the schools raved about my daughter after the interview. One said that she did a great job and any school would be lucky to have her. At the other her interview was with the Dean of Admissions and he raved about her and sounded like he really liked her etc. She didn't get accepted to either of those schools. </p>
<p>Then one school that we weren't even able to visit, she had an interview over the phone and thought it went very, very badly - she was accepted. She also didn't feel good about her interview at Exeter and the adcom wasn't particularly enthused when I talked to her - but she's going there now - and loving it. </p>
<p>Sometimes you just can't tell. But I agree - visit the school in person if you can. Exeter was her first choice before we went, and remained her first choice, but her second and third choices changed from the visits. Some campuses are huge and some are tiny and you can't get that understanding from the booklet they send you.</p>
<p>You are right PhotoOp, it's not a guarantee and a ton of other things come into play later on in the process (although I believe the interview is very important). But I also think, they will not tell you those things if they don't believe them at that moment. </p>
<p>I completely agree about the visits. Although, if necessary you could chose to do those after acceptance for re-visit days. One girl my son went to school with had visited both of her top 2 choices, was accepted at both, had decided on one and her mom made her attend revist days at both and she hands down changed her mind without a doubt.</p>
<p>Thanks for the input. </p>
<p>I had not considered before asking if my son was a good fit for the school. But i think I will in the future. I also like the ideas of taking pictures and writing down thoughts immediately after the visit.</p>
<p>It's already getting confusing about the different schools!</p>
<p>The question I asked each school: what changes does the school have planned for the next 4 years? </p>
<p>For example,
major construction which might disrupt / displace / improve student living space or other facilities, such as labs, gym;
significant changes in administration or teachers (headmaster change);
change in grading system/curriculum/requirements, ECs</p>
<p>Also, try to think about what the school will be like for your child when he or she is a senior as well as a first year student! Will they "outgrow" the school?</p>
<p>I think that's an absolutely brilliant question. It really pinpoints the issue. I also think that the school would be in the best position to inform you about the fit. You're both looking for the same thing. If they say, bad fit because [x], and you know [x] to be false, then by asking that question, you've given yourself an opportunity to address it. Likewise, if they say great fit because [x], and you know [x] to be false, you can smile and say thank you.
I used to do a lot of interviewing, and the worst is to be left guessing at questions never asked. I'm sure there's a way to ask this question without putting the interviewer on the spot. Great suggestion!</p>
<p>if you are a distance away, you may want to ask questions on protocol for students that may get sick with regard to outside docs.</p>
<p>Call me "cynic." I don't think they'd answer the question, "is it a good fit," honestly, particularly not this year. At the high school level, it's all about a school's statistics. And the only way I'd not think it were important, would be if no one paid any attention to a school's acceptance rate. It's just like the college race.</p>
<p>One question to ask is, "Do you ever suspend or expel students? If so, for what reasons?" and, "Have any students left this year?"</p>