<p>If one should get into Princeton, is the Preview weekend worthwhile? We live quite some distance away and would like to take advantage of advance-purchase airfare. D got a likely from Cornell (women in engineering there is the same weekend as Preview); should we hedge our bets and plan to go to Cornell, allowing her to divert to Princeton (her top-choice) if she does get in? Cornell is second choice, so we wouldn't be wasting time but it is rather expensive just for the day of engineering there.</p>
<p>Preview is pretty awesome, and there’s no real substitute for meeting real students and prospective students for getting the feel of a school. I also think that Princeton may cover your airfare if you qualify for a certain level of financial aid. I guess it comes down to your individual daughter’s interests and your personal finances, but it couldn’t hurt to call the FA office and ask about Preview airfare if you think you might qualify.</p>
<p>FWIW, Preview convinced me that I loved Princeton, and I came into it expecting the opposite. :)</p>
<p>comom2013, it’s funny, I’m in a fairly similar situation. I’m trying to decide if I should go to preview events (I was accepted EA at Princeton and received a likely for Cornell with an invite to their women engineering event). I live on the other side of the country, so right now I’m gravitating towards not attending either event because of the significant financial and time sacrifice involved. Although I’ve only visited Princeton once and I’ve never been to Cornell, I’m not sure if the information I could gain from the experience would offset the cost. I already know I love Princeton’s campus and would probably love Cornell’s too (both are gorgeous). As far as everything else goes, I’m concerned about being overly influenced by irrelevant factors. By chance I could have a deceptively positive/negative experience at either school because of a random sample of people I come into contact with. Moreover, if I only attend the preview at one school, I’ve have unbalanced information that would bias me towards one school merely because I would have had greater or less exposure to it.</p>
<p>Maybe my concerns are silly. But I’d personally suggest attending the preview or Cornell’s event for women engineers only if your daughter has specific questions or concerns that could be addressed by attending either event.</p>
<p>As a parent, I think it’s important to get a preview of the students you’ll be spending the next four years with. While the cost of plane tickets is nothing to sneeze at, think of the total cost of your education - unless you are wealthy, it’s basically all the money you have (and then some) so it seems to me sensible to pay some money now to help you make the choice. I wouldn’t hesitate to ask for financial help to attend if it will make a difference for you - all they can do is say no. </p>
<p>Even if you’ve decided on one program, preview gives you a chance to spend a couple nights on campus and begin to get a feel for what your life will be like. I do think it helps with the transition in the fall.</p>
<p>Comom, your situation sounds exactly like my daughter’s last year. Yes, the expense is significant, but being able to visit both Cornell and Princeton during the previews was very valuable to my daughter. First let me say that the Women in Engineering group at Cornell is amazing. They did a great job informing DD about the school. We had never visited Cornell before, either so we definitely were able to get a real feel for campus and other students. </p>
<p>Then we visited Princeton… :-)</p>
<p>Also wanted to add that if you do receive financial aid, both schools did help with travel costs.</p>
<p>Having been to several admitted students’ weekends, nothing compares to Princeton Preview. It’s when you really start being a Tiger, and that may not mean a lot to you right now … but it would be a huge mistake to not come to Preview. Or at least that’s my opinion. There will be times when you look back and talk about how great Preview was, and you don’t want to be the kid that says, “Oh, I didn’t go to Preview.” Most Princeton students that were on the fence chose Princeton because of Preview - I being one of them. Unless it’s something extremely urgent, you should go if you’re accepted. Also, there are two different times for Preview, so it should work with other programs too.</p>
<p>Just want to echo what everyone else is saying - my son was 100% convinced to go Cornell engineering until he visited Princeton. Both visits were in advance of admission final decisions (he’s an athlete also) but Princeton won out and he loves it there. I might add that we also attended the preview weekend at Princeton and it was excellent. As parents we didn’t realize how important those preview weekends were until well after the fact. Go if it’s at all possible! As others have said in the grand scheme of things it’s a fraction of the overall education investment and well worth it.</p>
<p>I’d go visit but as with many preview events, don’t expect to learn too much about the school. Many schools are putting their best foot forward. I’d say Princeton doesn’t really try to put on a good preview though</p>