<p>It seems to me that for colleges, the projection bias mostly operates in one direction: to turn off kids from schools that might really be good fits. Most of the examples I read in CC are of that kind. But I also think that sometimes visits will turn off a kid for a good reason that doesn’t come through in the brochures and online information. On balance, I felt that visits were beneficial to my kids–in general, they felt that they could see themselves at all the schools we visited, which reduced the stress level somewhat.</p>
<p>Except for my daughter and Princeton. She didn’t like it, even though it was an absolutely gorgeous day.</p>