Hi current Skidmore and Skidmore-interested people!
My child is a current junior and a potential applicant for the Class of 2024. We are planning to tour on President’s Weekend. She gets both Friday 2/15 and Monday 2/18 off from school, and will need to tour at least a couple schools during those days. Skidmore is one of about 8-10 schools which seems like a potentially great “fit” for her, so we are very excited to come visit. (She’s an arts and humanities person. She loves creative writing, English, philosophy, history, theater, and dance.)
Would you recommend trying to sign up for an information session and tour on Friday, 2/15 or going to the big open house event on Monday, 2/18?
We are trying to weigh the advantages of touring with (presumably) a smaller group on the Friday vs. the additional elements of the open house on Monday.
@BookLvr We just came upon Skidmore and are now planning tours. Not sure if we can make the Feb date. Either way, would you post your thoughts after touring or private message me? My D20 is also interested in humanities.
My daughter was just accepted and will be starting in the fall! We attended both of those and didn’t find one tp be too different from the other, so I would say whichever works with your schedule.
@cakeisgreat --My daughter LOVED Skidmore…and we did too!
Pluses:
+Sincere commitment to the liberal arts.
+Our daughter eavesdropped on a philosophy class (her current dream major) and found it very engaging. She also liked the course descriptions they had posted in the hall.
+Dance and theater looked great. We went on the arts tour and she took us for a quick peek at the Acting for the Camera class. Someone from the tv show “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” happened to be working with the class.
+Best dining hall and dining hall food we’ve seen. Great for vegans and vegetarians, which is a consideration for my daughter. Nice layout. Their chefs have won competitions.
+Nice dorm rooms with lots of natural light and apartments for the juniors and seniors. (Many first year students have to triple up, which I guess could be less than ideal, but certainly not the end of the world.)
+There seems to be a TON to do on campus on the weekends! I went around taking photos of all the flyers.
+Big comedy festival on campus every year and at least four comedy groups you can join.
+Impressive student abroad programs. Skidmore runs programs in London, Paris, Madrid, and New Zealand, plus there are 130 other approved programs.
+The students who worked admissions all seemed really great.
+Saratoga Springs seems like a real plus.
Hard to think of negatives, though I guess if I were pressed to it, I would say my daughter would prefer a school with fewer distribution requirements. (They do have fun ways to satisfy them, though…like you don’t have to take a mathy math class if that’s not your thing.)
This school will DEFINITELY be on our daughter’s list! We were really impressed.
@BookLvr Thank you so much for posting all of this great information! It is definitely on my D 20s list to tour now. I think we are going to plan for July but maybe we should move it up and tour when school is in session. Everything you said sounds exactly what D would go for. Thanks again!
We got a card about their summer open house, July 8. Do you think it would give an accurate feel for campus vibe/activity, if held during summer? It has a student panel which is a plus. We are trying to schedule a few visits this summer.
Student panels are always great. Any tours and information sessions offered on holiday weekends are going to be busy and crowded. Open houses (we went to one at Skidmore last year) make scheduling a little easier because you don’t have to be so precise with your timing.
Our child was overwhelmed anytime we tried to do two schools in one day, and trying to do more than that would have been impossible. You know your child best and for some kids 2 in a day would be fine…and maybe you could even squeeze in three if the schools are very close geographically.
Every child, family, and budget is different, so there’s no perfect answer. Generally speaking, however the college visits after acceptance are more important then the visits beforehand, so it makes sense to allot more time for admitted student visits in April of senior year
@BooklLvr - My advice would be to not see too many schools at once. You would be doing your daughter a disservice. Our son is starting Skidmore this fall. We visited 9 schools. Each one was a separate visit. Skidmore and one other school were overnight stays for us (due to distance from our home, not because he was spending the night on campus with a student). He returned to Skidmore to interview, as well as to one other school to interview, and had a local interview with a third school. He was able to focus and give each school its due course. I would take more time to look at each school’s website in depth, and perhaps contact a professor in your daughter’s area of interest. I know some people don’t have the luxury of time to do individual visits, but I like to think about it like buying a home - I am “purchasing” something I’m going to live in for 4 years. I want to take a good look around to make sure I’m buying the right “home.”
Thank you. We are having a hard time pinning my son down until he visits and there is some intangible quality that he likes or doesn’t. Trying to find something similar to one he loved, Bates, that isn’t a total lottery (although Skidmore is also competitive, I know). There are so many schools at which he could thrive, but it is coming down to the “vibe” and “feel.” A fine reason to narrow it down but challenging from afar!
@astonmartin18 --We did spend a whole day at Skidmore. I meant we need to do a couple schools over the period of 2/15-2/18, not two in one day! We also went back for a second full day at Skidmore in late April. My daughter got to sit in on a philosophy class and see the production of Cabaret, which was fabulous. I anticipate we will go back a third time this fall for an interview. I 100% agree with your philosophy of investing the time so the student can be sure that the school is a good fit.
Visited earlier this year. Seems like a great college. I’d be happy to go there, never mind my kids. Visited a few colleges over the summer with my older kid and didn’t really get a feel for any of them to the same degree we did during term time.
@BookLvr - glad to hear that! In the end there might be several schools your daughter will like. If she likes one above the others I highly recommend applying early decision. Skidmore admits about 50% of its class through the ED process. Demonstrated interest in the school is a big thing i.e., campus visits (at least one), an interview, etc. I’m really ancient, but I can remember that when I visited my alma mater (on a beautiful, leaves are turning colors October day) I just threw my hands up and said “this is it!” I don’t even recall if I ever stepped foot in a building. I just knew.
I 100% agree with your philosophy of investing the time so the student can be sure that the school is a good fit.