<p>Thinking ahead to next year's applications, I'm wondering when all you experienced parents did school tours with your child.</p>
<p>This past year we squeezed them in during January on the same day we did interviews. I'd like the process to be more relaxed and thought out this year.</p>
<p>Also, did you schedule tours and interviews at the same time? Or separately?</p>
<p>All of our tours and interviews were at the same time. We did them in “chunks” by area with two schools per day, usually. This saved both time and money. We scheduled them to minimize absenses from school. If you want to do this, schedule your times early. We were finished before Thanksgiving. We traveled over 2000 miles, total! But we did it in just a way that one school was en route to another. It broked up the trip quite a bit. I think 5 hours was the longest ride between the last school and home.</p>
<p>It was exhausting, btw. But I don’t know a better way to do it.</p>
<p>Our first go-round, we scheduled our one visit in January and already had the application done (though my son went home and quickly rewrote one of his essays after his interview!). The second time around, we scheduled visits in early November, which I thought was a much smarter choice as son was able to think more about the schools as he completed his application. It also gave us a specific person to e-mail if we had questions, which worked much better than e-mailing the general admissions office. I think some time in October would be ideal.</p>
<p>Because of distance (we’re in the Midwest), my son and his dad visited 4 schools in 2 days. Two per day is definitely doable. The advantage is that it’s easy to compare the schools when you’re visiting them all at once. On the other hand, my husband felt that the first day of interviews went much better than the second. It’s hard to say, though, whether that was because of the particular schools or my son running out of steam–or just liking Exeter so much that everything else paled in comparison :)</p>
<p>Do the schools assign a single point of contact (like the specific contact C’mama got) throught the admission process? That would be more streamlined than dealing with different people in the adm office each day. If not, can you request one?</p>
<p>The person who interviewed you is generally the person you go to with questions, etc. It makes it easier for everyone.</p>
<p>My son and I toured and interviewed the first week of December. Day 1 - school #1; Day 2 - schools #2 and #3. Interview dates fill up quickly so you want to schedule early. You also have to consider the long Thanksgiving and Winter breaks.</p>
<p>What is the average duration of student interview? parent interview? Do they cut short the interview if they think there is no fit?</p>
<p>We went during the summer before 8th grade to visit and ended up doing the interview the same day. Of course, only summer school students were around, but it made for a more relaxed tour and interview. They held her interview file until September, when she initiated the application process by completing the Applicant Statement. She got in, so apparently it was not a problem to start early.</p>
<p>How does the interview before filing the application work? Don’t they need to know the candidate profile to go over/dig deeper/make a conversation?</p>
<p>There’s usually a little form you will out when you request materials. It includes special interests. Last year, some schools had teachers from various subjects that my son had expressed an interest in come and speak to him. I seem to remember that a few school had him fill out an interest form either while we waited for the tour or before we came via mail.</p>
<p>Pulsar, I assume her interviewer held the interview notes until September when she completed the candidate statement. If you go that route, I’d encourage you to complete the candidate statement as soon as you can once September rolls around. Otherwise it might look like you’re not very interested.</p>
<p>I think they just want to get a feel for the student. My d was not completely sold on the idea of BS yet (nor was I), and she was just being her genuine self.</p>
<p>So we’ve got summer tour, late Oct/early Nov and December. Any other opinions?</p>
<p>Over the summer, we met with the head of our son’s middle school to identify schools to visit. Plan was to see about 8 schools and apply to about 5. The interviews were same day as the tour (tour usually happened before the interview). We scheduled the tours/interviews from September to November (last one right after Thanksgiving) because we wanted to see schools in session with students on campus. We were told to schedule at most 2 per day (morning and afternoon), which was good advice. When we scheduled the tour/interview, each school took basic information and requested we complete applicant profiles, as well as athletic profiles since our son hoped to play a few sports. The profiles were submitted prior to the interviews.</p>
<p>Ending the tours/interviews by early December worked well for our son. It gave him ample time to reflect on the visits and work on his applications. He started the applications in mid-December. He did not feel rushed and was able to perform several self-reviews. I don’t recall the exact timing of when he requested recommendations from teachers and coaches, but it was probably early-December after he made decision on where to apply. The key is to give them enough time to write a thoughtful recommendation.</p>
<p>We toured in two separate times - first in early October around the Jewish holidays so our daughter did not have to miss school. Then we went again in early November. We saw four schools each time - two schools a day. We did tours and interviews at the same time. I brought all of the view books in the car and read them as we drove into the school! Then as we left, I had my daughter write impressions/notes in the view books. She wrote her own impressions and then we gave her somethings that we liked, disliked. It really helped to keep track of it that way.</p>
<p>I scheduled our visits to minimize lost school days. We visited schools in September, October, and November. Most of the boarding schools were stunning in their autumn splendor. </p>
<p>The NAIS offers advice for families: [The</a> Admission Process](<a href=“http://www.nais.org/admission/index.cfm?ItemNumber=145857&sn.ItemNumber=142472&tn.ItemNumber=454#sv]The”>http://www.nais.org/admission/index.cfm?ItemNumber=145857&sn.ItemNumber=142472&tn.ItemNumber=454#sv).</p>
<p>In general, your child interviews after touring the campus. If you tour during the summer, you won’t be able to observe current students. On the other hand, all of the schools we visited took pains not to disrupt their classes with visitors. </p>
<p>Be aware that you will still pick up the campus vibes as you tour a school, but you may not know all the reasons for the atmosphere. Sometimes I wonder if people who think a certain school was “depressing,” or “tense,” happened to tour a school on a rainy day, during midterms. It makes a difference.</p>
<p>Call the schools at the end of August to schedule your visits. Some schools reserve weekend visits for families who travel long distances, so not all dates will be free.</p>
<p>We visited five schools, three states in three days. Exhausting. All tours and interviews scheduled on the same day. </p>
<p>The advantage was that we saw the schools in close proximity and it helped my daughter compare them more easily. But expense and travel distance also dictated we do it that way rather than spread them out. As someone said - none of the tours disrupted classes (except Governor’s where the teacher saw us peeking in the window and invited us to join them). </p>
<p>We scheduled tours in January which has pros and cons. That’s the time when the majority of applications are flowing in and Adcoms are swamped. On the other hand, it was closer to the deadline and I think my daughter was easier to “remember” because she was still fresh on their minds and stood out a bit. Still - going in January left little time to adjust application submissions. So we had to narrow down our list before going on the trip.</p>
<p>One regret - we scheduled a late interview at school #6 and it coincided with the weekend all the airports were closed due to the east coast snow storm. The interview was conducted over the phone but didn’t feel like it had the same impact and the lack of a physical visit left us to looking at video clips and viewbooks. So don’t wait “too late” or there is no time to reschedule in an emergency.</p>
<p>I would agree that weather may also affect “mood.” At one school I thought was dreary, the tour was done on a cold winter day late in the afternoon when it was getting dark. That probably made a difference. A different school done that morning seemed “cheerier.”</p>
<p>ha ha ha, Exie, that reminds me of when I visited colleges… I had applied to a bunch of engineering colleges and visited my top pick after I was admitted… It was a gorgeous summer like day, and yet, I left thinking “meh”. Then I visited a school I had applied to, just to keep my parents happy. We visited on a gray drizzly day and yet I really liked the vibe of the school. I figured if I liked it on such a dreary day, then it was probably the place for me. Shortly thereafter, I accepted their offer.</p>
<p>I think it is best to tour early in the fall. Boarding schools usually do not have Columbus Day and Veterans Day as holidays. You can also tour when you have teacher development days. Saturday appointments fill up fast, so schedule your tours early.</p>
<p>The advantage of early tours is that you may find your priorities changing, and this gives you some time to adjust your list. Some applicants are surprised by SSAT scores, and this also gives you some time to adjust your list if necessary. If school spirit is important to your child, a good time to tour is during the rival school week, generally the week building up to the Saturday before Veterans Day. Winter tours are risky because of unpredictable weather.</p>
<p>Some people do not like touring 2 schools a day. We did this when we could, and it was fine. I would not try to schedule 3 schools.</p>
<p>That reminds me why we waited until January the first time: we were waiting for SSAT schores, reasoning that if they weren’t good enough, we wouldn’t bother spending the money flying to an interview. Second time around though, you have a sense of your ballpark.</p>
<p>That’s a good point, (waiting for ssat scores). My daughter will sit the SAT in June and that should give us an idea of SSAT range.</p>