Do shadow days matter to admissions team?

[Anonymous]

Will not participating in a school shadow day (assuming it’s voluntary) hurt my child’s admission chances? Do shadow days matter a lot to admission teams?

[Anonymous]

Many who don’t do a shadow day are admitted. But doing one can be a boost.

[Anonymous]

It’s more for your child to see if they really like the school. DS loved a couple of schools during the tour but didn’t like them as much once he spent a whole day there.
It also shows the admissions team that you are interested. Schools want to protect their yield and demonstrating interest -by taking part in a non mandatory shadow day -definitely helps. I still feel it’s more for the student than the school though.

[Anonymous]

It's hard not to see how it doesn't influence admissions for 9th and 6th. Less for K entry.

We are applying for 9th grade and the schools clearly have a lot of kids doing shadows and it's a hassle for the schools so they wouldn't do it unless they clearly got something out of it. My guess is that it allows admissions to see if the kid passes a minimum threshold of personality and likability that can't be seen in just grades and scores and teacher refs. Someone on a recent thread commented quite a few kids are no-go admits following the shadow. How true this is I do not know but suspect there is some truth.

[Anonymous]

It’s for the students and families. The benefit to the school is that kids don’t want to go to a school if they have no idea what it’s like.

Some schools have interviews on the same day, and that definitely impacts admissions. But unless your kid behaves totally inappropriately on their shadow visit, it doesn’t impact admissions.

[Anonymous]

A good visit is certainly helpful. It is in many ways like having a good interview. As other have said, only a disastrous visit is going to get your kid eliminated. Most importantly, it is a great way to see if a school is the right fit. My advice is to just go unless your schedule really won’t permit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's hard not to see how it doesn't influence admissions for 9th and 6th. Less for K entry.

We are applying for 9th grade and the schools clearly have a lot of kids doing shadows and it's a hassle for the schools so they wouldn't do it unless they clearly got something out of it. My guess is that it allows admissions to see if the kid passes a minimum threshold of personality and likability that can't be seen in just grades and scores and teacher refs. Someone on a recent thread commented quite a few kids are no-go admits following the shadow. How true this is I do not know but suspect there is some truth.

If shadow days rule out admits wouldn’t it be strategic for an applying student to skip the shadow day?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's hard not to see how it doesn't influence admissions for 9th and 6th. Less for K entry.

We are applying for 9th grade and the schools clearly have a lot of kids doing shadows and it's a hassle for the schools so they wouldn't do it unless they clearly got something out of it. My guess is that it allows admissions to see if the kid passes a minimum threshold of personality and likability that can't be seen in just grades and scores and teacher refs . Someone on a recent thread commented quite a few kids are no-go admits following the shadow. How true this is I do not know but suspect there is some truth.

True, but they should be able to assess this in a 20 min interview.

[Anonymous]

Schools are trying to get to know the students and families they accept and also want to accept families who really want to be there. To help them with this, I would always have my child do the shadow days.

[Anonymous]

As I do not work at the Admissions Office of any educational institution...I don't know. Everyone will just be guessing here.

[Anonymous]

They track interaction/interest, and shadowing is one tangible way to check that box.

Practically speaking, most kids apply to multiple schools and it is important to demonstrate your interest in a school.

I can’t imagine why someone wouldn’t shadow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They track interaction/interest, and shadowing is one tangible way to check that box.

Practically speaking, most kids apply to multiple schools and it is important to demonstrate your interest in a school.

I can’t imagine why someone wouldn’t shadow.

My daughter does not want to shadow. She does not want to miss school to do it. She knows she wants to go there so there is not really a point to shadowing. (Not OP). We are applying to one school only. It is the only one that works logistically.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's hard not to see how it doesn't influence admissions for 9th and 6th. Less for K entry.

We are applying for 9th grade and the schools clearly have a lot of kids doing shadows and it's a hassle for the schools so they wouldn't do it unless they clearly got something out of it. My guess is that it allows admissions to see if the kid passes a minimum threshold of personality and likability that can't be seen in just grades and scores and teacher refs . Someone on a recent thread commented quite a few kids are no-go admits following the shadow. How true this is I do not know but suspect there is some truth.

True, but they should be able to assess this in a 20 min interview.

disagree - it is one thing for a kid to have great, programmed answers and mannerisms in an interview but quite another to see how they actually act around peers, in social settings, classes, etc. At our school, admissions definitely chats w/ hosts after visits to get their general feedback. My kids are often hosts, and you wouldn't believe the dumb things they have had shadows say. More than one has said they would never go there, they are definitely going to XYZ school, etc. They have also had some just truly be obnoxious. The majority are kind and seem genuinely interested in the school, but there are definitely outliers who clearly would not be a good fit. My son hosted one last year who kept interjecting in a class and interrupting the teacher. He saw the teacher talking to head of US admissions later that day. I can't imagine that prospect was accepted.

On the flipside, I absolutely would have my kids shadow b/c it's one thing to love a tour on admissions and when it's presented in marketing. Prospects see what the social part of the school is like, how classes are taught, etc. At our school, prospects are encouraged to attend sports events, musicals, etc. to really get a good feel for the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They track interaction/interest, and shadowing is one tangible way to check that box.

Practically speaking, most kids apply to multiple schools and it is important to demonstrate your interest in a school.

I can’t imagine why someone wouldn’t shadow.

+1. Of course they pay attention yo see how your kid fits in.

[Anonymous]

They want to admit families who want to come to school. Going to the waitlist is more work. Going shows interest, and easy check the box. Not going shows a lack of sincere interest.