Is the parent tour an interview (even if you have not officially applied)?

[Anonymous]

YES! If you are with an admissions person or even parent volunteer. DO NOT ASK about financial aid at this point. A fried did that at a private and they never got any further. Ask about financial aid AFTER you are in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:YES! If you are with an admissions person or even parent volunteer. DO NOT ASK about financial aid at this point. A fried did that at a private and they never got any further. Ask about financial aid AFTER you are in.

Um, it doesn't work that way. Financial aid applications are due before admission decisions are made.

[Anonymous]

We toured several schools a year before applying for our DC - GDS was the only school that had an interview scheduled with the tour and it was before we applied. (but of course we did not apply, because we weren't applying anywhere). GDS did have a group tour option as part of their Open House - that didn't require an interview.

Maret had a small group meeting with about 4 sets of parents in advance of their tour.

I think most schools offer an Open House format where you can avoid an interview or much "small contact" with admissions if you want some distance...

[Anonymous]

if that true about he financial aid?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:if that true about he financial aid?

I doubt it. There are so many factors that come into play when the schools are assessing your kid to offer a spot. The person may have sound clueless and the AD may been put off by the question/comment, but again I doubt that the awkwardness/quirks of the parents are the deciding factor

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It may not be an interview per se, but you are being assessed, no question

I used to handle tours for a Big 3. Do not let your guard down by my status as a "parent volunteer." I was absolutely assessing you (did you seem nice, was your DH checking his iPhone every second, did you ask questions just to get noticed) and dutifully reported back to the AD.

I call total BS. I do parent tours at a "Big 3"and the admissions staff never asks us anything. They explicitly tell prospective parents that we (parent tour guides) are uninvolved in the admissions process.

Take a deep breath, people.

[Anonymous]

slightly aside:
Parent tour guides are volunteers. They get a run down of info from the admissions office, but sometimes they have an interpretation of something that is overly personalized, and not representative of total school culture, educational philosophy or curriculum. Use the information as a starting place, and continue to gather information. One parent's lens is helpful, but not the total picture.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It may not be an interview per se, but you are being assessed, no question

I used to handle tours for a Big 3. Do not let your guard down by my status as a "parent volunteer." I was absolutely assessing you (did you seem nice, was your DH checking his iPhone every second, did you ask questions just to get noticed) and dutifully reported back to the AD.

I call total BS. I do parent tours at a "Big 3"and the admissions staff never asks us anything. They explicitly tell prospective parents that we (parent tour guides) are uninvolved in the admissions process.

Take a deep breath, people.

+1. I also give tours & have never reported back to the AD or been asked for feedback. If someone is particularly rude or obnoxious, I'd say something but otherwise, I'm not sizing you up. That's not my job. My job is to let you know what we love about the school. It's the AD's job to determine whether your child & family would be a good fit.

[Anonymous]

"Inane" questions were mentioned above. Here are some to avoid:

- Anything that suggests you didn't do your homework by reading their website. Instead of "does the school have a good music program?" try "How many pieces are in the orchestra?"
- Humble brags. Instead of "we're switching schools because the last one didn't offer math that was advanced enough for little Larla, can you meet her needs?" try "how does the grouping by math ability work?"
- Hints that you're a PITA parent. "I noticed the cafeteria doesn't serve kale, are there plans to change that?"
- Crassness in general. "Who do I talk to about making donations?"
- Hints that DC might have a few little issues. "Larla was so bored in her public school that she was always accused of distracting the other children, can you believe it?"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are applying? Submitting our application? Are we in high school?

Well if you have to turn in a Parent Statement it sure sounds like the parent is applying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are applying? Submitting our application? Are we in high school?

Such an odd comment--are you trying to stir the pot?

A 4 year old DC is certainly not the one personally filling out the 10 point font two page application for Kindergarten or even selecting what schools to tour. The parents are.

'We' (the parents) are the ones applying on behalf of the child, and 'we' are the ones meeting with the administrators. 'We' are also the ones who are asked to take part in an interview where 'we' will discuss why the school is a good fit, and what hobbies our child has. .

Sounds like the only thing 'we' are not doing is a playdate and the WPPSI. Fair enough.

The process (in the younger years) is most definitely a 'we' not a 'he/she'

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:if that true about he financial aid?

It certainly was in the case in our experience. Do NOT mention you might seek financial aid during the initial interviews and tours. They want full paying players and big donors. If you signal otherwise you will see the interest in your kid's candidacy immediately fall awy.

[Anonymous]

I'm curious - how can you KNOW that financial aid caused your DC to be rejected from a school? Obviously it wasn't mentioned as feedback, so how is that people are so certain that it hurt their chances?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:slightly aside:
Parent tour guides are volunteers. They get a run down of info from the admissions office, but sometimes they have an interpretation of something that is overly personalized, and not representative of total school culture, educational philosophy or curriculum. Use the information as a starting place, and continue to gather information. One parent's lens is helpful, but not the total picture.

The other thing to keep in mind - these parent tour guides have had the school's Kool-Aid. If you want information over and above what you can easily find on the school's website, look elsewhere (how do you think I found DCUM!).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It may not be an interview per se, but you are being assessed, no question

I used to handle tours for a Big 3. Do not let your guard down by my status as a "parent volunteer." I was absolutely assessing you (did you seem nice, was your DH checking his iPhone every second, did you ask questions just to get noticed) and dutifully reported back to the AD.

+1