Reply to Supposed to basically just guess where to apply? What are we missing?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][b]Personally, I would say don't waste time visiting schools that don't use "showing interest" as a criteria for admission.  Save that for when your kid is admitted, then visit for selection.[/b]  When my kids applied to schools, the admissions were all over the place--didn't get into safeties, did get into reaches, that sort of thing.  They picked schools based on what they wanted to study, location, etc.  Some were large, some were small.  Then when they were admitted, the list was, of course, much smaller than the list they applied to.  Went to those schools and picked one.  This is especially good advice, IMO, if your kids are like mine and pick schools all over the place--CO, CA, Midwest, New England, and nothing local (except for an in-state safety) or in the South.[/quote]

I cannot tell you how much I agree with this advice.

I think a better idea is very early on (junior year or even prior), visit different types of colleges that are close to your home, if you can. Take day trips to a SLAC, a more urban school, a public school, a research university, etc. within a couple of hours from your house, as leisurely exploratory outings, just to get a feel for types of schools. [/quote]

Thanks.  Every time I give it, someone looks at me like I turned purple.  But so many kids visit schools, fall in love with them, and don't get admitted.  Sometimes multiple ones, and at great expense.  So easy to do video/online tours now, and get a decent idea if it's an acceptable school to apply.

I agree with you, if youi're close to different types of schools it doesn't hurt to go check those out.  For DS1, we thought he was leaning towards a New England SLAC...then BAM, fell in love with a Big 10 during the admitted students tour.  Made his decision on the spot.  Go figure.

Good luck to everyone.[/quote]

I agree with both of these... visit a range of *types* of schools early in the process so at least the kid knows what that kind of school looks like. This is a useful lens in the process even if they don't rule out certain types (my kid had very strong opinions after this).  But we intentionally didn't visit reach schools in that early exploration.  I didn't want him getting fixated on one particular school early on.  After that virtual info sessions about the programs of interest + website info + school rep visits is enough to decide where to apply and we did tour places in an easy drive but investing in an expensive college touring trip seems like a waste of $$/time until you know what's really under consideration.[/quote]

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