Is visiting in cold weather a problem?

[ihs76]

We saw JHU and CMU in 37 deg, continuous drizzle with no umbrellas. Thought for sure they'd be off the list but it was all fine. So, can't predict.

[musicamusica]

If the weather is a problem during the visit, it will probably be a problem if they end up at school there. Might as well find out BEFORE, rather than have a miserable freshman looking to transfer later.

[bookmama22]

You cannot really predict the weather, although I would avoid touring schools during their spring breaks in early March because campuses will be deserted. We toured Brandeis on accepted students day in April on a day that was colder with blustery wind and mixed snow and rain, we toured Northwestern on an audition w/e in early Feb that was unseasonably warm in the sixties and sunny and Cornell right after Freshman Move-in Day in the pouring rain, and Oberlin after Hurricane Katrina had come up north-the rain had stopped but very overcast and many huge puddles. We also toured University of Delaware in June on an extremely hot and muggy day and I think that might have been the worst weather to walk around in.

[Hunt]

I think bad weather PLUS school being out of session could be a killer. If school is in session, the students will be blithely dealing with the weather (many of them profoundly underdressed for it) whereever you are.

[unbelievablem]

i used to live in dc, though a number of years ago. unless things have changed -- even though dc got a fair amount of snow each winter, they seemed to have the mindset that they were a southern city and they simply couldn't handle it -- any decent amount of snow, the city shut down. whereas in new england -- probably much more snow, but they know what to do with it.

i visited a massachusetts school with one of my kids on what turned out to be the day of a snow storm. the plows in the surrounding area, as well as the grounds crew at the school, seemed to keep up with no problem. if anything it helped my kid's view of the school since it reenforced the idea that the new england weather wouldn't be a problem.

i could imagine that in much less snow, dc and a dc campus might handle things much less well.

truth is, college kids are going to be at their schools for a long period when the weather isn't the best -- in some areas it can stretch from mid-Oct. to mid Mar -- so why not let them see what the school is like when its representative of how it'll be most of the time they are there? if anything a summer/spring visit, when all is in bloom, can be misleading.

but i might recommend flipping the order of when you visit new england vs. philly and dc. late march/early april, dc is likely to be fine -- maybe even catch the cherry blossoms. february in new england will be cold -- but the schools won't skip a beat in handling it.

[nightchef]

I disagree, I say hit the northern new england area as late as possible, at least philly and DC are a little further south.

I guess it depends on whether you're trying to minimize harm or maximize benefit. Even at the end of March, and often well into early April, it's still winter in NE, not spring. So if you want at least one of the trips to be in real spring weather, you go to NE in late Feb. and DC in late March. On the other hand, if you want to avoid the coldest weather, you do it the other way around, as you suggest.

[poetgrl]

I think the reason they don't tour on Saturdays and Sundays is because campuses tend to be pretty dead during the weekend days....kids go home, leave campus for trips, or just generally sleep in and whatnot.

[midwesterner]

We had a fantastic trip to Washington DC during a long weekend in the first week of March, three years ago. While the midwest was being pelted by a huge rainstorm, the DC area was warm enough that we walked to all of the monuments, Supreme Court building, you name it. The bonus was that the number of tourists was very low and we only waited in line at the National Archives. However, it was very close to Spring Break at two of the schools, so we were not there at the best time to see a busy campus. I would make the Spring Break schedule the deciding factor, as you really don't get enough of a flavor for a school without the majority of the student body present.

[PRJ]

I really think it depends on the kid. We visited both Macalester and Grinnell in March when it was chilly and gray. As I mentioned on your other thread, D loved Macalester and not Grinnell. It had a lot more to do with the locale, the people she met, the classes she sat in on, etc. I think she was oblivious to the weather.

[kantianethicist]

No school really is, in its totality, that perfect picture postcard. The kids should know that and realize that harsh weather is something they will have to deal with nearly everyday in some regions. We toured some of the "most beautiful" campuses in awful weather. It was slushy and grey and slightly dirty looking at Swarthmore--a far cry from the lovely arboreteum in bloom that is a characteristic description. She still thought Swat was an intellectual paradise. It was cold, windy and raining when we visited Harvard and Wellesley. Spent a lot of time avoiding puddles. However, D's spirits weren't dampened; she thought both were still lovely but was happy to get inside and enjoy a hot cup of tea!

Often, you have to take the good with the bad.

I think it's most important to see the campus in full swing -- you can't get the real feel from an empty one. You should always try to talk to students that aren't employed by admissions and snoop around a bit off the beaten path.

I agree that if you have a bad experience (that you think could be attributed to the weather) that maybe another trip (at another time) would be in order if it's a "must" school.

[davh01]

Caution about schools that do not have weekend tours. It's mostly likely a suitcase school where most student are gone Fri afternoon and return Sun night. Your kids okay with a semi-empty school on weekend? or do they prefer one that have lots of activities?

[Pizzagirl]

So if tours aren't offered on Sat / Sun, how the heck am I supposed to get my kids to these places while school is in session? Take them out of school? So how are they supposed to participate in all the award-winning EC's they need to and get the outstanding grades to get there if they're pulled out of school? I'm getting aggravated, LOL!

[Pizzagirl]

Caution about schools that do not have weekend tours. It's mostly likely a suitcase school where most student are gone Fri afternoon and return Sun night.

None of the schools being looked at for either kid fit the description of suitcase school, so not to worry.

[Bromfield]

Late March/early April in New England will be cold and gray--probably snow or snow left over from a Nor'easter (big ugly piles of dirty snow on the side of the road). It will not be spring (sometimes we get a warm spell, but not often). Check the spring break schedules for the colleges in Boston. There's usually a week-long break near the end of March (Tufts, BU, Brandeis, BC, etc). I found most places had tours on Saturday.

Also, D2 did an unscheduled tour at Bryn Mawr. We went there at the end of January, the day before the spring semester classes began. It was the only time that worked for us. I called admissions and they had another student coming in on that day, so they scheduled a special tour for us--several tour guides were back on campus early. My D and the other girl both did their interviews with an admissions person at that time too. Since your D is a junior, she wouldn't be interviewing at this visit. But if she decides to apply--I would really recommend having an interview on campus. I think it shows interest and Bryn Mawr likes that. Also, three other girls from my D's school applied to Bryn Mawr and they had a phone interview with the admissions person. They all felt that it was really difficult and awkward. Interviews probably don't kill one's chances, but when it's with an someone from admissions, it sure feels better for the kids when it goes well.

[momofthreeboys]

If your spring break is the first week in April (as ours is), we often drive to Colorado. Typically the snow is "no more" on the way out, sometimes snow in the mountains, but by then Colorado Springs should be just fine to drive to. The colleges are in session then. You could easily fly to Denver on Southwest for "cheap", rent a car and drive to Colorado Springs and not have to worry too much about the weather. If yours is in March, just rent a 4 wheel drive vehicle. The sun shines waaay more in Colorado than the midwest so the sunshine and blue skies are pretty nice backdrop for the campuses.