My daughter is signed up to attend one of these presentations tomorrow, and we’re trying to figure out approximately how much time these presentations will take (over two hours?). We have to scoot back via train out of NYC to NJ and hope it won’t go too late.
Anyone been recently?
We did attend one of these sessions last fall, and though I don’t remember how long it lasted, I think you can count on 2 hours, probably 2.5 hours.
Each of the 8 schools has a mini-admissions presentation - I would guess 10-12 minutes each for those. I believe they rotate the first speaker presentation, which is longer because it covers the admission spiel that they all have in common (how they consider GPA, SAT/ACT, read your essays and do the holistic review yada yada). At our session, I think Macalester gave that presentation, and Sarah Lawrence went last. We could have skipped out on Sarah Lawrence, but they did indeed have a Q&A session at the end which went on for at least 20 more minutes after the presentations, though many people left before the end.
There was more time for brief 1-on-1 questions at each individual school's table in the lobby before the presentations started - but as far as I could tell, they weren't keeping track, so it wouldn't help for showing interest -- more of an opportunity to pick up brochures.
If you need to stick to a train schedule, then I suggest you call one of the schools and ask them how long the session is expected to last.
On the other hand, if you eventually plan to visit the schools, you’re not missing that much if you do have to cut out early. It’s more useful as an exposure to all 8 schools to figure which ones to winnow out based on their differences.
Thanks! Actually, knowing this kind of detail about the format is as, if not more, helpful than knowing exactly how long it may last. Good to know at your session that people left before the end - we may do the same. Since my daughter is potentially interested in 4-5 of the 8, it will be helpful in confirming whether the schools are worth a visit. Also good to know about the possibility of getting info beforehand - we may arrive a little early.