Fair enough but the kids wouldn’t have applied there in the first place if there wasn’t some level of fit determination already made. It is entirely possible that more than one school is an attractive fit option for a given student. Otherwise, kids wouldn’t agonize (in some cases) over their final choice.
I wasn’t talking about a used car salesman routine. My phrasing was not quite accurate. At the risk of digging a hole, I guess it’s more to do with feeling like you are wanted. That is, you get a general Engineering presentation, but they go out of their way to let you know that’s all you are. Whether you have an intended major or not, they won’t discuss because…you’re NOT that major. So carrying that forward, no one from your intended major is there to discuss. Nor do the depts (to date) reach out to you and congratulate you on your acceptance, etc. That’s not selling, that’s making you feel wanted.
Now, had we not had that kind of experience from a couple other places where son has been accepted, I probably wouldn’t even have thought about it. Obviously, it’s a very large school and there are some things that are not practical. One must come to grips that, as an entering freshman, you may lose a little of the personal touch. There are trade-offs with every choice
To be completely fair, I would encourage Juniors (rising seniors) to take advantage of the Spend a Summer Day program. This event absolutely includes individual dept presentations and the ability to ask questions 1:1 if you so desire. Perhaps they believe that by the time you attend an Accepted Student day, you have already gone through these things. But clearly Accepted Student day is the first visit for some. I feel they could do little things that make the undecideds feel more wanted.