<p>My D’s favorite is definitely Elon. We just loved the campus and the way everyone made you feel special from day one. My D left there last April convinced it was her 1st choice. She’s in academically but still has to audition so that may change her choice. 2nd choice is Carnegie Mellon , then NYU. She also really liked Skidmore’s campus however they don’t do musicals so it’s out.</p>
<p>She hated U of Miami (didn’t love the kids drinking at the pub in the middle of the day) Said it felt more like she was on vacation than going to school. Liked the campuses at Denison and Wittenburg but not a good fit academically for her. </p>
<p>As for the Syracuse bad vibe, my D actually visited on a busy day and the weather wasn’t perfect but she loved it. The campus is actually very pretty with beautiful architecture, great sports life, and everyone was very friendly. Just a second opinion.</p>
<p>Macalester. Twice. First with S1, then with S2. Nothing in particular, just that the facilities and students seemed uninspired and uninspiring. Except for the the new sports and recreation facility, which was pretty impressive - and unexpected, cause I don’t usually think of sports when I think of Macalester. Just our impression, though; I know some people who love the school.</p>
<p>My son and I went on a special guided tour of a new building at U. Penn. The university official spent so much time talking about how they spent millions of dollars to get just the right look of the floors, the walls, the window blinds, etc. It really turned both of us off. It also made me stop giving the University money.</p>
<p>My brother’s campus tours were at: Northwestern, Brown, Yale, Harvard, MIT, Columbia, Princeton, Cornell, Duke, UPenn, and UChicago.</p>
<p>I couldn’t attend on all of them, but I did go to Northwestern, Brown, Yale, Columbia, and Princeton. Personally, all the Ivies looked the same to me. Old buildings, with a sense of grandeur. Northwestern was a completely different experience for me, it was very modern and had a beautiful campus. It had a beach, a park, a lake with a large fountain, everything was perfect. Although my brother really liked Northwestern as well, he ended up attending Columbia.</p>
<p>My personal goal as of now is Stanford, but I’ll be happy at Northwestern.</p>
<p>Kiddo is a potential musical theatre major, so is spending this year travelling to campuses to audition…but we also did travel time her junior year, where she “auditioned” the schools to see if she would return. The schools we visited were either on the recommendation of someone who knew the school and d’s skills, or were ones she’d researched as likely. Schools that did NOT make the cut, by her definition (sounds a little like Goldilocks):</p>
<p>Penn State – too big
Florida State – too “sportsy”
Ohio Northern – too much in the middle of nowhere
Western KY – too small of a pond
Shenandoah – too much in the country</p>
<p>It was helpful for her to focus on what she wanted, and to really see the programs firsthand. Also, when she has stepped back on campus this year for (nervewracking enough) auditions, at least she’s semi-familiar with the campus. Finally, by finding out which were a good potential fit, we didn’t spend application dollars, add more missed school days, etc to go for auditions for a school that wasn’t right for her. With admission stats in her major of from 2-5% of applicants (yeah…) it’s critical that she really want to attend each of the schools on her list…</p>
<p>Agreed! American University hands down the best tour and presentation of all schools visited pre-application including: Fordham, NYU, GWU, Georgetown, Wm and Mary, Santa Clara, Stanford, USF, Dominican, Saint Marys, Cal, Gonzaga, UWashington, UPortland and a few more local schools.</p>
<p>NYU, Georgetown, Stanford, Dominican, Cal, and UWashington did not make the cut and did not receive applications.</p>
<p>Basically was four trips over 2 years. Second child (sophomore) joined us on the last trip to DC/VA.</p>
<p>So interesting how opinions differ - American was our worst presentation/tour and we all (2 parents, 1 junior son) agreed right away that it was off the list. Thought the info session was too long, very dry and boring. Our tour was led by a girl who just seemed very impressed with herself. The campus itself was gorgeous - loved the idea of a suburban campus with easy access to a major city - but there was no sense of fun or campus spirit conveyed. We actually ditched the tour early - had a bite to eat - and left!</p>
<p>You know, it seems to me that colleges invest a lot of money in creating attractive advertising and websites to attract students, and then let lackluster tours and info sessions drive them away. Maybe they should spend more on jazzing them up.</p>
<p>My D spent a fair amount of time at American-- tour, sitting in on a class, meeting a professor, etc. She liked the campus and the vibe but something seemed lackluster. She’s applied and she likes it, but it’s slipped down the list-- she just didn’t feel that spark there.</p>
<p>We sent her on her own (from California) last fall to see two schools, Wheaton and Clark. She crossed Wheaton off her list within 15 minutes-- she said the campus was pretty, but info session leader and the tour guide both tried to dispel the rumor that it’s a suitcase school, a rumor she knew nothing about-- but she said she saw almost no kids on campus on a Saturday afternoon, and if they were denying the rumor so deliberately, it must be true. </p>
<p>Since Brown and Tufts have both been mentioned recently, I thought I would weigh in. D visited both schools. When we visited Tufts, I did a Gertrude Stein impression: There is no there there. Nothing was wrong with the campus or the tour, but nothing inspired us either. I know people who teach there, and I know it is an excellent school, but it seemed insipid. While Tufts remained on the short list, D ultimately did not apply. </p>
<p>When we visited Brown, our experience paralleled that of many other posters. It was spring break and the admissions office was like a sardine factory. As soon as we were divided into groups for campus tours, it began to rain. The tour groups were very large, and they kept bumping into each other, making it difficult to hear anything. Not surprisingly, the ensuing information session was standing room only, and we did not learn a great deal. Given the rain and the crowds, we decided to skip the physical sciences tour and leave town. </p>
<p>While the visit was not productive, D kept Brown on the list and applied RD. The accepted student days changed everything. Brown arranged with Amtrak to hold three cars of a Washington-Providence train for prospective students. While D1 was waiting to board the train, an admissions officer appeared, along with some current students. As soon as D introduced herself, the admissions officer launched into a monologue about her extracurricular activities. She was impressed by the level of preparation and personal attention, but what really sold her was the six-hour party on wheels during which D was able to meet dozens and dozens of potential classmates. </p>
<p>D is now a first-year student at Brown. She turned down schools with bigger reputations and higher rankings to go there, but cannot imagine being anywhere else. A big plus for her has been the open curriculum. She has not yet decided between sciences and engineering, so the lack of general education requirements has made it easier to keep her options open. The upshot is that D is happy about the school she did not cross off the list.</p>
<p>The only college my daughter knocked off the list after a campus visit was Connecticut College. There wasn’t anything particularly bad about it. The campus was beautiful and the buildings were nice. The tour guide was pleasant and did a fine job. She didn’t like the fact that her interview was with a student intern, but that wasn’t a big deal. She just decided from the general feeling of the place that she would not be excited about going there and it wouldn’t seem better than attending her safety (our local flagship state u). I think it lacked a certain quirkiness factor that she finds appealing. Her favorite campus visits were Hampshire and Pitzer.</p>
<p>There was no “there” there - that was S’s and our impression of Providence College. The campus was nice enough, but we just didn’t get any feeling out of it. </p>
<p>A word about tour guides. My son just became a tour guide at his campus this year. We talked about how much emphasis people put on their tour guide, and he said he’s really surprised the tour guide program isn’t better run - there’s very little training. He applied, had an interview, was hired, shadowed 2 tours, got a couple of handouts and that was it. For all the millions colleges spend on marketing, you’d think they’d put more effort into training their tour guides.</p>
<p>Agree with LaFalum84. It is their biggest chance to sell their product, so to speak, to both students and parents. They have a captive audience and they blow the opportunity by failing to recruit and train adequately the tour guides and even the random folks who address the audience in the info sessions. You have to wonder what they are thinking. I can recall a few tours/info sessions where nearly everyone was rolling their eyes and wishing it were over.</p>
<p>We stopped taking tours fairly early in the process. I guess colleges who have students giving tours that turn people off are still filling their seats!</p>
<p>I’m surprised by how many people cross a school off the list based upon the tour guide. Really now, they are only students, not professionals. I was a tour guide myself when I was at Pomona College. We got no pay at all, and our only reward was a potluck picnic at the end of the year. Nobody trained us, and we didn’t have any spiel to memorize. All that was asked of us was to show the parents and students around campus, and answer any questions they had along the way. Some people were mostly interested in the dormitory rooms, others wanted to see the music or science facilities. I used to take a scenic route that went through several courtyards and flower gardens, but aside from that, I mostly just showed them what they asked to see.</p>
<p>UCLA - I think it is the combined effect of a boring info session and a lackluster tour guide that can be the kiss of death. I would not want to eliminate a school based solely on the tour guide. But - this is a situation where first impressions really count. I think it is a lot like a first date - if it doesn’t go well - there probably won’t be a second one!</p>
<p>But it’s the school people should be “dating”, not the tour guide. The guides aren’t polished professionals, they are students, only a year or two older than the high school kids they are showing around.</p>
<p>I always felt the same way but they do have influence. I agree, they are usually unpaid students that aren’t “polished” and they vary greatly. When we visited Holy Cross one year, it was very well done, 2 guides, different majors, experiences, showed us everything, others were close but less informative. Marist had mainly fashion majors and the guide knew very little,she was mostly talking about the fancy dorms and free laundry. Another school had guides looking like they just woke up and almost grumpy. If you have had experiences at both ends, you might think the college with the worst guides reflect the school but it doesn’t always. Sometimes it’s hard to get good staff and if the college is popular, not enough to do all the tours needed. I only complained once because it was so bad, I thought it would reflect on the school if it continued. Most of the time, I took it in stride and see the school through my own eyes and eyes of my children. We checked the important facts online or with the staff. </p>
<p>When my daughter’s crossed off a school, it was because of the vibe of the whole school,not one person. Two that come to mind were Wheaton and Marist.</p>