With my second kid (currently in 7th grade), I want us to visit more schools early in the game, like junior year. I thought it made financial sense to wait and focus our visits on where my D23 was accepted (aside from visits we did because we happened to be in the area or she was doing an in-person audition). But with late March / April 1 acceptances*, that meant an exhausting, complicated scramble to visit a bunch of schools quickly—and some we just couldn’t get to and, as a result, didn’t really consider seriously, though they might have been good options. Next time, early visits! Then we can always go back if it comes down to a short list of real options.
([*] I have SUCH A RANT in my head about schools that wait this long to release decisions. It is so stressful and inequitable to leave so little time between the decision and May 1. )