<p>Set up an interview. If you cannot visit an interview at the same time most schools have alums in your area who do the interview. </p>
<p>My son interviewed at every school which offered them and at the school he will be going to (Bates) they pretty much tell you up front you won’t be accepted if you don’t interview.</p>
<p>Tulane wants love. They rejected a lot of very high stats students this year and admitted lower stats students who visited.</p>
<p>So if one can’t visit U of Rochester, do they offer local interviews in So. Cal?</p>
<p>sbj, can you make it up to LA in a couple of days?</p>
<p>[University</a> of Rochester : College Admissions](<a href=“http://enrollment.rochester.edu/admissions/events/offcampus/]University”>http://enrollment.rochester.edu/admissions/events/offcampus/)</p>
<p>Oh man, I work on Saturdays and my son has ARML practice. 
I don’t know why some schools don’t come down to SD. We’re still a large city.</p>
<p>SBJ - Have your son call Rochester and ask them to set up a local interview for him. It doesn’t have to be right away, either. Anytime before he submits his application will be fine.</p>
<p>Rochester had an admission session on Long Island as well as one in Manhattan (a few years ago), i assume they still travel around. so just contact admissions and ask if they are planning to be in your neck of the woods. Fill out all the cards-- let them know you actually attended the session.<br>
I’d say this is a good way to go with all schools. Call-- Let them know of your interest- find out if they are going to be in your area-- and with some luck they may be doing a College Night at a local high school.</p>
<p>just saw deborah T’s link. Don’t know if all schools have similar links-<br>
but it does seem apparent that it is wise to be in contact with schools to find out when they’ll be in your area.</p>
<p>sbj - re your post #17. Ivies are among the least likely to care about “showing the love.” To put it mildly. Any high yield school will basically not care. Hope I am not overstating this case. </p>
<p>But if you are trying to ration time and $$, you visit this type of school for your own interest, not to show the school that they won’t be wasting an admit on your kid.</p>
<p>I think that showing the love is very important to U Chicago. They think of themselves as unique, and want to know that that uniqueness made the applicant fall in love with the school. I am not sure the best way to show this, but I do think the “Why Chicago” essay on the app is very important. But a visit, interview, sending scores, etc., should also help. Also, a visit makes the “Why Chicago?” essay a lot easier to write.</p>
<p>Schools know that visits are often not feasible for middle or lower income families.</p>
<p>^My son got into Chicago early. They sent him a holiday card telling him they had enjoyed his Why Chicago essay. (It started off listing all the reasons he was sure Chicago was not the right place for him.)</p>
<p>mathmom: does he like his experience there? my math-y son is looking at their program…</p>
<p>Kayakmom, he ended up choosing Tufts. It was a really hard decision, but for him (interested in International Relations) I am pretty sure it’s the right one.</p>
<p>WashU is a great place to show interest, I think. I can’t remember if she sent scores (I think so), but my D did return a form they sent out regarding her interest in merit scholarships. They responded by flying her out for a really great preview weekend, and she loved the place. This was not because she fit into any special category (URM, national merit, etc) - just high ACT scores and a good record of public service. She would have applied if she hadn’t gotten in ED to Pomona (which I think also prizes interest in the form of signing up for an interview).</p>
<p>Definitely WashU and Tulane. I was actually accepted with a (non-athletic) likely letter to Harvard, but waitlisted at both of these schools, and I believe that the fact that I showed virtually no interest could have played some role in that. </p>
<p>OP, I know you don’t live in Louisiana, but for anyone who does, you MUST visit Tulane. I live in LA, and since I considered it a safety, I never made my way down there. I also never bothered to contact the school. Furthermore, I failed to apply by the deadline by which LA students meeting a certain set of criteria would be admitted. (I far exceeded most of the criteria but did not apply by the deadline.) To be honest, I never wanted to go to Tulane, and it obviously showed, because I was waitlisted. (And I can’t blame them!) Show Tulane some love for sure, especially if it is high on your list. Definitely apply early action. </p>
<p>WashU wasn’t so much a safety, but I did consider it a match. Unlike Tulane, I was actually pretty interested in WashU. Nevertheless, I neglected to visit the campus although I’m within a (long) day’s drive. I didn’t interview on campus. I also didn’t fill out the original information thing they have you fill out until about a week before the application was due. I never contacted admissions except to turn in my application. I know WashU has pretty competitive admissions (especially this year!) but I can’t help but feel that this played into my being waitlisted. Show WashU some love, too.</p>
<p>Pizzagirl, I know Grinnell is a great school and that’s why I was pointing it out. Yes, there’s Northeast perspective in my comment as it’s the only place I’ve lived, except for when I applied ED to a top LAC in snowy Ohio 
and loved it there for 4 years. So I’m an admirer and beneficiary of that experience, not a detractor.</p>
<p>What I meant about Grinnell – and several other Midwest, cold weather fine LAC’s on my mind, such as Oberlin, Carleton – is this. I believe there are top-achieving h.s. students across the country who make lists that sound something like this: prestige Ivies + top LAC’s + State U for safety. And a few more matches/safeties to cushion.</p>
<p>Lists from high scorers on CC often read like this: several universities from HYPSMBCorD…and (sometimes) several LAC’s from here: Grinnell, Claremont/Pomona, Amherst, Williams or Swarthmore… and Homestate University (Honors Program). List further rounded out by a few more safeties, hopefully!</p>
<p>Setting aside finances completely, imagine a student with such a list. Once acceptances roll in, assume there are some acceptances and some rejections. That student if accepted to several of the above would have to Love Grinnell to decline the others for Grinnell. </p>
<p>Why? The Ivies have the word “Ivy” that dazzles perceptions. Among the LAC group I listed, those other LAC’s are ranked higher than Grinnell on USNWR, a popular list that turns heads for some, not all, applicants. Claremont/Pomona beckons with an equivalent LAC experience AND nice California climate. </p>
<p>If the list sounds along those lines, then I feel any student who has a mad crush on the Midwest top LAC on their list, such as Grinnell, Oberlin, or Carleton, should let that crush be known clearly. It’s not an obvious first preference. If it IS, then say so by “showing the love” in the many ways available to students.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I guess I’m not sure why you wouldn’t equally say that about any other fine LAC. I mean, to me, places like Bates and Colby are just as much in the middle of nowhere as Grinnell is!</p>
<p>I know anecdotal evidence isn’t everything, but my S got rejected from Bates after an on campus interview and is best friend got accepted after we brought home the application for him. Never stepped foot on campus or heard of it until DS insisted he apply.</p>
<p>Not sure why S got rejected. He said he had a good interview and is a personable young guy, not piercings or tatoos (I don’t mind them but maybe some admissions folks would.)
Dear Son exceeded stats by a lot ad was accepted at Vassar, Wesleyan, Williams and Amherst (as well as U of Chicago and Brown.) Bates was supposed to be the safety. Love did not help.</p>
<p>Accepted at U of Chicago and Brown without showing any interest whatsoever.</p>
<p>Rejected at Cornell which I think did have to do with “love” because at our school Brown was a much harder get. He was invited to attend a free bus trip with local folks to explore the school and declined. So I think Cornell did want love.</p>
<p>Brandeis definitely responds well to love in my experience.</p>
<p>It may have to do with a school’s calculation about whether or not a student will come. There may be a subtle vibe. The truth is S wasn’t overly interested in Cornell and Bates.</p>
<p>DD was flat out rejected at Brandeis while classmates with much lower stats showed love and were accepted. But it was true there, that she really didn’t have much interest in attending.</p>
<p>I don’t think Cornell cares if prospectives visit or not. On that note I also don’t think any of the Ivy’s care but if your son is accepted than by all means see the schools at acceptance time. Every college is just so different and they really have a personality of their own.</p>
<p>Don’t agree about Cornell. They definitely made note of the fact that S refused their invitation to visit. That may be different than someone who just doesn’t come on their radar screen.</p>