Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Age or Ability Specific Forums High School College information sessions

I think this answer will vary significantly depending upon which schools your son is interested in. I think most of the hard, factual information can be learned from websites; again, depending upon your needs, that may be sufficient. We ended up making a spreadsheet to help compare the factors that were the most important to our DD, and all of that is easier done with the computer imo.

We did attend one group info session hosted at a hotel; the students were all invited (suspect strongly it was based upon PSAT scores). There were 6-7 colleges of similar type whose reps clearly travel together and host the same session throughout their regional areas. The session was attended early in the process for us, and gave a general overview for our DD- it was probably most useful from our perspective in getting her thinking more about what general factors were important to her (she already knew she wanted a liberal arts school, so specific, unusual majors and things like that were not a factor).

It was also an opportunity to speak one on one with the regional representatives from schools. (I underestimated this- at the school DD will be attending, this regional rep clearly knew her and her application, and made a point of sending her personal notes, met her when the rep came to the high school for a visit and looked for her when DD attended the college’s visiting student days. During the visit she ran into DD at several functions and made a point of introducing her to people she knew had shared interests.) Also, kids can leave their name/info with the reps, which is part of the “demonstrating interest” BS that some schools value.

We ended up not attending the large college fairs that are co-sponsored by several high schools in our area, but only because most of the schools that participated were not top choices for our DD and we could find the information elsewhere, but again, it is an opportunity for the student to make a personal connection with someone from the college. It’s also probably a good way for a kid early in the process to start making general lists about types of schools and what they are looking for.

Our high school also hosts college reps who do visits throughout the year. Many kids go to these to get out of class, honestly, but if the kid has any interest, it’s probably worth attending. DD went to one for a school she was uncertain about applying to, and ended up applying after having an in-depth talk with the rep. Of note, her counselor also sat in the meeting (DD was the only kid who atttended!) and she ended up being offered a large scholarship there. It’s clear the regional rep remembered her and the visit. She also met for the second time the rep from the school she’s attending, and sounds like she made a good impression then with questions.

Regarding the demonstrated interest bit, I am pretty sure that you can find this information out about most schools (for example, several ivies, u Chicago and others clearly state that demonstrated interest does not affect their admissions, as they understand the financial burdens of visiting and are trying to level the playing field). Other schools, we have since learned, pay lots of attention to it (Swarthmore, Wash U. In St.Loius, come to mind) but I would look into it for each college your ds is considering. We figured this part out late in the game, but if your kid is serious about a school that values it, I would attempt to do it (ie, do the visit, make sure they know you were there, don’t just self-tour, but visit the admissions office and leave your kid’s info with someone). Our DD did send emails to various people, from both an academic interest standpoint, as well as extracurricular (orchestra and music-related activities which are very important to her) but more of this occurred after she was accepted and trying to decide between schools. Still, it is another way for the kid to demonstrate interest and make connections.

As far as most selective schools knowing kids are interested, I would not bet on it. We heard from admissions directors at several schools that the most important part of the essay is to remember that Cornell (or insert any number of school names here) is not spelled Y-A-L-E. Most schools DD applied to have an essay prompt in which they want to know why this particular school is the one for you, and I suspect they look at these closely, for specifics. A visit to the school did make it easier for DD to write (here’s where meeting with faculty and people on campus can really help) but if the student has specific programs or faculty or research interests at the school that could do it as well. It’s much harder when all you’ve got is “it’s a great school academically and I want to live in X setting.”

Good luck!