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Hi all,
Had a quick question about visiting schools - is it a big deal if you don't visit the schools ahead of applying? Is that viewed as a lack of interest on the part of the applicant? I plan to talk to students at each of the schools and incorporate those thoughts into why essays, but it's tough to visit many schools.

Also, based on what I've read, a nice shirt and jeans with good shoes / sandals is ok for a campus visit and session with the admissions office, right?

Thanks for your help.

doesn't matter at all for admissions

fatduck wrote:doesn't matter at all for admissions

Visiting only really matters for degree programs in which the numbers are not everything (like B-Schools).

Yes, that's fine.

Visiting is important when you are deciding where to accept. Being on campus can give you an idea about 1.) Facilities, 2.) Student body, 3.) Atmosphere and 4.) Quality of life. Sitting in on actual classes and talking to students who are not the student ambassadors is the best way to figure out if it is a school you want to spend 3 yrs at.

awesome - thanks for the info. And jeans / shirt is ok?

firstimer wrote:awesome - thanks for the info. And jeans / shirt is ok?

soj wrote:Yes, that's fine.

I would visit if 1) it was a reach school, and 2) you're driving distance from said school (wouldn't spend more than $100 to visit). I think schools like UPenn and UVA that are into yield protection will be slightly more likely to accept you off the waitlist if you can actually show up at the school, walk around, and say that you would absolutely attend this school if accepted in an LOCI.

Edit> I'm talking out of my rear on UVA, but I've heard success stories for reach candidates that visited UPenn. Anecdote, sure. Shaky casual connection, absolutely. But who knows.

twentypercentmore wrote:I would visit if 1) it was a reach school, and 2) you're driving distance from said school (wouldn't spend more than $100 to visit). I think schools like UPenn and UVA that are into yield protection will be slightly more likely to accept you off the waitlist if you can actually show up at the school, walk around, and say that you would absolutely attend this school if accepted in an LOCI.

But probably not.

InGoodFaith wrote:But probably not.

It worked for me... I visited UVA, and even though I had you-must-ED-to-get-in numbers, Dugas told me actually showing up had the same effect because I was showing that I was serious and not just a shotgun applicant. I wrote a "Why UVA" talking about my visit the next day and emailed it in. I got accepted a few weeks later. I had a similar experience with Duke.

I think everybody should visit every school they're seriously considering, even if it means flying (I hit up Chicago, Northwestern, and Michigan in one four-day trip) or roadtripping (I did Cornell, Harvard just for fun, Penn, Virginia, and Duke in ten days). With reaches you can hold off until you get in, but it's amazing how actually spending a day at a school can take it from #1 to #8 on your list (Chicago) or #8 to #3 (Duke). I feel like TLS people are too crazy about drawing nonexistent employment distinctions between schools within subtiers... PVBMDNGC are pretty much all the same unless you want a secondary market that's dominated by a particular school, you're at Penn and want NYC (Good!), or you're at Georgetown and want DC (Bad!). I think people would be better off figuring out where they actually want to live for three years. And I can definitely see how each and every T14 would be the best T14 for a certain type of person.

Whenever I see a thread like "NYU or Chicago?" or "Cornell ($$) v. Duke ($$) for NYC BigLaw", I'm like, "You clearly haven't visited either, have you?"

It is important that you visit the School before you enroll so as to check the facilities of the school. For you to know if the school could provide you the knowledge that you need.


Dorothy Miles
Law School - http://www.law.stanford.edu

I just came from Atlanta LSAC forum earlier... Emory law school said they track who visits the school to gauge their interest.

No iffy hearsay here, straight from the school's mouth to my ear, and they had a director or some official person like that at their desk (can't bother to dig the business card out of the bag right now), not some current or former student.

On the other side of the spectrum, Columbia doesn't even do tours, you just show up whenever you want and tour yourself, talk to whoever you want. Don't come in summer though cause they don't have summer classes, everyone is working.

SPAM

fatduck wrote:doesn't matter at all for admissions

Agreed.

It's all about the numbers.

bro.

don't necro.

dorothymiles123 wrote:It is important that you visit the School before you enroll so as to check the facilities of the school. For you to know if the school could provide you the knowledge that you need.


Dorothy Miles
Law School - http://www.law.stanford.edu

TITCR. Going out of your way to visit before you're even accepted is pointless, IMO (unless you're genuinely interested in a law school's campus).

I would absolutely visit after having narrowed down my list of acceptances. I didn't and found the school's culture and the general area to be a poor fit. Something I would've known if I had visited.

I recently visited Chicago, after being admitted, and there were a number of hopefuls on the tour as well. Frankly, it was awkward because you could tell they thought they were getting some boost from being there, even though their only interaction was with a 1L. They lingered in the admissions office, uncomfortably, for awhile before being all but shooed off. One kid even wore a full suit. The amount of second-hand embarrassment I felt was unbearable.

PRgradBYU wrote:Going out of your way to visit before you're even accepted is pointless, IMO (unless you're genuinely interested in a law school's campus).

Depends on the school. YHSCCN don't care who you are when you visit, but the rest of the T14 are pretty amenable to sitting down with you and getting to know you. Just doing the guided tour and group information session is a waste of time, but actually putting a day into exploring the campus and meeting with admissions officers for informational interviews can be very helpful. Being able to write a "Why Duke?" or "Why Virginia?" or "Why Penn?" that really communicates enthusiasm and a knowledge of the school beyond what's on the website is a really good way to stand out from the crowd as long as you're in the ballpark, numbers-wise.

And if it turns out that you hate the school, it makes the sting of the waitlist/rejection a lot more bearable.