Are Open House visits to DO schools helpful or not to an applicant?

[drtanman]

My son, a DO applicant, says that it is not helpful to visit, but I says that it is helpful.
You get to meet current students, administration, and admissions counselor.
$100 bet is riding on this!

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[URMD]

Helpful in getting to know the school/mission and values? Yes.
Helpful in terms of some sort of positive benefit to admission status? No.

Though one could argue that an applicant who has a better understanding of point 1 will be better prepared for the secondaries and interview at that particular school, which could provide a positive benefit to his application

 

[costales]

I think it's important to know that the lawn is well kept, the toilet is in working order, and the cadavers are actually dead.

 

[235009]

Completely useless

 

[blkgrnblkylw]

I assume the main benefit would be that if a secondary question asked "why this school?" You can say, "when I visited..." And you might have a couple extra reasons to bring up that you wouldn't be able to find on the schools website.

 

[Goro]

I believe that it's helpful because one can learn a lot more than just from reading a website. Talking to the current students about the pluses and minuses of the schools is the best reason for even going!

Also, going to these and chatting up the DOs shows that you're willing to go the extra mile.

 

[ortnakas]

Define "helpful." What would each of you be looking to get out of a visit? It can be nice to see what the school is like, but open houses are obviously only going to show you their best side.

I do suggest that your son gets his own account! It's always a little odd to get questions from parents asking on behalf of their kids (on SDN, but even more so in person, should you win the bet and go to an open house).

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

My son, a DO applicant, says that it is not helpful to visit, but I says that it is helpful.
You get to meet current students, administration, and admissions counselor.
$100 bet is riding on this!

I can tell you that at my school for a fact it is. I know a few people that came to "preview day" and were given admissions from the waitlist.

 

[DoctorSynthesis]

My son, a DO applicant, says that it is not helpful to visit, but I says that it is helpful.
You get to meet current students, administration, and admissions counselor.
$100 bet is riding on this!

If the school isn't that far away I think it's a good idea to go.

 

[235009]

I can tell you that at my school for a fact it is. I know a few people that came to "preview day" and were given admissions from the waitlist.

That's not the same thing at all

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

That's not the same thing at all

The point I'm trying to make is that it creates a good impression. I wouldn't be surprised if people get interviews based on coming to preview day. Putting your name out there generally helps.

 

[dapdrow]

I would say it's helpful, especially for people who will be deciding between multiple schools, because I have read numerous posts on this website from people who decided where to go based on whether or not they got a good vibe from the place.

 

[samac]

If it's close? Sure why not. It won't hurt and only help. But if you have to fly/drive 9 hours and stay in a hotel? No. Save that money for interview season. You can get a good feel for the school on interview days with tours and talking to current students.

 

[asdf123g]

it doesnt hurt. Not a game changer or anything though.

 

[Promethean]

You are an attending? Then likely your kid isn't hurting for travel expenses, and isn't going to have to go without food or other essentials in order to afford to go to an open house or two. In that case, it surely can't hurt kid to go and get a better feel for the school and let them see that kid is interested enough in them to make an effort. Being that much more memorable to admissions staff / adcoms / etc. may also be beneficial.

If someone lacked the financial resources to go visiting, I don't think that it would substantially hurt them. It isn't like, if an applicant has a good chance of getting in, the school is going to pass them over because they didn't go to an open house. But if they are marginal at all, going might get them a tiny advantage.

This assumes that "helpful" is entirely based on enhancing admission potential. By that definition, I am giving you a weak yes, sure, it could help.

Another meaning of "helpful" would be about kid getting an opportunity to evaluate the culture of the institution. My school has a reputation for being exceedingly strict in ways that many traditional undergrads have not experienced before. Although the academics and outcomes are sound, a lot of people really resent things like the dress code, mandatory lecture attendance (esp. for students who choose the lecture pathway,) and the restriction of food and drink to a designated area rather than being permitted throughout campus. Those are quality of life / cultural issues that really, really matter to some folks, and it would be better for everyone if students who don't want to go to school in that kind of environment would self-select to go to other schools. That is just one example, but each and every school is a good fit for some people and a poor fit for others.

We get so focused on this frantic game of musical chairs and the desperation to find a seat that it is easy to forget that there are some seats that we'd be better off passing over, even if they would be open for the taking. Going to an open house might be extremely helpful if it let kid find out that admission to that school would make for years of misery.

 

[ChrisMack390]

I think it helps. Not in the sense of "hey this kid visited let's accept him!" but in the sense of giving some more concrete examples to draw from in interviews and essays.

 

[Angel252]

My son, a DO applicant, says that it is not helpful to visit, but I says that it is helpful.
You get to meet current students, administration, and admissions counselor.
$100 bet is riding on this!

I cannot say it will be extremely helpful but it will give him a slight benefit. Like others have said, he will be able to see the school and know the positive/negatives. I personally visited some of the schools I am applying to and I know for sure, I made an impression. Two of the admission directors in two of the schools spoke to me one on one and were astounded by the distance I drove and time commitment I took to visit the school (I was one of maybe ~100 that traveled more than 4 hours to visit the school). It shows them you are determined and that you have a set goal. Plus, I got tips and news of changes in the application process (secondary questions changed), so I was able to pre-write them and submit quickly once received.

In my experience, even if he is not getting a first impression on the admissions committee, he is still gaining something. He could even include it in the secondaries if they have any questions related to "why this school?".

Hope my info. helped!

 

[ChrisMack390]

UNECOM specifically asks in their secondary if you have ever interacted with any of their faculty or alumni before. If your answer is no this is a great way to change it to yes!