Parents at interview?

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probowler

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So I have an interview coming up (yay!) and my mother and I decided to drive the 12 or so hours there together. She also wants to join me at the school on that day for the tour and activities before the actual interview. Obviously she wouldn't go with me into the actual interview room but I was just wondering if anyone knows if the adcoms may have negative opinions about her being there with me that day. I could always say that it is an example of coming from a supportive family😀
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Don't bring your mother to the tour or to any activities. As one who aspires to be a professional, you need to show that the umbilical cord has been severed.

That said, if you are accepted, you can always give her a tour of the school at another time.
 
I don't think its a big deal, my parents and I drove from NJ to Chicago and they just dropped me off at the school while I did my interview -- did their own thing then picked me up. I know some schools like VCU have an area for parents... so she could hang around the school and look around or she can drop you off and pick you up... that should be fine.

and good luck on the interview!
 
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No, no, and no unless you want everyone snickering behind your back, from current students to the dean and everyone in between. There will be plenty of opportunity for her to see the place - for us, we had a reception for parents and an open house after the White Coat Ceremony.

Surely there is a shopping mall, or a nice coffeehouse or something nearby where she could wait?
 
probowler said:
So I have an interview coming up (yay!) and my mother and I decided to drive the 12 or so hours there together. She also wants to join me at the school on that day for the tour and activities before the actual interview. Obviously she wouldn't go with me into the actual interview room but I was just wondering if anyone knows if the adcoms may have negative opinions about her being there with me that day. I could always say that it is an example of coming from a supportive family😀
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You should do the interview alone. If she wants to see the school, change clothes after the interview and go tour the campus with her. Take extra good notes during your interview and have her tell you her questions so you can ask them on interview day. Good luck!
 
probowler said:
So I have an interview coming up (yay!) and my mother and I decided to drive the 12 or so hours there together. She also wants to join me at the school on that day for the tour and activities before the actual interview. Obviously she wouldn't go with me into the actual interview room but I was just wondering if anyone knows if the adcoms may have negative opinions about her being there with me that day. I could always say that it is an example of coming from a supportive family😀
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I left my 72 year old grandmother in the campus library for five hours.😱 No, they shouldn't go to the interview.
 
Just to provide a counterpoint, I now understand that this was very unusual, but for my interview at East Tennessee State I was practically the only person there without my parents. It was like a big party. I would say the number of parents outnumbered the number of people there interviewing. I felt weird and kind of lonely because my parents weren't there, just because I seemed to be the only parentless one. Then for my interview at University of New Mexico, there were no parents at all, so I felt less isolated going alone, and this is probably closer to the norm.
 
I think it will hold you back. Let me explain: I interviewed at 2 schools a couple weeks ago and nearly everybody came with their parents, so while the students were talking with their parents and gossiping with them...I was busy spending more time meeting the professors and staff and having converations with them....it gives you such an advantage to go by yourself-...unless your parent is gonna join you in pharmacy school- I think it looks childish- I can understand them comming to your undergrad orientation- but for your doctorate degree?!?!? C'MON!!!
 
Wow, I can't believe that so many parents are showing up. I had read about parents becoming increasingly involved in the affairs of college students, but I didn't think it was this widespread.
 
Reading this is kind of shocking to me. 😱 If I assume the average per-pharm student completed 2 yrs of undergrad before applying to a pharmacy program that would put them around ~20 yrs of age. Taking your parents to any interview with you at the age of 20, especially if I was sitting on the admissions board, would seem immature. If you wanted to show your 'rents the campus, like others said, do it another time. Bringing them to interview: no!

I was amazed to see when I took my PCAT that people showed up with their parents, some even brought their dogs. Whats going on?
 
FixLittlePeople said:
I was amazed to see when I took my PCAT that people showed up with their parents, some even brought their dogs. Whats going on?
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My PCAT was like that as well. There was a ratio of something like two family members for each test taker (most didn't have any relatives there, but the few who did brought everyone), and they all expected to stay in the building with us, small children and all. Fortunately, the (excellent) proctors wouldn't let them stay and suggested that they go to a coffee shop.
 
FixLittlePeople said:
I was amazed to see when I took my PCAT that people showed up with their parents, some even brought their dogs. Whats going on?
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Wow, bringing your DOG?!?! I never cease to be amazed about the places people take their dogs.
 
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I agree about not having your parents come to the actual interview. I mean I felt a little bad since they drove all the way with me, but I told them that was going to happen and they still wanted to come for support. Instead I asked them to check out the area, they asked me interview questions so I could prepare, and I showed them the campus later. There were a couple of parents that took the tour with us, but then had to leave for the rest of the days activities. They just seemed out of place.
 
Don't take your mom on the tour, breakfast, or any other interview day activities. Hopefully she is cool enough not to be offended. Better to be the only one without your parents (like the person at ETSU), than the only one with a parent in tow. I'm almost 30, and my parents traveled with me to the interview (for reasons of practicality, plus I think they wanted to get out of the house...). I didn't let them in the building that day. At 30 years old, I've definitely cut the apron strings, but parents are still embarrassing even at my advanced age... :laugh:
 
I can't believe the number of people who are opposed to bringing their parents to their interview. I am proud to have supportive parents who are following along with my admissions process. I brought my mom to one interview, and both parents to another. The schools expect there to be parents and they make arrangements for them. One school had slideshows and presentations for the parents while interviews took place. Just because you bring your parents along does not mean that you are immature, irresponsible, or unable to be independent. I feel that my parents have helped me to become more independent and responsible if anything. Besides, it's not like the person who interviews you will have any interaction with your parents. One of my interviewers actually asked several things about my family.. what my dad's job was, what my parents thought about me becoming a pharmacist. They had a genuine interest in my family. I will be going probably 5 hours from home to attend school, and it is important to me that my parents approve of the location and school where I am going. If my parents didn't get a good impression of the school/faculty/campus, I wouldn't consider that school my first choice. If you are considering taking your parents along, please don't be ashamed or scared to do so. It does not affect your acceptance at all.
 
So where do you draw the line? I'm borderline 30 like, mustang sally, so having parents involved at this stage of the game would be out of this world. If you are 16, maybe.

In addition, was the school you took mom and pop a private school by any chance? I would imagine if it was and someone had to foot the outrageous tuition, it'd be partially your parents. I would hope that a reputable state school offering a professional program like PharmD, would frown upon taking family to an interview. I interviewed for UT Austin a couple weeks ago and there were no parents there and from the mood of the interview process it would have certainly looked out of place if you showed up with ma or pa and obviously hurt your chances with the admission folks.

Having said that, I agree with parents supporting you in all your endeavours, as I am a parent of a 4, 6 and 8 year old, just not holding your hand through the interview process.
 
charhea said:
I can't believe the number of people who are opposed to bringing their parents to their interview. I am proud to have supportive parents who are following along with my admissions process. I brought my mom to one interview, and both parents to another. The schools expect there to be parents and they make arrangements for them. One school had slideshows and presentations for the parents while interviews took place. Just because you bring your parents along does not mean that you are immature, irresponsible, or unable to be independent. I feel that my parents have helped me to become more independent and responsible if anything. Besides, it's not like the person who interviews you will have any interaction with your parents. One of my interviewers actually asked several things about my family.. what my dad's job was, what my parents thought about me becoming a pharmacist. They had a genuine interest in my family. I will be going probably 5 hours from home to attend school, and it is important to me that my parents approve of the location and school where I am going. If my parents didn't get a good impression of the school/faculty/campus, I wouldn't consider that school my first choice. If you are considering taking your parents along, please don't be ashamed or scared to do so. It does not affect your acceptance at all.
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No problem...let them see the school and meet the staff- even talk to the financial aid staff....NOT DURING YOUR INTERVIEW-how about the next day- how about over the phone- can't you bring information home for the parents to look at??- take pictures!!!!!!!!...when you interview for a job are you going to bring your parents??? I could not be more against this idea👎.... I think it complicates everything...I think if you bring your parents it shows that this decision is more up to them than you!!!
 
I am agreeing with most everyone here. It's extremely unprofessional to bring a parent/spouse to an interview. My bf or dad has traveled to all my interviews w/ me. But during my interview they did their own thing: studied at the library, went around town, went to the driving range, or went sightseeing (do some research around the area and bring a GPS for them). They came back to the campus to pick me up.

Case and point: I had an interview where someone brought their spouse. They didn't speak to anyone else, and the spouse was dressed in everyday clothes (talk about sticking out like a sore thumb). They just looked awkward-and believe me it won't be just the admin/present students who will "talk about you behind your back". Just my two cents.
 
probowler said:
So I have an interview coming up (yay!) and my mother and I decided to drive the 12 or so hours there together. She also wants to join me at the school on that day for the tour and activities before the actual interview. Obviously she wouldn't go with me into the actual interview room but I was just wondering if anyone knows if the adcoms may have negative opinions about her being there with me that day. I could always say that it is an example of coming from a supportive family😀
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I think if your mother being there will help you keep calm then go for it, but i wouldnt have her walking around the campus with you. Having her there for support is a personal choice of your own. good luck on your interview.🙂
 
I agree that you should not bring your p's or SO with you to the interview. Its childish. If you do for whatever reason bring them with..... don't make up a lie that you have lost all contact with your family to get sympathy during your interview and then proceed to have lunch with them in the cafeteria after the interview. Surprisingly enough someone did that at the MWU-CCP group interviews!
 
charhea said:
I can't believe the number of people who are opposed to bringing their parents to their interview. I am proud to have supportive parents who are following along with my admissions process. I brought my mom to one interview, and both parents to another. The schools expect there to be parents and they make arrangements for them. One school had slideshows and presentations for the parents while interviews took place. Just because you bring your parents along does not mean that you are immature, irresponsible, or unable to be independent. I feel that my parents have helped me to become more independent and responsible if anything. Besides, it's not like the person who interviews you will have any interaction with your parents. One of my interviewers actually asked several things about my family.. what my dad's job was, what my parents thought about me becoming a pharmacist. They had a genuine interest in my family. I will be going probably 5 hours from home to attend school, and it is important to me that my parents approve of the location and school where I am going. If my parents didn't get a good impression of the school/faculty/campus, I wouldn't consider that school my first choice. If you are considering taking your parents along, please don't be ashamed or scared to do so. It does not affect your acceptance at all.
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When you walk into your interview and see a bunch of people who are 30, have BS's and mean business...you'll wish mom stayed in the car.
 
The last post was hillarious! :laugh: I totally agree with it though. I'm sure parents will be supportive of you and your decision wherever they are, whether they're at home, in the library, at the interview with you, or sitting in the car. 🙂 If you get into the school, I'm sure your parents will both come back to visit the campus and whatever else more than you'd like them to. And if you choose to go to another school, why have your mom or parents go through all the hassle for? I think everything that everyone has said on this forum about parents coming to the interview is true..it really doesn't benefit you and if anything, it can be negatively affect your interview. Anyway, good luck on your interview! Give Mom the campus tour and whatever else after you get in. :laugh:
 
bwsalvas said:
When you walk into your interview and see a bunch of people who are 30, have BS's and mean business...you'll wish mom stayed in the car.
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word.

besides we're all adults...why on earth would we bring our parents?
it's one thing to bring a parent on a normal day for a tour of the school, talking to faculty, etc. it's another thing to bring them during YOUR interview
 
goldennemesis said:
Just to provide a counterpoint, I now understand that this was very unusual, but for my interview at East Tennessee State I was practically the only person there without my parents. It was like a big party. I would say the number of parents outnumbered the number of people there interviewing. I felt weird and kind of lonely because my parents weren't there, just because I seemed to be the only parentless one. Then for my interview at University of New Mexico, there were no parents at all, so I felt less isolated going alone, and this is probably closer to the norm.
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My interview in Tennessee had some parents too. They were invited to the tours as well.

My other interviews though they had parents wait in a separate area. Just depends on the school I guess.
 
thank you all for your replies. I have convinced my mom to go shopping at a nearby mall that day. Of course that means that there might not be room for me in the car on the way back🙄.
 
probowler said:
thank you all for your replies. I have convinced my mom to go shopping at a nearby mall that day. Of course that means that there might not be room for me in the car on the way back🙄.
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Great idea...she will probally get you something too😎...since she is so proud of you!! haha good luck with your interview..
 
Glad you worked it out with her. Personally I have to agree with a lot of the other posts, at least in my case bringing a parent would be really odd. I'll be 26 years old at the time I am ready for interviews and my daughters will be 5 and 4 years old. I've been on my own for years now and although my mom is a support to me I wouldn't consider taking her with me. Too strange, would look really weird and would probably feel weird for me too.
 
probowler said:
thank you all for your replies. I have convinced my mom to go shopping at a nearby mall that day. Of course that means that there might not be room for me in the car on the way back🙄.
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Congratulations on your interview; I hope it goes well. I'm glad you decided to have your mom do something else while you interview.

Honestly, if I were on the admin committee and saw an interviewee come in with a parent, I would not be very impressed.

Good luck!
 
At USC the parents generally wait around bored to tears for 2 hours while the "kids" go through interviews. No one from ADCOM would know who had brought parents vs those who didn't. Not advocating one way or the other really, just stating that it wouldn't make an impression one way or the other with those who have decision making power as they are either not there or not in a position to observe the parents being brought.

From a social aspect, with more and more people living with mom/dad into their mid-twenties, and in some cases early thrities, I think it may become more and more common for this to occur.
 
Oh yeah... If anyone ever has anything to do with Texas Tech (Abilene), don't bring your parents. I took the PCAT there, and one of the guys in charge had to ask parents to leave the test center. Today, at the interview, the same guy had to tell some parents to stay downstairs. Deja vu!
 
I love having the support of my parents. My mother made a 3 hour trip with me to one of my interviews. She was going to sit outside, but a Dean actually invited her inside the waiting area for the interviews, and the assistants brought her donuts and coffee. (Of course I went into the interview by myself!). I value a school that realizes how important parents are in students' lives. I still got accepted to this school, even with my mother in tow!
 
It was the University of Cincinnati. She also went on the school tour, and really enjoyed the tour, so she said!
 
I brought my mother to each one of my interviews, and the faculty and deans welcomed her and asked her if she had any questions. i am proud that my mother was apart of the admissions process, and she talked with other parents who were at the interviews as well.

I was accepted to 2/4 interviews i attended, st. john fisher and midwestern u, ccp
 
my mom brought a mini DVD player and several DVDs and went to a fast food restaurant to watch movies while I was interviewing.😀
 
When i got my interview at UF this november, we had to drive up all the way from South Florida. Naturally my dad drove up with me. He dropped me off in the morning and then went back to his car and slept for a good 5 hrs till it was time to pick me up. No one brought their parents to any of the interviews i've been to. well atleast no none brought them TO the interview. they may have been well...sleeping in their cars or something.
 
I don't see any reason NOT to bring your parents to the tour and orientation (unless it specifically says not to..). However, it should be obvious at this stage that your parents should not be with you while you interview.
 
Sorry to resurrect an old post, but I have to say that it's interesting/funny that some schools even expect for parents to come. I didn't think that there would be an "open house" attitude behind interview days.

My dad is driving me and dropping me off at my interview this week, only 2 hours away. I have a feeling this will embarrass me to no end if someone saw me get out of the passenger seat.
 
This is an interesting post. If my mom would have gotten the opportunity to drop me off at the interview, my performance would have been better.

BTW, I am not going to pharmacy school to show anybody that I am mature or cool. I am doing this to also help my family. Having them around me would be great.

As for participating in the process, it is up to them. Moreover, my parents already know me by now. When my affairs are at stake, they are better off a mile away from me.
 
If the school actually says 'bring your mom or dad" then there should be no problem (Lipscomb, i think is one) if not then I would advise against it. Adcoms need to see that you can be independent. If your mom wants to come along and drop you off, then that's fine, but taking tours doing certain activities with other interviewees etc. is probably a bad idea. Do the tour with her the next day or have her go and do her own thing while you have your tour or interview. My dad tried to follow me to my interview to CSU and I had to plead him not to come. He didn't see the reason. In fact, when he finally agreed, he would tell random people on the street "My own son doesn't want me to accompany him to his interview". Of course everyone was like, "Really???" But I'm glad he didn't come because when I got there one of the pharmacy students jokingly made comments about an interviewed girl who brought her mom to the interview. We were told it was a big "No-No". Make the decision wisely. This is a Professional School. It's awesome that your parents want to be apart of your life, but you have to learn that in a professional setting, mommy and daddy can't hold your hand 24/7. Think about it, would you bring your parents to a Job interview? Good luck and best wishes 🙂
 
I wouldn't ever dream of bringing parents to an interview, nor would I feel comfortable, but I was soooooo touched how loving and affectionate my mom was on the day of my UCSF interview. She came over early ( I live with a roommate) to bring me healthy breakfast and some snacks for my intervew ( cut up apples, grapes, granola bar) and the entire time I was getting ready she talked to me nonchalantly, we laughed and joked - I think that contributed significantly to me being so calm. I love my mom, she was so great !

If you can have a little positive interaction with your folks before the interview, even if it's just a phone call, by all means do it.
 
cheburashka said:
I wouldn't ever dream of bringing parents to an interview, nor would I feel comfortable, but I was soooooo touched how loving and affectionate my mom was on the day of my UCSF interview. She came over early ( I live with a roommate) to bring me healthy breakfast and some snacks for my intervew ( cut up apples, grapes, granola bar) and the entire time I was getting ready she talked to me nonchalantly, we laughed and joked - I think that contributed significantly to me being so calm. I love my mom, she was so great !

If you can have a little positive interaction with your folks before the interview, even if it's just a phone call, by all means do it.
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Agreed. My dad and I stayed at a hotel in Chicago and when i woke up he had breakfast a map of the city and my clothes ironed for me. They do help and they probably want to see you succeed almost more than you do. <3 my parents😍
 
My parents came inside even though i told them not to. It was embarassing, and got some laughs out of it. However, I am hoping points won't be taken off. I think the school really wants to see how professional you are, and if you bring your parents, ehhh. I don't know.

I agree that if the school invites guests, then, that's great! But for the purpose of independence and professionalism, try to not bring your parents.
 
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My mom flew with me to Philly for my Jefferson interview (we live in socal). She didn't go in with me, but walked with me from the hotel to the school and left me there while I interviewed and toured the campus.

I didn't want her to go with me at first, but it ended up being a (pretty) relaxing long weekend for us (we were there Friday - Monday having a mini vacation 🙂) and I'm glad she went with me for the good luck wishes before and the moral support after the interview..

When I was at Midwestern CCP a girl in my interview group brought her mom, and was sitting next to her during the presentations and all that. I'm glad she made her mom stay outside during the group interview though.. her mom was trying to get through the door with us!
 
i dont think there is a problem with bringing parents, when i went to Temple there was a number of parents that went along for the tour, and the admissions office was almost begging my parents to go on the tour w/ me. I felt uncomfortable with the idea, but after i saw everyone elses parents, i kind of wish mine went too, its nice to have more than one opinion about a school when you have to decide.
 
I think this question is sort of amusing. Not that I can't understand your plight. But, being that I'm nearly 32 yrs old it seems sort of humorous to me to even consider dragging my mom along.

Personally, I feel that it is important to be seen as an adult. An adult that can take care of themselves without the help of their parents. If you're accepted into the program, you're only 3 or 4 years away from working in the professional world. Will your parents go to prospective places of employment as well?
 
What?? :wow: I don't want to be rude but this topic is rediculus. If you want to become a professional you need to grow up and become a mature adult. :bang: Please, if anyone considers this a good idea find a new profession. :idea:
 
RxPadredeDos said:
What?? :wow: I don't want to be rude but this topic is rediculus. If you want to become a professional you need to grow up and become a mature adult. :bang: Please, if anyone considers this a good idea find a new profession. :idea:
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Writing skills are also important 😉
 
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