Open days

[aliportico]

Is it normal now for parents to take their 6th formers to open days? When I was looking at universities, I went off by myself, which seemed standard amongst my peers, but from what I have seen at my local university and read in various places, having your parents take you seems to have become the norm these days.

I was wondering why? Possibly because parents have to make more of a financial investment in it now, so they are more bothered about where their money is going? Possibly partly as a result of our generation of parents doing a lot more running around after our kids than our baby boomer parents did for us?

[Guest55]

aliportico - ther weren't Open Days as such in my day - I just went to interviews and I went on my own. I also had to stay in a B&B for a couple to get to the early interview time.

I think there is a whole 'industry' aroud these days now - I don't think I've seen anyone on their own. It is partly the cost but also the whole 'advertising/promotion' angle - you need an adult's eye to pierce below the 'gloss' and see what really is on offer. How many contact hours do they get? What is the library really like? What study support is there?

[aliportico]

Oh, I went to open days at Birmingham and Oxford and one other place I think - could have been Bristol? They were week days, whereas our local uni had its open day (or one of them) on a Saturday. That was around 1988.

And yes, I agree that the answers to your questions are important - but weren't they when we went? Is it different now that more people go on to further education? I just think it's interesting how it has changed. We're a couple of years off such visits but I can't imagine being able to control my curiosity long enough to send the dc off by themselves!

[Guest55]

My visits were a few years before yours

I would recommend you go - my DC said it was useful to discuss what we had seen together afterwards. I made some notes so DC could just listen and enjoy.

Some 'Open Days' have bits of them specifically for parents. I think it partly that more students go and partly because it costs so much now!

[Sally-Anne]

I am of a similar vintage to Guest55 and I went to all my interviews on my own:

- As she says, there were no "open days" - you just went for an interview and if you had time before dashing to get the train home you would be shown round some of the campus by an undergraduate; (When my turn came to do that the trick was to show the prospectives the SU bar at the end of the tour and look hopeful ...)
- My parents didn't go to university, so they probably didn't feel that they could contribute an enormous amount; today's parents are more likely to have a degree themselves so they feel they can help with making an informed choice;
- Road travel was a lot slower and the M25 didn't exist, so public transport was the quickest way to visit many universities and parents to tagging along increased the cost considerably;
- And yes, it costs vastly more now!

[loulou]

My son did some visits with friends and some with me. Those he did with friends were the days when I was working. He quite liked having me go with him but I think that was more for the lift and the fact I bought him lunch rather than for any other major contribution that I might have felt I made - he is a boy who knows his own mind. At two of the open days we bumped into people he knew who were on their own but the majority of students were with parents. Very different from the early 1980s! Quite interesting to see different parenting styles in action, from those who totally took over and asked all the questions during department tours to those who let their children do all the talking. I must say that I thought some students seemed more geared for independent learning and living than others. I was, however, quite keen to see where my money is going to be spent and had quite a fixation with viewing accommodation wherever we went which my DS thought was hilarious .

[harlequin]

Is it normal now for parents to take their 6th formers to open days? When I was looking at universities, I went off by myself, which seemed standard amongst my peers, but from what I have seen at my local university and read in various places, having your parents take you seems to have become the norm these days.

I was wondering why? Possibly because parents have to make more of a financial investment in it now, so they are more bothered about where their money is going? Possibly partly as a result of our generation of parents doing a lot more running around after our kids than our baby boomer parents did for us?

My DD and I went along to quite a few open days over the summer period - mostly at weekends as she was only allowed 2 days off school to attend those on weekdays. I was surprised when my DD told me that some of her friends haven't been to any Open Days even though they are applying to start Uni in 2012. I would certainly recommend going to get a feel of the Uni, the accommodation on offer, etc. and it was a useful experience as my DD has now decided which Uni's she prefers.