Recruitment Weekends

[BrandNewName]

What is standard practice for recruitment weekends in English and American Studies programs with regard to travel and accommodation expenses? Do most school cover the cost for admitted students to travel to the campus? Do they do so up to a certain limit? Or, is it every admitted (wo)man for himself with regard to cost?

I am trying to sort out what to do about visiting a program for an interview weekend in two weeks time, but I know that I won't know about my fate at other programs by that point. Staying in the States for a month and waiting for decisions to roll in won't help matters either because even if one or two responses are positive, most recruitment weekends seem to happen towards the end of March. It seems like I am going to have to fly back for this interview weekend and, if I get another acceptance at a place that I like, fly back again in March sometime. It gets pricey pretty quickly, so I'm wondering if the as-yet-imagined school that admits me will pay for my travel.

I know I could visit the schools I'm interested while home in two weeks time, but I feel like attending a recruitment weekend is a must for some of the other schools at the top of my list. I want to see the dynamic of the department (faculty and students as a whole), hear from professors I haven't yet discovered and maybe wouldn't think to take a class with otherwise, meet current students, and take a tour that will show me where graduate student life occurs.

Just dropping onto a campus won't allow for that, I don't think. What's everyone else's take on this? Can you really get to know a school by just going on a one-off visit to the campus and (maybe) meeting with a POI and a current student?

[lyonessrampant]

The school I was accepted to said in the email that the trip to visit would be at their expense. I would imagine there are limits to that, but I am under the impression that the trip is usually paid for when it is a recruitment weekend.

[BelleOfKilronen]

Just dropping onto a campus won't allow for that, I don't think. What's everyone else's take on this? Can you really get to know a school by just going on a one-off visit to the campus and (maybe) meeting with a POI and a current student?

Congrats on your interview!

I visited two schools last spring, one as part of a new admit event, the other on my own. While both visits went well, the comprehensive meet 'n' greet type event gave me a much better sense of the program. All the faculty members I wanted to talk to were on campus, and I got to spend time with the students who would eventually become my cohort and the students who were already working with the professors whose work I was most interested in.

From your post I gather that there might be some considerable practical/financial concerns for you surrounding travel to/from these visits. If you do decide to do a visit on your own, I'd suggest 1) confirming that the two or three professors you'd most like to work with will be able to meet with you during your visit and 2) emailing students working with these professors before your trip so you can set up time to talk to them during your visit, too. At both of my school visits, I found current students to be refreshingly candid and very open to answering my (many) questions.

(Also, financial assistance for travel seems to vary quite a bit from school to school and even year to year. I'd explain your situation as a candidate/admit from overseas who would love to come visit during their event but is having difficulty gathering funds, ask them if they could help you defray costs, and then just see what they say. Nothing to lose, everything to gain. Good luck!)

[intextrovert]

Just from my own experience: most of the schools where I was admitted covered $200-300 of travel expenses and either paid for a hotel or put me up with current students. That said, I was also admitted to a few places that offered no compensation, and have heard of still others that will cover up to $500. So it really depends.

[Irishlibra]

I figured I'd chime my two cents into this thread. I visited three out of the four schools I'm applying to because I happened to be traveling there anyway for work. Being from a small town in Idaho I knew that it would be overwhelmingly expensive to visit the schools even if they invited me for a recruitment weekend.

School #1 - Extremely helpful in that the MA director met with me, took me around to various professors, and allowed me to chat with current students. She even took me out for coffee which was really nice. I initiated everything over e-mail, so she was expecting me and had plenty of time to plan a few things on my behalf.

School #2 - I did my very best to initiate a meeting both by phone and e-mail and was unsuccessful in all attempts, so I just showed up at the school with the hope of catching someone that could tell me a little bit about the program. The student secretary of the dept. was extremely unhelpful. I finally managed to wrangle the office numbers of a few professors I was hoping to me. All three professors weren't in their offices so I started meandering around the building. One professor came up to me and asked me if he could help me with anything. I explained that I was visiting from Idaho and that I was looking into the MA program and was hoping to talk to someone about it. He generously brought me to his office, chatted with me about the school and then proceed to set up appointments with whoever he could find that he thought it would be helpful for me to meet. I was overwhelmed with kindness and attention. I even had professors coming to look for ME! Such an impromptu and warm reception told me everything I wanted to know about the dept. It was a great experience.

School #3 - I, once again, coupled this visit with a work trip. It was in early Dec. and unfortunately, the school was already out on Christmas break. I did manage to meet with the MA English secretary, but she didn't tell me anything that I hadn't already gleaned from the website. Still, it was nice to see the campus and the building the English dept. is housed in.

I don't know if this has been helpful at all, but I really felt like it was worth my time to visit prospective schools on my own. I was able to apply to the schools with more knowledge, and it helped me ascertain whether or not I would be a good fit.

Cheers!