Open Houses

• Generally we encourage parents to attend open houses at the schools they are considering.

• We do not recommend that students attend open houses if it means missing class time. Open houses are "sales pitches" and while they may give parents a sense of what the school has to offer, they are not highly effective in helping students assess if the school is a good match.

School Visits

• Parents should narrow down the school choices and choose the 2-3 schools they think would be the best match for the student to explore.

• We recommend students visit no more than about 3 schools.

• Please complete the School Visit Form as soon as you know when your child will be visiting a possible school. This will allow us to better prepare your child for the visit.

• If we have enough notice, someone at Benchmark will provide some setup for your child for the visit including what to look for during the visit and how to handle formal and informal interviews.

• We will also try to follow up with your child upon return to help the student reflect on the experience.

Student School Visit Guides

We have two versions of a school visit guide your child may wish to use. The first version is simply a guide to the kinds of things the student may wish to look at when visiting. It can serve as a good discussion guide with your child after the visit. The second is a note sheet the student use to record notes during the visit. Both have the same questions.

• High School Visit Guide for Students

• High School Visit Guide for Students - Observation Notes