How to get the most from the BCA open house, and every open house after
By Ann Ahn, Head Counselor of MEK Review
Open house season is here. Many families will walk through the doors of Bergen County Academies in the coming weeks. Some will leave with brochures. Others will leave with real answers and a clear direction. The difference is not luck. It is preparation.
After many years of guiding BCA and Bergen Tech families, I want to share the strategy I give our students. We will use the BCA open house as our example, but every idea here works for any school’s open house, in person or virtual.
Study First, Visualize Second
If you remember one thing, remember this. Research tells you what a school offers. The open house lets you see it.
Families who walk in without research spend the whole visit collecting basic facts they could have read at home. Families who study first use the visit to confirm, compare, and imagine. The same two hours can give you very different results.
Before the Open House: Do Your Homework
Start with the school website. Read it together with your child. Look at the academies, the curriculum path, the admission process, daily logistics, student life, and outcomes.
Keep in mind, the website gives you the basics only. It rarely shows how deep each academy goes or what a student actually does in the major. So as you read, note what is missing. Those gaps become your open house question list.
Next, talk with people who know. Friends, family, neighbors, and older students who attend or graduated can tell you what the school feels like. Ask about the daily workload, how they chose their academy, and what kind of student thrives there. A website shows the official story. People show the real experience.
Then build your family game plan. I suggest four simple steps.
- Shortlist. Narrow your choices to your top two or three academies.
- Question list. Write five questions the website did not answer.
- Session map. Check the event schedule and plan which sessions to attend first.
- Your child’s goal. Ask your child what they want to find out.
Let your child own that last step. When a student walks in with something they want to discover, they pay attention differently. The visit becomes their discovery, not a parent’s errand.
At the Open House: A First Look
This is what the open house offers that no website can. It gives your child a first look at their future school.
Help them picture it. Can they see themselves sitting in this classroom next fall? Working in this lab or studio? Studying with these students? Making this commute every day? Research gives your child facts. Walking the halls gives them a feeling. I have seen many students come home from an open house with new energy for months of preparation ahead.
Treat the day like a plan, not a wander. Arrive early. Go to your shortlisted academies first, and browse the rest if time allows. Jot down your impressions right after each session, before they blur together. And talk to current students and teachers. They give the most honest answers.
While you are there, watch and listen closely. How do students talk about their school and each other? How do teachers describe their program? What do students say about workload and balance? Does your child light up in one academy more than another? Those small moments tell you a lot.
Questions That Dig Deeper
Skip the questions the website already answers. Ask what only people can tell you.
First, dig into the major. Ask academy teachers how deep the major electives go and what range of topics they cover. Ask what hands-on labs, projects, or research are built into the program. Most important, ask how the academy helps students go deeper into the major by junior and senior year. That is what truly separates one academy from another.
Current students can fill in the picture. Ask which major class or project pushed them the most, how their time is split between major courses and core classes, and whether the major turned out the way they expected.
Second, ask about admission strategy, not just the test. Does applying to both BCA and Bergen Tech, or to BCA only, change a student’s chances? How do first and second academy priorities work, and does listing one academy only help or hurt? How is a student’s profile weighed against other applicants from the same school district? These answers shape your whole application plan.
After the Open House: Turn the Visit into a Plan
Talk it over within 24 hours, while it is fresh. Let your child speak first, and listen before you share your own view. What did they like most? What surprised them? Where could they see themselves? What do you still need to find out?
Then put it to work. Confirm which academy to list, and why. Use the real details your child saw to answer the question of why this academy in the essay and interview. Connect that goal to a steady test prep schedule. And mark every application and testing deadline on one family calendar.
A few mistakes to avoid. Do not treat the open house as a casual tour. Do not decide based only on the building. Do not compare your child to others in the room. And do not wait months to make a plan.
One Strategy, Every School
The BCA open house is our focus here, but please use this same approach for every school on your list. Study first, visualize at the event, then reflect and plan. Only the questions change.
At Bergen Tech, look closely at program depth and hands-on shop and lab time. At private day schools, ask about class size, advising, and college counseling. At boarding schools, learn about residential life and student support. At parochial and other magnet schools, explore academic tracks, honors options, and community.
Many schools also offer virtual open houses. They can be just as valuable if you treat them like the real visit. Test the link, audio, and camera, and join ten minutes early. Sit together in a quiet room, with your child in front of the screen. Type your prepared questions into the Q&A early, because time fills up fast. Ask whether slides or a recording will be shared. Since you cannot walk the halls, ask about virtual tours, student panels, or an in-person visit. And follow up by email with anything left unanswered.
My Hope for Every Student
I hope the open house clears your child’s uncertainty and breaks any assumptions they walked in with. I hope they leave with a definite picture of which academy fits them. And I hope they can answer “Why this academy?” and “Why BCA?” with confidence in their essay and interview.
Sometimes the presentation will not give enough information. That is okay.
A student who finds the answers through their own questions has done something special.
That student, I will be very proud of.
And remember, high school admission is one important step toward college, not the final goal.
Where the Guide Meets the Open House
This past April, we published The BCA/BT Complete Guide, our e-book on high school admission. It shares my perspective as a counselor on the academies, application strategy, timeline, and other school options. It is now available for purchase online.
I encourage you to read the guide, then compare it with what you find at the open house. Where my perspective and your findings agree, you can move forward with confidence. Where they differ, you have your next question, and we are always happy to talk it through with you. When the two come together, your child will have a clear and personal answer to why this academy and why BCA.
Ready for your next step?
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