What to wear as a parent at DD uni open day?

[livvymc]

My DD has an offer holder day at Kings College London next month.
We’ll be travelling down from the NW for it, but staying over the night before so outfit doesn’t need to be suitable for travel.
What on earth do I wear?! I’m normally jeans/tshirt or leggings/hoodie type person, although I wear suits for work.
Has anyone been to such a day and can advise on what they wore? I won’t wear leggings obviously but is there a suitable middle ground between that and a suit?
Thank you!

@Hoppinggreen Or better still, get dc to ask! Unless it’s a parents only session.

I wasn’t expecting the OP to walk all around London! I actually work in another Uni in central London so understand the scale of the local unis and how the tube works. No, it’s just that even if you aren’t walking far in distance you spend a lot of time on your feet just standing and looking at stuff/ chatting to people/ general milling about. You would quickly regret the six inch stilettos! 😀

We went to an offer holder day at LSE a few years ago with one of ours. There was a contingent of families from abroad that were quite dressed, but most of the rest of us were in some variation on jeans/shirt/sweater and trainers or something similar. I don't remember exactly what I wore, but I'm sure it was something casual and I didn't feel out of place. I didn't notice anything particularly celebratory.

My DC didn't love it in the end and took a different offer. Nothing to do with my wardrobe, I don't think 😅

DD has an offer holder thing at UAL and I’m not going . She doesn’t want me to. 🤷🏼‍♀️

Was at Kings College yesterday :) Just wear your normal weekend wear. Comfy shoes as they will be plenty of walking and maybe time for a bit of sightseeing and lunch in Covent Garden. Enjoy!
The Watchtower cafe in Somerset House does awesome food as well!

Yeah… no.

Lol at celebration

OP I work at a large RG university. I wear a work dress and blazer but I am senior leadership. All my colleagues wear chinos or smartish jeans and shirts. Parents turn up in similar weekend casual and no one cares.

And of course ask questions if you want! It's fine. I was an at offer holder day last weekend and a mum wanted to talk to me about support for her son who is autistic. I was glad to - it's literally why I'm there, to talk to people and help them make sure they are making the right choice.

Whatever you wear, don't wear heels!

Your daughter will get on great at uni if she’s already trying to find her independence. Good for her.

Hi OP. I work at KCL and the academics in my dept wear jeans, trainers and jumpers so def more casual. Hope your DD enjoys her offer day. Most teaching has finished now so campus is quieter but during term time it’s been quite bustling and loads of stuff has been going on!

Jeez!
Thanks so much to everyone who’s offered practical advice.
To answer a few posts, DD has asked me to go, so that’s why I’m going.
She’s my only child, I didn’t go to uni, this is our first experience of anything like this so I genuinely had no idea if it was a more formal type dress event or come as you are.
To the more snarky posters or those who think it’s “hilarious” I had to ask, I hope you never feel the need to seek advice on anything 🙄😂
Thanks again for all the helpful posts, looking forward to a nice, relaxed weekend in London with my girl 😊

Ignore them, op, and enjoy your time with your Dd.
It’s perfectly normal to accompany your child, btw. Some people clearly have different relationships with their kids, take no notice.

That's wonderful!

That's wonderful! How exciting - I hope you have a great time

Congratulations to your DD (and you).

There were a couple offer holder days that our DCs went to on our own (i.e. Durham was an overnight on campus), but with 3 kids, we went to lots with them and never got the feeling that parents weren't expected/welcome. And, as I said, all very casual. If it's your first time, do take advantage to ask any questions you have. Most places seem to have sessions for parents for exactly that reason.

Hope you both have a great time and she loves it!

Have a wonderful weekend OP! Hope she enjoys it and well done to your dd on the offer 😊

Ignore the posters posting just to be mean girls.

I wore jeans with jumper and another layer plus a mac. Most people are in trainers - the odd dad in walking boots! I saw one family seemingly in matching hoodies. You’ll likely get offered a cotton tote bag so don’t worry about having to cart a load of things there.

Enjoy yourself. This is possibly the first time your DC is making a big decision and they’re often excited and hopeful which is lovely to live vicariously through!

@OnGoldenPond No to heels - definitely! Standing around, yes, but talks have seats.

I also don’t think Kings is particularly recruiting.

I remember the first one we went on it was a long journey. Dd didn't care what I wore, but expected me to have drinks and snacks in my bag and was outraged that I didn’t have a spare cardigan/wrap because she, of course, had not worn enough clothes…..

Oh and if you aren’t already in it do join the Facebook group What I Wish I Knew About University - WIWIKAU lots of parents going through the same either for the first time or the final time offering advice.

Why is an offer holder day a celebration? They haven’t got in…. Assuming you’re at LSE presumably the number of internationals make you want to present the offer as more of an achievement? But really, no one cares. Leggings, hoodie and trainers - fine.

Also few dc needing to stay overnight go alone. London is definitely a place to share with a parent.

Yes, why would anyone celebrate an offer? I suspect that poster is trying to piss on op’s chips, by suggesting her dd’s offer is not as worthy as those from other institutions?
Shame on her.

Well to be fair some courses are highly competitive and others aren’t. KCL is a mixture but it’s obviously great to receive an offer. However what you wear hasn’t anything to do with that.

Those of us doing Admissions (mostly academic staff) are not interested in the parents - we want to talk to the actual applicants. We'd rather the parents went off to do something else, so we can talk to the likely applicants about heir ambitions & how they might find their fit with our degree.

Wear what you're comfortable in for London - temperature is more important than how you look! If you're travelling by Tube and in crowded lecture halls, wear layers and comfortable shoes.