Seniors Preview Harvard

Memories of smiling admissions officers wafted through the air yesterday as 45 high school seniors visited Harvard during the second day of pre-freshman minority weekend.

Sponsored by the Admissions Office and Harvard's minority organizations, the weekend includes an academic symposium, a financial aid forum, a picnic and several parties.

"It's strange in some ways. The people talk like books here and it's cold: both the people and the weather," Aubrey Jackson Jr. from Pine Bluff, Arkansas said yesterday. Jackson added that he plans to attend Harvard "but I'm not going to kiss the ground or anything."

At a reception yesterday, several seniors said they still had not decided which college to attend. Most were leaning toward Ivy League schools with Stanford also a popular choice.

Describing the admissions process in a speech addressing the visitors, David L. Evans, senior admissions officer, said yesterday that "Just because you're the son or daughter of someone doesn't means all you have to do is be warm and have vital signs to get in."

Most of the seniors were pleased with the Harvard campus. "I'm very impressed but a little scared. I was happy as a senior," Unhee Kimm of Brookline said yesterday.