Make Your College Visits Worthwhile
With spring break approaching, it’s a popular time to start planning visits to prospective colleges and universities. Since campus visits are so critical to making an informed decision, here are a few tips for maximizing your time.
Timing is Key
If not attending an organized preview event, be sure to work with an admissions counselor to schedule your visit. You’ll need to make sure the school is not on spring break or other holiday, especially if you’re planning an overnight visit. The university should be operating “normally”, to allow you to get the best feel for campus life. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t plan your visit to correspond with a fun event that’s of interest to you such as sporting events, theatre or musical performances. These can be great opportunities to observe the campus culture and have casual conversations with different members of the community.
When touring out of state colleges, try to visit when the weather is not at its best. When it’s June in Phoenix, a trip to the northeast will feel like a heavenly relief. But you’ll make better decisions if you go in the winter and get a real feel for what you’ll be living in for several months out of the year. Now would be a great time to visit California during the spring rainy season.
Ask the right questions
In our classes, we suggest the following questions be asked of the admissions officer, who is usually tasked with giving you a PR-heavy view of campus life.
- What are the most important admissions criteria?
- How are these ranked?
- How many of your students graduate “on time”?
- How many come back after freshman year?
- What is your enrollment yield?
Also, write down your own list of questions. Ask for campus safety statistics, job placement statistics and anything else that is of personal importance.
Talk to current students
Ask your admissions counselor to put you in touch with students in your intended major or sports and clubs that you are interested in.
Come prepared with a list of questions you would like answered, so when you get an opportunity you don’t get tongue-tied. These could be about the nightlife, Greek culture, drug culture, academic competition, academic support, diversity, campus amenities…whatever is important to making your decision.
Sure it can be a little scary trying to fit in with college students, but most of them remember what it was like to be in your shoes, and will enjoy sharing candidly about their university experience.
Visit the rights places
A guided tour will introduce you to the overall lay of the land, but there are a few places you might want to return to. Like the library. This could become your home away from home, so wander around and look for a nook you could see yourself using to study.
Be sure to eat in the cafeteria – you’ll be spending a lot of time there. If you find the selection doesn’t suit you, you’ll need to investigate the minimum required dining plan and what nearby grocery stores are available.
Where else do you expect to spend time – the fitness center, computer lab, art or music studios? Then check out the amenities and get a feel for the vibe in these places.
Listen to your inner voice
Overall, pay attention to your gut feeling. Do the school’s values and culture seem to mesh with your own? Does the general personality of student body fit yours? Could you imagine yourself being friends with at least some of the students or prospective students you meet? Is this some place where you could make a home?
Most importantly, have fun! Campus visits should be an enjoyable part of the process.
