The Campus Tour – On my Own or With a Group?
The Campus Tour – On my Own or With a Group?
Out of all the colleges in the world, or at least in the U.S., you’ve decided on two or three. You’ve seen all the literature – the pictures, the list of classes, the financial aid information, and anything they have put online for you to see. You’ve read different reviews, maybe, and talked to your school counselor about the various programs in which you might be interested. You’ve talked to your family about distance and costs. Now, you just need to actually see the college(s) and talk to people on the campus, including faculty and staff as well as students.
At this point, you need to arrange for a campus tour. You need to the see the college first hand and get your own impression of the school. You will learn more about the layout of the school as well as the actual size of the campus and the classrooms. You will be able to learn where the dorms are in proximity to the classrooms or the gym. So what kind of campus tour will you take?
One popular option is the event weekend known as the Open House weekend. Various colleges will call it different things – Hospitality Days, Welcome Days, Open Campus Weekend. Some colleges with a large athletics program and a “name brand” mascot will use the name of their mascot in the title. Either way, it is a time for prospective students to come to the college or university and see the school. All of the key people that you want to meet with will be there and you will have opportunities to catch quick conversations with those people. They will probably even have some specific classes for you to be able to attend as well as some specific programs planned just for your entertainment. Of course, they will have the campus looking great for all the prospective students, as well.
The other option is an individual campus visit. You or maybe you and your parents can go to the school and make appointments with key people you will need to get to know – the head of the program you are considering, the financial aid director, the coach of the particular athletic team you would like to be on. You can also possibly sit in on some higher level classes in the major you are considering.
So which option is best? Probably both. The weekend event gives you an overview of the campus while the personal visit may give specific answers to specific questions you might have. In your junior year, you might consider attending a couple of the weekend events at colleges in which you are interested. Then in your senior year, you might be able to narrow it down and take a personal visit to the college you feel most inclined to attend.
Either way, or both ways, a college visit is definitely something for you to consider as you consider this very important step in your educational career.
