The College Visit
Visiting colleges is best started when a student enters ninth grade. Each school year should include a number of college visits. Starting early is important because this sets the tone for what grades, activities, and courses may help to gain acceptance. The first visit should be done on a Monday – Thursday during the time when college is in season. Weekend visits are not as strong as students are not in class and the campus may appear empty. Springtime and fall are great times to visit as there are a number of holidays from school so you will not miss a class. It’s easy to book a tour, just go to google.com and enter the name of the college you want to visit and put the word tour after it. Sample: XYZ College tour
This will take you to the page where you can book a tour. If for any reason you cannot make the tour date don’t worry…just call admissions and let them know! Once you have your tour date secured start preparing.
What to do before your college visit
1. Look at the college’s web page and read the “About” section.
2. Learn about the major you may be interested in by looking it up and seeing what the courses are.
3. See if your high school average is in range with the accepted students. You can do this easily by looking up your college in either Naviance.com or Collegeboard.com.
4. Get your resume ready and bring it to the tour.
5. Look up your college in Wikipedia and learn all you can about it.
On the day of your visit
1. Dress in business casual clothes. Remember that this is your time to impress the college representative.
2. During the tour ask your guide if you will be visiting the building that has your hopeful major.
3. After the tour make sure you go to the admissions building and find out who is the admissions counselor who covers the area in which you live. Get this person’s telephone and email.
4. Make sure you see the freshman dorms as many colleges show you the more modern upper-class student dorms.
Visit the surrounding area
1. Most families leave little time to see the nearby college town or city. This is an important part of your college decision process and critical for the prospective student.
2. Have lunch or dinner in the nearby town or city.
3. See what cultural and sporting events are near to the college.
4. Check for safety in the area by looking up the town or city on neighborhoodscout.com
After the visit and tour
When you get home take a moment and email the admissions person who handles the area where you live. This is your time to let them know more about you, your grades, and your clubs, activities, and volunteer work. Attach your resume and transcript to your email. Make sure you cc one of your parents or guardian.
Write a short summary of your visit so you will be able to compare your colleges at a later time.
