College Visits

Tamra Kerns

When Should We Visit?

Touring while school is in session means you’ll actually see students on campus and it will provide a much more realistic experience.
Best times to visit?
3-4 day weekends in the Fall and Spring can be great for colleges that are closer to home.
Spring break is the perfect time for longer trips to multiple out-of-state colleges.
Capitalize on the Special “Open House” Days - Many colleges have their special days - Blue and Gold Day, Wildcat Day, Open House, etc. But they are days when they go WAY beyond the 90 minute tour. They will typically have different sessions for different majors, open up the residence halls, have a bunch of students around to talk with, have a “club fair”, … You will learn so much more about the college if you can visit on one of those days, as you will have access to many more people. So when you are planning your trips, try to align when possible around one of their special days!
What if the only time I can get away is during the summer? Focus on finding days that most of your colleges are having their "Open House" Days, as they will be far more productive than just doing a 90 minute walking tour with no students on campus!!!

You are there for two purposes.
Can you envision yourself fitting in on that specific campus?
Even if you are not interested in that specific campus, how do you feel about a school that size? Or in that setting (urban, college town, etc)? Can you envision living on another campus that is roughly the same size or has the same urban/suburban/rural environment, etc.

If you have an idea of specific schools you want to apply to (or are thinking you’d really like), plan to visit those.
If you are just getting started and aren’t sure about what type of college you might like, mix it up! Visit a variety of schools—big and small, urban and suburban, in-state and out-of-state.
Create a list of schools you want to visit. Save in-state visits for weekends or shorter days off from school and plan to use your longer breaks for those that are a distance away.
Try to choose colleges whose breaks don’t overlap with yours so the campus is alive with students.

Tours fill up quickly, so try to plan as early as possible (at least 4-6 weeks in advance).
In Google Maps on your laptop, mark each school as a Favorite.
Determine which schools are in a close enough proximity that you might visit them on a several day trip. Look at the best order to visit them to minimize your driving/flying.
Once you have the list of the schools you would like to visit, determine when their tours are available. To do this, search on “XXX University Campus Tour."
You will likely find a student-led walking tour and possibly an admissions presentation.
Sometimes there are separate housing tours.
Sometimes you will see tours for specific departments on their main campus visit page. If you do NOT, that doesn’t mean that they don't have one, so you should go to the department page that you are interested in visiting and find a contact email and send an email asking if they have a tour or someone you can talk to.
Create a quick list showing when all of the tours are for the various schools you will be visiting before starting to schedule. Once you have an idea of which schools you can do on which days, reserve your spots.

Check Out Their Website - Read more about your major, look at the Student Life or Activities section, watch a recorded Information Sessions, or take a quick Virtual Tour. This will help generate questions you want to ask while you are on your tour.
Prepare Your Questions - Refer to the Questions to Ask When Visiting Colleges to create your list of most important questions you want to ask. PIck out 5-7 questions you want to make sure to get answered and put them on your phone!
Prepare to Take Notes - Install the CounselMore App on your phone if you haven't already. Click on the college you are visiting and at the very top you will see a Notes section. Take your notes right there so that everything is stored in one place! It is IMPERATIVE that you take notes! You WILL forget the details of a specific school after you have visited a few of them. After visiting and entering all of your notes, be sure to write in one of these responses:
I don't see myself attending this college.
This might be a good fit for me.
This would be a GREAT place for me to go!

Wear comfortable shoes and take a water bottle!
Make sure your phone is fully charged!
Look around (this is more difficult for summer visits).
What are students wearing? Are they dressed in a way that you’d feel comfortable fitting in?
Are they laughing and talking as they walk between classes?
In the hang out places are they quiet and studying or talking together?
In the various classroom buildings, do you see flyers for clubs that look interesting?
How large are the classrooms? Would you be comfortable learning in them?
Ask if you can walk through the cafeteria (or even eat there!) It’s worth it to see the food selections AND the student vibe!
Ask the tour guide what they like best about their school? Like least?