Five Tips to Plan and Maximize To The Fullest Your College Campus Visit

Experiencing a college campus tour for the first time is always an exciting riveting experience.

A campus tour is the best way to equip your future student with the right tools when the time comes to make all the important decisions about college. The more they are exposed to all the formalities they learn during their visit (admission requirements, financial aid, academic programs, housing), the easier is for them to narrow down their choices and come one step closer to find an institution that is the right fit for their financial and educational needs.

Let's be real, you just cannot get the campus feel online or through a catalog, you need to be physically there and experience yourself all the things it has to offer.

If you are planning a college campus visit in the near future here are 5 tips from my personal experience to maximize your experience.


1. Preparing for your visit: Do your research before you go. Bring a notebook and a camera to record your impressions. Before you head out, make sure you have taken your time to research everything about the college or university you are touring.  Have ready a list of questions to ask your guide or student ambassador. Personally, I prefer small racially diverse classrooms, classes taught by a professor, rather than an assistant, a campus culture with a high sense of community service, study abroad, solid financial aid packages and merit aid, internships and co-op programs opportunities. So these are the type of questions I'm always looking for clarification or questions that can’t be answered by canned responses. Those are the type of questions that reveals the institution biggest strengths but also their biggest weakness.

Now, if you are planning on joining ROTC programs they usually have open houses or orientation dates that run independently from the school so you will need to contact them directly if you want to give them a visit while you are on campus. Some schools like North Carolina State University offer a “Shadow Day” every year. Students are able to shadow a ROTC cadet for the entire day. My daughter had the experience to participate as high school sophomore and still talks about to this day.

2. Regular tours, open house (preview days) and overnight visits. So you already made up your mind that you want to book a college tour, now the question is, what type of tour are you going for? A regular one, an open house preview, or an overnight visit? I think the decision boils down to if your student is a high school senior or not. Your typical basic tours are great for sophomore or juniors because they help them stay motivated for what's coming ahead. These type of tours are offered every week in most colleges and last around one hour. They consist of a brief history of the college, admission requirements, a walking tour of the campus and escort to the campus bookstore. You won't get to really tour specific departments or meet admission officers.

Now, open houses or preview days are in my opinion the best option for any college you are strongly considering as one of your top 3.  There are two types of preview days. One that is specific to a particular department, and one that is usually an all day event. Preview days are different from a regular tour in the sense that you get to talk to admission officers, have a formal presentation, tour dorms, and explore other campus facilities. You can also tour a specific department, talk to professors and if you are lucky and the preview falls on a game day you get to enjoy gameday food and activities, watch the marching band perform and buy game tickets at a fraction of the cost. The two best times to plan overnight visits are before applications are due and after you're accepted.

Overnight visits are reserved for Seniors and are the closest thing high school students have to a college test drive.  Seniors arrive around 3 pm and leave the next day usually around 12:30 pm. They are able to participate in classes and campus events,  eat at the dining hall and spend the night in the school dorms.


3. Things you should look out during the tour: First impressions can make or break your decision.

Keep an eye on all the things you will never be able to detect through brochures, catalogs or virtual tours. You will be surprised how much deteriorated facilities and lack of maintenance or cleanliness on campus and unfriendly students can turn off prospective families and students. During your tour be on the lookout for bulletin boards, newspapers and research newsletters throughout campus. They can provide a unique inside look at the campus life and culture. After the tour spend some time at the library, dining hall, fitness center, or any other campus facilities and ask your kid if they can see themselves living there for the next 4-5 years.

4. Go beyond the campus tour. The most overlook aspect during a campus visit is not identifying what are the strong points of the town/city where the college is located.

A college town with a strong vibrant economy is everything because it can offer amazing internship partnerships, and research opportunities to your student. During your visit don't limit yourself to explore the campus, explore the city as well. See how much the town is influenced by the college and vice versa.

5. Download the campus app to ride the shuttle buses.

Campus transit is fare-free and available for all parents, alumni, and visitors in the majority of colleges. Universities are always encouraging visitors to ride their shuttle buses as a form of sustainable transportation since it reduces the university's carbon footprint. So don't be afraid to use them during your campus visit. You will be surprised how many places and buildings you never got to see during your walking tour.