Making the Most of Your College Visit
It is important to tour the colleges that you are applying to. Many people choose to visit before they apply, and they use the results of these visits to narrow down their choices. If the schools you are applying to are far away or if you have financial limitations, you may want to wait until you get your admissions decisions back and only visit the schools you have gotten into. The best time to visit, if you can manage it, is when school is in session. This way you can see the life of the campus, other students, etc.
The Tour
The first and foremost element of the college visit is the tour, often accompanied by an information session. The information session consists of a trained admissions staffer giving a speech to a large number of visitors, after which there will be a question-and-answer session. This is the time to ask questions about the application process, financial aid, tuition and fees, services for people with disabilities, and other areas that a student tour guide may not be familiar with.
The tour is usually lead by a trained student, who may volunteer or be paid. The first thing you want to do is size up the tour guide. Do they seem to like the school? If they don't, think about why an admissions office would let such a person lead tours. What do you think of the way they are dressed? Don't base your judgment solely on the tour guide, though. Look at the other students you see. How do they look? Do they smile at you when they pass?
Your tour guide will walk you around the campus, showing you such features as the campus center, a dining hall, a dorm room, academic buildings, and athletic facilities. Ask them questions about academics, social life, extra curricular activities, professors, and other things a student knows best.
Be very aware of what the tour guide shows you and says. If they don't let you look in the bathrooms, why might that be? (HINT: try to get a peek in if they don't show you. Bathrooms are very important.) Also be sure to get the email address or telephone number of the tour guide after the tour - they should be willing to give it to you, and you might have questions later.
After the Tour
Don't let what you see on the tour be your sole guide to the campus!! Tours are planned deliberately to cover the greatest amount of ground in the shortest time with the least walking while avoiding the most unpleasant areas of campus. They also expose you to only one view of life at the school. So, after the tour is over, do a little exploring on your own.
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