Many high schoolers use their summers to travel. That could mean flying to Hawaii on a family vacation, or driving to a trail to hike with friends, or perhaps something as simple as taking the bus to hit the mall a town over. And I do hope you’re soaking up whatever version of that is accessible to you!
But the rising juniors and seniors among you may also be packing your suitcases for a different kind of travel: CAMPUS VISITS!
By doing some IRL research now, you’re giving a gift to your future self by helping yourself land at a college that will make the next four years a BLAST….instead of one that makes you wonder, “why, oh why, did I ever choose this place?!”
Now, I get it: researching and traveling to a bunch of institutions of higher learning might not exactly be what comes to mind when you imagine a carefree summer. But as a college admissions expert who helps dozens and dozens of kids ace their applications every year, I promise you this: you can still have a great time, AND learn a ton in the process.
How do you ensure your visit is both productive and NOT a total bore? Read on, dear friend.
With these pointers in mind, you’ll set yourself up to craft a final list of colleges that are all a great fit for you. However, you’ll ALSO make your application essays to those schools stand out from the rest—because you’ll have gathered specific details that show admissions officers you truly want to attend their school…and will thrive once you’re there.
ARTICLE CONTENTS
1. Video version of this article
2. Say “Yes”
5. What to do when you don’t like a certain school
6. Conclusion
Watch this article as a video:
1) Optimize Your College Visits by Saying "Yes"
Would you like to take a walking tour of the campus? Say “Yes!” Would you like to sit in on a class during your visit? YES, you would! Do you want to do an “optional” on-campus interview? Again, that’s a heck YES!
If you get the chance to learn more about the college or university, nothing says “I’m invested!” more than taking the time to follow through on all the opportunities offered to you. And do you think colleges notice if you're invested, both on campus and in your application? Say it with me: YES.
2. College List Trip: Ask Questions
By the time your school visit ends, you need to know whether you think you’d enjoy your time there and want to apply. Believe me, you don’t want to wait to analyze your experiences until you return home, when your memories will already have become less fresh.
As long as you’ve done a good job of information-gathering while you're on campus, you won’t have much to gain from additional thinking (in fact, you’ll probably just waste your own time second-guessing yourself). That means that you need to thoroughly investigate each of these topics while you’re still on each campus:
A. Academics
Which majors do they offer in your subject areas of interest?
Are there any aspects of the curriculum that are unique to this college, e.g. a core curriculum? A freshman seminar series? Or culminating senior thesis?
Do prospective students need to apply to a specific college? If so, which one would you specifically be applying to?
Is there a separate application process or essay for that college within the university?
Would you be able to study the other things you want to study if they were in a different college at the same school?
B. Student Life
Does the school already have a club/class/team where you can pursue your primary extracurricular interests? If not, how would you go about starting your own club?
Is study abroad an option, and how many students pursue it?
Do they have career services/alumni networks and can they help you learn about and procure internships in your desired field?
What type of student would be happy at this school?
Is there a common personality type among the students who attend this college?
C. Admissions (your parents can ask these ones!)
What are the application requirements for this school?
What is the SAT/ACT score range?
What’s the essay/writing component of the application like?
Is the college Test Optional?
Do they super-score?
What are the deadlines for Early Decision, ED2 (if applicable), Early Action (if applicable), and Regular Decision?
3. Successful College Visitors Take (Lots of) Notes!
Do you remember the answers you gathered to questions A through C in tip #2 above? You do? That’s great—but I promise that you WON’T remember these details in a few months (or a year), when you’re writing that college’s supplemental essay on “Why this School?” That’s because this school will be one of many you’re likely to visit. Trust me: they all start to blend together in your mind.
So, write down everything while or immediately after it happens. You might find a small flip notebook is helpful for this—or perhaps you’re fastest and most comfortable typing into your phone, or taking voice notes. Or maybe you haven’t yet mastered the art of walking and writing at the same time, but you CAN make time to collect your thoughts immediately after your campus tour ends.
Other thoughts to collect in your notebook:
What were the names of students, admissions officers, and educators you talked to?
What were the names of the classes/professors/building/programs that stood out to you?
What was the vibe of the students and faculty you met?
4. University Visit Tip: Write Down WHY You Didn’t Like a Certain School
Want to save a ton of time and possibly get to enjoy a few days of actual vacation next summer (or winter or spring) break? If you hated the school you just visited and definitely KNEW it wasn’t for you, articulate why. Give yourself 10 minutes of silence to reflect and write in your notebook about why it wasn’t a good match.
If you’ve discovered through your travels that you really dislike small colleges—maybe, e.g., they strike you as socially suffocating—then that’s good info to have about yourself! Now you know not to travel and visit other colleges like that in the future. Combining this insight about yourself with a simple Google search about college sizes will save you a couple days of your life…and plenty of travel/logistical stress, too.
Conclusion
Following these guidelines will help you figure out your true feelings about the schools on your list….while your in-person observations are still fresh, and thus more accurate and detailed, in your mind.
If you follow this advice, you can wrap up your summer break with your list of colleges pretty much all set and with a real head start on your application essays! And take it from an expert: that will do a LOT to take the pressure off next semester.
Of course, if you still do feel anxious once admissions season rolls around, an expert can help put your mind at ease (while seriously upping your application game). My SAT/ACT tutoring and application essays services will make the whole app process less burdensome for you.
And for the lone-wolf studiers among you who’d prefer to work on your essay solo, you can get many of the benefits of my one-on-one tutoring in my guide to acing the Personal Statement!
