How to Make the Most of Your College Visit
College visits are the best way to tell if a school is the right fit for you. You get to see campus, preview campus life and start to imagine yourself living and studying there or not.
However, college visits can also be very overwhelming. There’s a lot to factor in all at once: size, distance from home, student organizations, athletics, etc. Don’t let it scare you! With the right preparation, your visit will have everything you need to help you make the right decision.
Schedule During the School Year
While summer is a good time to see campus, it doesn’t give you the full picture of what normal campus life is like. If you can, schedule a visit during the school year so you can get the most out of your visit. If you DO visit in the summer, that’s ok! Still consider coming back again in the fall if the school is one of your top choices.
Also, start early! Don't wait until the end of your senior year to start visiting colleges. The more time you give yourself to work with, the easier your decision will be when the time comes to pick a school.
Plan to Meet
There are several different people who you should plan to meet while on your college visit:
Admissions counselor
They can walk you through the admissions process and answer any overall questions about the university.
Financial aid officer
For information about filing the FASFA, how to find scholarships and what financial aid the university offers that you might qualify for.
Faculty member
If you have an idea about what you would like to study, meeting with faculty will give you a better picture of what that would look like to pursue as a degree. Some colleges even let you sit in on a class to get a feel for collegiate academics.
Coach
If you have interest in a club/sport, it may be a good idea to talk with the coach to see what it would be like to play at the collegiate level and express your interest in playing.
Go on a tour
This is probably the most important part of the visit! You get to ask questions and see what campus is like. Often, current students at the university are the ones giving tours, and they can tell you about their experiences from a student perspective. As you’re on the tour, make a mental list of things that do and don’t match your ideal college to help narrow your decision.
Try the food
If you can, try to have lunch in the cafeteria. This gives you an idea of the types of food options a school provides and if it’s something that you like.
Visit more than once
After you’ve seen a few different schools, go back and visit your top choices. This will help you narrow down your decision. Once you know what you like, you can ask different, more specific questions the second time around. Also, if your first visit was part of a group tour, then your second can be more individual.
How Do I Scheudle?
Visit the school’s online page and fill out their online form or visit page. If you have questions about food allergies, mobility limitations or special needs parking requests, another way to schedule is to call the admissions counselor and set it up over the phone.
At Bluffton...
Personal campus visits, which are tailored to your individual interests, may be scheduled Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Register for your visit today.