Trusting Your Instincts On College Tours

I can still remember my family’s visit to what I thought was my DREAM COLLEGE sometime during my high school junior year. I had selected it after pouring over pages and pages of college guidebooks, carefully reading each description, analyzing each statistic, and internalizing each student quote. DREAM COLLEGE just seemed like an exceptional fit for me. I loved everything about it. “I really want to go to DREAM COLLEGE,” I told people who asked about my college search, “it’s the perfect school for me.” Until...we stopped in for an official visit on the way home from a family vacation.

“I don’t like it!” I declared, minutes into the tour, “all the buses… it’s too big… too busy… I don’t like the buildings… I don’t want to go here.” “What?!?” my parents protested, “but we haven’t even seen the whole campus… what do you mean? We thought you loved DREAM COLLEGE?!”

The true story recounted above is being played out all over the country among high school students and their families. Some have devoted their entire vacations to college tours. Others have called in sick from work to shuttle their kids around for visits. Others squeeze in tours whenever they can, on the way home from soccer tournaments or family reunions. My opinion is that it’s time well spent. These days there’s more information than ever available to college applicants online, even stunning 360 degree video tours, but there’s simply nothing quite like stepping foot onto a campus and getting a feel for the place.

Now that many selective colleges are also tracking and measuring applicants’ demonstrated interest as part of the admissions process, taking the time to visit the school is even more important. (Other ways to demonstrate interest include requesting information online, attending a virtual information session, attending a college rep visit at your high school, signing into a college booth at a fair, or emailing the admissions office, to name a few. Colleges will not penalize students who do not have the funds to travel for an in-person visit. But they may penalize those who have not done ANYTHING to proactively engage with a college, as it sends a signal that perhaps they are not truly interested in that college.)

I also happen to think that campus visits are the most fun part of the college admissions process. My recommendations for maximizing each one:

• Try to visit when classes are in session. Although summer vacations are often convenient times for families to tour, seeing mostly-empty campus will not give you the same type of experience as one that is buzzing with student life. However, if summer is the only time you can visit, it’s still better than nothing

• Register for the official tour and information session. If you’re going to come all the way to campus, be sure it counts (see above for paragraph on “demonstrated interest”)

• Brainstorm a list of interesting, open ended questions that you can ask on every campus. Asking consistent questions gives you a way to compare colleges after your tours

• Parents, try to hang back in the group tour and let your high school student float closer to the front. It’s good practice for when they’re actually out on their own and gives everyone a chance to form their own impressions (which you should certainly discuss together afterwards). It’s also a good idea to let the student spend some time strolling around on their own after the tour. Can they see themselves there? Encourage them talk to current college students in their own way. They will almost certainly get more candid responses than if parents are lingering around

• During the tour, high schoolers should try to walk close to the student tour guide. It will give them a chance to ask questions individually, instead of in front of the whole group. They’re more likely to get more honest answers that way. They can also follow up after the official tour to chat more with the guide, if s/he is amenable

• Try to sit in on a class. Contact the admissions office in advance to arrange this, if possible

• Eat in the cafeteria. Not only should you sample the food, but you will also get a sense for the general pulse of the student body at meal time

• Walk around the town or surrounding neighborhoods as well. See what “off-campus” resources are available and how comfortable you all feel on the outskirts of campus

• Stop random current students on your way around campus and talk to them. Tour guides will almost certainly paint a perfect picture of the college; a random selection of students will likely be more honest. The cafeteria, the quad, and the student center are good places to do this (better not to interrupt studies in the library). Ask them what they like about the college and what they would change if they could. Another good question to ask is what other colleges they considered in addition to the one they selected

• Take notes or record your impressions immediately after your visit. You’ll be surprised how quickly campuses and college facts will blend together after a handful of visits. I advise my students to record their impressions using Corsava so they can rate each school against their own most important criteria

• Trust your instincts. Sure, it’s easy to be impressed by a brand-new fitness facility or a state-of-the-art theater, or the presence of 12 amazing acapella groups to join, but ultimately falling in love with a college (or several, ideally) is much more about your heart than your head. Even if the reasons seem insignificant (Too many buses? Really?) there’s just something to be said for the instinctual feeling that a place seems like “home” or not

What if you can’t visit before you apply? Don’t panic. You can still take the appropriate steps to demonstrate interest. After decisions are released, many colleges host “Accepted Student Days” in April for those who are admitted to check out the campus before the May 1 decision deadline. Of course, these are essentially “sell” events where the college pulls out all the stops to show students (and parents) a great time and convince them to matriculate. It’s not exactly a realistic depiction of “A Day in the Life” but it’s certainly better than not visiting at all.

Finally, don’t worry about the weather and if it will influence your opinion of the school. I visited Dartmouth on a dark rainy day and still fell in love with the place. In retrospect it was good preparation for the long, cold, dark winters. Happily, the sunny enthusiasm of the student body overshadowed the realities of the weather! And instinctively, it felt more like my “dream school” than my previously-named DREAM SCHOOL ever did. When it came down to it, it was my home for four years. And it’s still a place I call home no matter where I happen to live. I wish the same for all of my students!