campus visit guide

Campus Visit

by Howard Freedman

Copyright 2024 Financial Aid Consulting. All rights reserved. No portion of this article may be reproduced mechanically, electronically, by photocopying, or by any other means without expressed written permission of the author. Howard can be reached at finaidguy@gmail.com or 781-341-0234.

A well-planned campus visit allows a student and their families to discover which colleges provide the best educational and social fit and financial aid for awards to satisfy their individual needs. 

Planning Is a Must

It was once said that you will never get there if you do not have a destination. The same goes for effectively planning campus visits. Start by listing your areas of interest, type of college (public or private), size (large or small), and distance from home to target the colleges to visit. Many Websites––such as collegeboard.com, a2zcolleges.com, and Fastweb. com––and numerous college publications provide a wealth of valuable information. Statistics such as acceptance rates, test scores, student-teacher ratios, class sizes, majors, demographics, costs of attendance, financial aid awarded, and many other statistics posted to a spreadsheet will provide an easy way to compare each college and your chances for acceptance before planning your visits.

Being an effective networker with those who have gone through this process is also beneficial. Parents and students should contact their area high school’s guidance department to understand better how other graduates fared with a particular college, the names of college contacts, and the dates of high school college fairs and financial aid nights. This will save time and provide the same resources available to those attending public high schools. There are also excellent college-coaching professionals to help with college and scholarship searches and test preparation. Along the way, you may also want to consider financial aid consulting support to identify the best college values and resolve your financial needs before and after acceptance.

Your next step is to narrow your list of planned visits. At this point, develop a scoreboard to post how you and your parents rated each visit. A simple scoreboard could list the colleges on the left column and the rating criteria on the top. Develop your own rating system, such as one to 10. Establish what you want to evaluate and the order of importance. Consider such things as size, reputation, facilities, support services, gender ratios, specialized programs, location, academic programs, friendliness, types of students, graduation, placement, and careers after college, and scholarships.

Parents and students should also write their questions and space for the answers. The questions can be both general for all colleges as well as specific for colleges with unique programs and opportunities. Then, during and immediately after each visit, rate the colleges while they are fresh in your mind. If not, everything will be a blur and impede your decision-making.

When Should You Visit

I recommend that students visit college anytime during their high school years. This can be when an older sibling makes their campus visits, while on vacation, or at a sporting event. This allows you to understand better what is involved and whether you wish to pursue that college in the future. I suggest scheduling initial and follow-up visits in your junior year during the summer or when the colleges are in session. This will offer opportunities to see and feel the dynamics of the college and the types of students and give you a gut feeling as to whether you fit in.

I can relate to these feelings. I was accepted into a prestigious college, but after the campus visit, I did not feel I had anything in common with the wealthy students. Although my parents were willing to help me financially, I decided to attend Northeastern University, where I could better afford to pay my way while taking advantage of their hands-on cooperative education program. The result was a great education and real-world experience, and I applied my unique education as a working adult.

Making the most of Your Visit

Plan your visit by scheduling campus tours, which will introduce you to the campus and provide an opportunity to ask questions of the tour guide as you go. You should also schedule appointments with the admissions office, financial aid, departments or majors, athletics coaches (if applicable), and counseling services. It also helps if you have a resume or portfolio of accomplishments to share and distinguish yourself from other candidates. Since parents and students have different interests and needs, you should be given ample time to roam the campus independently. Parents and students should ask for their names, addresses (e-mail and actual), and phone numbers to write thank you notes to future contacts and gain support if needed. Both parents and students should also have a follow-up list to track what they need to provide or receive from each college and any additional requirements to fulfill before they apply.

· Parents’ mission should focus on scheduled appointments, especially admissions and financial aid, along with the alumni relations and placement offices to find out how the alumni put their educations to work. They should also learn about housing (freshman and upper class), campus safety, merit-based scholarship opportunities, and how to qualify.

· Student’s Mission should be to mingle with other students, eat at the student union, visit the library and bookstore, attend classes (large and small), find out about the dorms, and ask current students questions from your list. If the college is a serious contender, it might be the perfect time to network with students and arrange a follow-up trip in which you can stay in the dorms and attend other classes.

· Both students and parents should drive around campus and surrounding communities to discover the area, public safety, and transportation options and gain an overall feel for the area.

During and immediately after each visit, you can enter your scores while things are fresh in your mind. It will also prevent you from confusing one college with the other.

Wrapping It Up

After you tally your scores from all your visits, rank each college and sort your spreadsheet in different sequences. Also, identify the colleges you’d like to revisit if accepted. Remain focused and follow up so there will be no surprises or roadblocks after your acceptance.

Minimizing Paper

Be sure to minimize the mountains of paper by keeping a notebook or online file to manage your information in one place. Update your calendar with critical dates for admission, financial aid, and SAT or ACT information and scores.