<p>I looked at CC's college visit page and it was very helpful though sort of nebulous. I was looking for more specific questions and topics to bring up and wondering what sort of things you and your students asked the admissions people at your vists. My DDs are just beginning this process and these will be their first visits. Thanks</p>
<p>It's very personal. Most questions can be answered from websites. It's amazing how much information is contained there. At Dartmouth he asked the interviewer how she felt about Greek life since he liked Dartmouth, but not that aspect of it. We scheduled meetings w/music faculty since S's questions could not really be answered by admissions. Most kids don't ask questions on tours or info. sessions, though of course, some do. Interviews are different because it's a one-to-one. If it's a student interviewer good questions are "What do you like most/least about the school?" For admissions staff: "What sets you apart from other similar schools?" & "What are you most proud of?"; "What are you working to improve?"</p>
<p>Here's a bunch of questions I found online once. Some you can answer before visiting, some you'd want to ask current students or an adcom (but students are likely to give more candid answers!)</p>
<p>
[quote]
Some of these things you can find out from brochures
or the college, but when you get down to the final selection I think
its crucial to visit each school you are considering; you are going to
spend 4 (or more!) years there, so its worth a day to make sure you
will really be comfortable there. Most schools have a program where
you can stay overnite in the dorms with a student, arranged through the
admissions office.</p>
<p>I'll break questions about college down into 4 areas: what the
environment like, location/housing, what the academic life is like,
and how you can prepare for life after your undergraduate degree.</p>
<p>Environment:<br>
How many students are at the school? Are they primarily from the local
area, in-state, or national? What are the students like? Are the
students studying late into the nite, or socializing? Do they seem
politically involved or not? Conservative, liberal, or radical? Is
preppy dress in, or is it 60's attire, or what? Is the mood intensely
competitive or more relaxed (you'll probably have to ask people about
this)? Are intramural sports popular, and are there exercise
facilities available? What do they have at the student center? Is
social life organized around the greek system or more independently?
Are there clubs for activities you might be interested in? What is the
weather like (if you're not used to cold weather, it can be a big
shock!) There's no "right" answers here, its what you want or could
grow comfortable with.</p>
<p>location/housing:
2 big factors that could affect your enjoyment are: 1) is the school
residential or a commuter school? 2) Is it part of a larger city or an
isolated college town? There's no "right" answer here, it depends on
your preferences. </p>
<p>Housing really runs the gamut at various schools. At some places you
can't even be sure of getting in the dorms as a freshman, others
require you to live there 1st year, still others guarantee on-camus
housing every year if you want it. Housing may be traditional
tower-structure dorms, smaller dorms, on-campus apartments, suites,
etc. Dorms may be "theme" dorms; foreign language, academic, or other
special-type interest. At some schools the housing is just a place to
live; others organize students around a "house" that you will be
affiliated with all your years there. Find out what housing is like
at the schools you consider.</p>
<p>Academics:<br>
Look at what the academic program is like. If you're not sure what you
want to major in, when do you have to decide? Are classes taught by
professors or TAs? Do the TAs speak English fluently (trust me, you
want to ask students this question!) What is the typical class size
for freshmen? For upperclass students? (be sure and ask students this,
because administration numbers can be misleading, especially at larger
schools). How wide an array of majors is offered? Is the program (for
some majors you are considering) highly structured, or do you get a lot
of choice in electives? Ask the students how easy it is to meet with
their professors; are they easily available, or is teaching
undergraduates a burden to them? Is counseling provided by whoever is
at the window when you walk up, or will you get a faculty advisor? Are
there opportunities to do research with professors? For summer
research positions? (If you are interested in grad school, the
opportunity to have a professor get to know you and your work by more
than the grades you got in her/his class will be important for getting
strong letters of reference). Are there seminars, or do lectures
predominate? Do they have a semester overseas program? Are they on a
semester or quarter system?</p>
<p>life after undergrad:</p>
<p>Right now it sounds strange, but also think about what you might want
to do after you finish college (strange because you haven't even picked
a college to attend yet!) As a general question, do many of the
school's grads go on to grad-school, or do they enter the job force
after college? If you have a major you're contemplating, you can be
more specific; how many history majors, for example, go to grad school
and where do they tend to go? Ask about the placement office; what
services do they offer? What firms come to recruit on campus (ask who
came this year, for example)? How about internships? Is there an
internship program with companies that come to campus each year, or
does the placement office merely review your resume and point you to
books listing employers? Ask about the alumni; do they have a program
where you can talk to alumni about their field, how they got started,
etc?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Wow!! thanks to both of you!</p>
<p>In addition to the focus on the campus, I suggest you take a look at the area immediately surrounding the campus since the student will likely want to spend some time off campus and many will need to find off-campus housing at least at some point during their time there.</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Ask the student guide where most people live when no longer in the dorms. Ask how difficult availability is.</p></li>
<li><p>Ask the student guide if people head off campus to restaurants, etc. and if so, where.</p></li>
<li><p>Ask the guide where and when the parties typically are. Pay attention to whether they're on campus or off and where (frats, dorms, individual apartments, etc.). Ask the question whether you're interested in them or not. This'll give you some idea of the party atmosphere of the school.</p></li>
<li><p>Find out (not using the guide) the types of off campus housing in the area, its cost, availability, safety, etc.</p></li>
<li><p>Find out what kind of transportation is available to places the student will want/need to go including off campus housing (campus shuttle, city bus, subway, walking distance, etc.).</p></li>
<li><p>Ask about on-campus parking and find out about parking around off-campus housing if there's any plan to bring a car. It may be difficult to find reasonable parking at sSome colleges in more urban areas. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>If possible, ask more than one student the questions above since you're liable to get different perspectives.</p>
<p>Remember that the student guide is just one individual student out of thousands at the school so try not to judge the entire school (good or bad) based on that one student guide.</p>
<p>If you're going to ask questions, try to ask open-ended questions whose answers aren't readily available on the college website. I was amazed by how much time was taken in info sessions on really obvious facts and figures questions from people who hadn't bothered to even look at the school website!</p>
<p>A question that can really get student guides to talk about their interactions and relationships with faculty: If you needed 2 letters of recommendation for graduate school or a job, are there professors you would feel comfortable asking for a recommendation?</p>
<p>Another useful question: How did you make your decision to attend this college?</p>
<p>Ask what people do on weekends, and where they go when they leave campus.</p>
<p>Ask what the most exciting and controversial campus events have been recently.</p>
<p>Ask a student what they found most surprising or unexpected about the school after they enrolled.</p>
<p>Ask a student to persuade you not to attend, so that you get all the possible negatives from a student's perspective.</p>
<p>Tour guides and even random students can sometimes be in "sales" mode to prospective students/families. Asking, "What do you like LEAST about the school?" can sometimes elicit a frank comment or two.</p>
<p>And after those visits, don't forget to add your experience to the CC College</a> Visits database. Since we started the $1,000 scholarship offer, we've seen the rate of additions accellerating - that runs through the end of August.</p>
<ul>
<li><p>What (important) aspect of campus life are applicants most likely to overlook? </p></li>
<li><p>What do you know as a student that you wish you'd known as an applicant?</p></li>
<li><p>What are your 3 favorite things about the sch?</p></li>
<li><p>What 3 things about the sch would you most like to change?</p></li>
</ul>
<p>My sons always liked to ask the tour guides, "What did you do last night?" or "Where do you like to study and why?" You can learn a lot about the tempo of a campus that way. For example, one girl said she never went to the main library to do hardcore studying because it was too social--she would find an obscure library instead. (she goes to Indiana)</p>
<p>A previous poster was correct in saying that most students don't ask questions on tours, but here's a tip from a guide: please do!!!</p>
<p>In truth, I guess that this advice really depends on the school, your guide, and your specific tour, but take cues from the situation and consider opening up. For example, at my school, there was no set script for tours...info varied depending on each guide's personal knowledge and experience, so the more that was asked, the more was learned, and there were always gaps to fill. Plus, we guides are generally trying to cram in so much info that we're likely to forget some, so you'll do us a favor by bringing it up...if we'll get to it later, we'll let you know :) I also gave a lot of very small tours to just one or two students/families and it was miserable when no one had any questions at all...the situation had the potential to be so much more beneficial. If you're on such a small tour, treat it like the privilege it is...have a conversation! That all said, if you're on a huge tour with an obviously frazzled guide, do remember that she's trying to appeal to a wide audience, so keep some of the highly individualized/specific questions for later...try to ask them after the tour, of a co-guide, or during "down-time." I've given tours where I feel like I'm being expected to give a private tour to one family in the midst of eight, and it doesn't work well for anyone.</p>
<p>Further tips for the savvy campus tourist...</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Feel free to comment, not just question. It's great to hear our school complimented, and sometimes criticisims (done tactfully) can gain you information. For example, pointing out a particularly unsightly building might garner you a story about it's unique history or role on campus. Let us hear your thoughts!</p></li>
<li><p>Feel free to ask general questions if there's time, not just school-specific questions. A lot of prospective students have concerns about roommates, dorm life, packing, being away from home, social scenes, etc. that apply across the board, but to no school in particular. Odds are that we've been there, done that...ask away.</p></li>
<li><p>Factual questions can be answered elsewhere. You're always free to ask them, of course, but you'll generally want to back up your answers somewhere else, anyway ("Uhhh, off the top of my head...I think it's something liiiiike..."). Just know that your own time will probably be better used getting subjective info from your guide. So like I said, feel free to ask away, but if you're just coming up with questions for the sake of coming up with questions, then come up with a different kind :p</p></li>
<li><p>If we're skipping stuff, feel free to remind us. Big building going by with no word from the guide? If you're curious, ask...you don't just have to assume that there's a reason it's being skipped. The reason is possibly that we forgot...</p></li>
<li><p>Parents, step back for a bit so that your kid has time to ask questions that he or she might not want you to hear. And as for the students, ask those questions. They may seem trivial to you, but what better place to get answers? I could often tell when I had someone itching for info on touchy subjects, and sometimes it was really important. So social scene, drinking, queer tolerance, smoking dorms...whatever it is, don't feel weird about it.</p></li>
<li><p>Remember that your guide is only one representative of the school. If your tour is horrible but you think you should be feeling better about things, try to take another tour. I took three tours of the school I ended up attending and every one was different. All were fine, but one in particular was a huge part of why I ended up making the choice I did. Just take things with a grain of salt.</p></li>
<li><p>Before or after your tour, feel free to ask other students around campus what they think of the school, what they're studying, if you can see their rooms, or whatever. Reactions can tell you a lot about campus life (are people busy, are they annoyed, are they stuck-up, are they friendly and generous, are they excited about their school and about prospective students?) and you'll also get a chance to hear from students who aren't being hired (voluntarily or for pay) by the admissions office, and see dorm rooms that haven't necessarily been chosen and cleaned.</p></li>
<li><p>This should go without saying, but be sensitive and tactful! Understand that there are some questions we probably won't answer to your liking (questions that are looking for negative info about the school are going to get tiptoed around...only press as far as is reasonable). Some of the questions that people ask are pretty odd (women's college: "So, are you a lesbian?" No joke), so just...be nice.</p></li>
<li><p>Remember that you're on a (probably tight) schedule. You can usually come back to most buildings and you can always ask your guide for a map or for directions somewhere. But the more time you spend looking around early in the tour, the less you'll get a chance to see later. I had the semi-misfortune of having the campus art gallery right at the beginning of my route...lost a lot of good prospective students in there ;) Obviously this isn't at all to say that you should rush or not really look around, but bear in mind that there's lots to see!</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Anyway, the ultimate point is that when the situation of a campus tour allows, please ask questions! We're not judging you, the eloquence of your phraseology, or the depth of your insight...just trying to help you out :)</p>
<p>Get a copy of the school newspaper -- it will give you a glimpse of the authentic campus culture.<br>
And get a copy of the course catalog and check out the courses. What are the graduation and major requirements? How often are courses offered? How broad are the course offerings? How hard is it to register for the classes that you want?
A college's website is just a marketing tool; it's important to get behind the fluff and see the real deal. Keep in mind that the admissions office and the tour guide are there to sell you. Find some students in the cafeteria and ask them if they would go to the school again (if they knew then what they know now).</p>
<p>Adding to what Student615 said - </p>
<p>If you as a prospective student are thinking of a question, chances are that most of the other students and parents would like to know the answer to that question as well so go ahead and ask it - now's not the time to be shy.</p>
<p>we asked students not on the tour, in the bookstore and the dining hall.....what is the worst thing about x school. They all had the same answer. It was rather trivial...parking. Since freshmen can't have cars....didn't play a factor. get in and seem some dorms. Are people out interacting or just head down going to class? Do you see activism? Do you see people having fun, laughing....forget the hype of a tour and look for yourselves.</p>
<p>The ACT website gives a list of questions you might find useful when on a campus visit.</p>
<p>definitely ask us our SAT scores</p>
<p>but my personal favorite: please ask us how we got in</p>
<p>I agree with MythMom that it's an extremely personal process. That means you're going to have to find your own "best way" to decide whether a school is worth applying to or not. In that sense I agree with all previous advice, because what worked for those posters might work for you also. What did my two D's do? Neither chose to attend a presentation or participate in a scheduled tour, and after I did both a few times I was able to assure my D's that they weren't missing anything that was important TO THEM. Discussions with students and faculty and randomly encountered administrator were all they needed. </p>
<p>Best of luck finding your own "best way!"</p>
<p>Thank you one and all! I will be sure to post our visits and I do appreciate how much everyone here at CC is willing to help!</p>
<p>this has been very useful =)</p>
<p>One great question a friend of mine asked of a student tour guide was something along the lines of, "During your application process, as a student researching this school, visiting, etc., did you expect to find something at or about this school that, as a student enrolled here, you have not found or that you have found to be different than you expected?" If you've got a thoughtful tour guide, their answer could be enlightening.</p>