<p>Does it help to visit Columbia? On their app they ask for that...does it really matter?</p>
<p>Do you fill like a little sheet there saying that you've attended a tour or info session?</p>
<p>Because if so...I can literally be there by tonight, and its Break so i could stay for a couple of days.</p>
<p>I don't think it makes much of a difference if you visit a college or not (I'm 2-0 for colleges I have not visited and 1-0 for colleges I have) and doubt it is any more than a very small tipping factor. Many applicants cannot afford to go cross country to visit one college, so Columbia cannot hold it against them. When I visited Columbia I did fill out a sheet and I'm pretty sure they know who has had an official visit and who has not, but I would assume it won't affect 99% of applicants.</p>
<p>I noted that I toured the campus (which I did) but I never really filled any forms or anything. Is that okay?</p>
<p>bump...i am sort of worried about this now. Knew I should have gone into that admissions office, but I got a better tour from a friend so just took that instead.</p>
<p>they dont make u fill anything out at the admissions office...noone will know</p>
<p>I'm pretty sure they do make you fill something out.</p>
<p>It doesn't make a difference that you went to the school and managed to fill out some form. If you have the opportunity to visit Columbia and learn something that you are able to discuss in your application or in your interview, that's helpful. Being able to have parents who are wealthy / dedicated enough to take you to Columbia is not helpful in and of itself.</p>
<p>they don't check whether you do or don't - they don't have the resources. they just assume you're telling the truth.</p>
<p>however, i think it would reflect poorly if you lived nearby, or within a reasonable drive, had the resources to visit, and didn't - the presumption would be out of laziness. Visiting the campus, in the face of either distance or financial hurdles, is a good demonstration of actual commitment to and interest in Columbia.</p>
<p>They have the resources. You walk in, fill out a form, then you get put on the mailing list. Well, I guess if you aren't even on the mailing list and apply it shows very little interest because you can probably sign up online or call to be mailed info.</p>
<p>but many people may have walked in, or taken a tour, or even met with admissions staff, and not filled out a form or joined a mailing list. You can't presume that just because they're not on the list, that they never showed their face on campus - especially if they claim to have done so on their application.</p>
<p>Thats true I guess. </p>
<p>I visited Swarthmore on a day they did not do tours or info sessions, but I still made it my goal to fill out a form and have it officially logged that I visited. It takes a few minutes to do so, so if you went all the way to NYC to visit Columbia, it makes sense to fill out that little card. If you go to Columbia for a competition like MUN then I guess you could be a person who went but did not join the mailing list, but when you put it on your EC list, they see that you have visited.</p>