<p>I am junior just starting out on researching schools and I am not sure when the best time to see the colleges. I was thinking late August a few days after the start of the fall semester, but is that too soon in order to obtain a good sense of the school and students? It is very important to me that I see the school in session, but would it make more sense to miss a day or two every month to visit a college? Thank you.</p>
<p>I answered you post on the parent forum.</p>
<p>I’d recommend you see the school when it’s in session and filled with student and gives you a better sense of what the average day at a school would look like. If possible, I’d recommend you do a few college tours before the end of this school year. I know several people who came away with ill impressions of a school because they visited in the summer (when it was deserted and hot) or during spring break. Even if you visited during the first few days of term, with students just getting oriented, I feel your experience wouldn’t necessarily be representative of the school. That being said, I think there’s always a danger of visiting a campus and coming away with a bad/good impression based on random variables like weird weather or some sort of special event happening on campus or some other outlier. So, if missing a few days to go to colleges would cause unnecessary pain, just go at an awkward time anyway, keeping in mind that this is just a sample and assessing your experience accordingly.</p>