<p>Hi everyone, I am a HS junior thinking about colleges to apply to next year. My question for now is how I learn about the cities or towns where the schools I am interested in. My family wants me to visit a few during the next summer break. The schools will tell you a lot about the campus life and a bit about the location but I know you never get the whole picture from them. My older sister had an unpleasant experience b/c she didn</p>
<p>Check out the site of the local chamber of commerce (at least for major towns). Look at Google Maps to see how close anything else is. Ask about the colleges of interest here.</p>
<p>you can use wikipedia, and on most college review sites, there is a section about off campus happenings/opinions</p>
<p>Google the college's name and find out how often it's mentioned in news articles, and in what context. Look up the campus newspaper and also the local community newspaper. Visit the university or town website and get a decent map. Web sites like tripadvisor.com have information and links for visitors.</p>
<p>I think I'm in the same place as you. From what I know so far, I would say the best way to get a good idea of what the college cities are like is if you can meet someone on Facebook or Myspace who can tell you. My senior friends also tell me they can get a handle on what a city has to offer for places to eat by using 4info on a phone. They say it’s nice when you can’t be at your computer at the moment you want to know where a place is. And of course, visiting the schools. Btw, I was wondering if you can tell me the school your sister went to that she decided to transfer out of? Can we do that?</p>