<p>there's gonna be a college fair soon in my area and some of the universities im interested in will be attending. what should i carry to it? should i carry transcripts and awards etc? what are good questions to ask? what are annoying questions to avoid?</p>
<p>thanks for your time~</p>
<p>In general, they are looking to interest you. Smaller and lesser known schools' reps will want to connect with you so if you decide to give them your resume, expect telephone calls, etc.</p>
<p>The larger schools or ultra selective ones, probably won't be able to accept anything you give them by hand.</p>
<p>You can avoid annoying questions by having in your mind items you're looking for -- size (sm, med, lg), location (in state, out state, rural or urban campus), strength of potential areas of study, support for students, % of students who graduate in 4-5 years, general feel of college life, social scene, REAL availability of scholarships/FA.</p>
<p>I do info fairs for my alma mater (one of the HYPS colleges) and I've never been offered anything -- not that I could do anything with it either. I offer my email address and some kids have followed up with more inquiries.</p>
<p>Try to avoid brochure questions ("Oh, what's the male to female ratio?" "What majors do you offer?") If it's blatantly in the brochure, avoid it.</p>
<p>Instead, pick up the brochure, and read it. If you're interested, you can start to ask some good questions.</p>
<p>Some good questions:
-Are professors accessible?
-Within a year of graduation, what are your students doing? (They'll give you some statistic over 90% that they LOVE to give out)
-If I'm a (intensive major), can I still study abroad?
-How much can the job placement center help you?
-If I pick a major, and I doesn't pan out, how easy is it to change majors? How long do I have? (Typical answer: easy, unless you're trying to become an engineer, and middle to end of sophomore year)</p>
<p>Any other questions that spring to mind and aren't in the brochure are usually good.With college fairs, if you ask a few questions, ask for a signup postcard & give the card back, they circle one of the "office use only" things on it to show your demonstrated interest. This demonstrated interest will help (not guarantee, but it'll give you an advantage) over other candidates if you choose to apply. </p>
<p>These are also good tips for interview questions, except you have to ask more (and they'll ask you questions, too).</p>
<p>okay thanks. im an international btw</p>
<p>would it look stupid if i had a sheet of paper reading out some prepared questions?
will i be evaluated at all during this?</p>
<p>No no no NO...how paranoid are you. They usually won't even take your stuff, let alone evaluate you...it's just an information session so that you can ask questions (and DON'T read questions out in front of the reps from a paper...you can take the paper to the fair but remember the questions in your head when you go to ask them.) and find out about the colleges. It's not a selection process.</p>
<p>Vin, it's a bad idea to read prepared questions from paper; it shows a lack of interest. I'd either memorize them, or read them before you got the rep. (Out of sight of the rep).</p>
<p>They won't evaluate you too much, it's really casual, unless...</p>
<p>If you are somehow able to make a positive impression on the person at the fair, you COULD end up getting their business card and you could contact them, which would help your chances for admission.</p>
<p>I do alumni interviews for my school (northeast LAC), and often staff the local college fair tables if the regular admissions rep can't be there. College fairs are <em>not</em> evaluative, but rather provide a way to answer basic questions about a school, capture names for the mailing list, etc. Not once in the 10+ years that I've been doing this have I contacted the admissions office the day after the fair and said, "I met a terrific student today that would be perfect for you!" I have, however, recommended to students who show demonstrated interest that they contact a particular coach if they plan to play at college, or a specific professor if they want more info about a major.</p>