<p>Thanks in advance for your thoughts on any of the following:</p>
<p>We are planning a trip to three colleges in 3 days. (D has been accepted to all of them and we have visited none of them yet, I don't recommend that.) They are all within 1-2 hours of each other. Is this going to be too much? Too overwhelming?</p>
<p>Does anyone else think that tours are way too long? The ones we've been on so far have been exhausting. Do we really need to see EVERYTHING? Any suggestions on shortening them tactfully, and if so, what were the most important things for you and your son or daughter to see (I know these will vary from person to person)?</p>
<p>I'm thinking: any major-related buildings, dorms, cafeteria(s), student center, maybe library. If you could design your own tour, what would it include?</p>
<p>What were the most important parts of the visit for you? The tour? Walking around alone? </p>
<p>Did your s or d sit in on a class? How important/useful is this? Is it possible/more helpful to pop into a couple of classes for 15 minutes or so rather than sit through a full class? The day seems pretty long as is.</p>
<p>Since the schools are close together, 3 in 3 days is doable. I can't think of a tactful way to ask for a shorter tour. If there's a large group, you could quietly drop out when you've seen enough. We thought library, dorms and student center were important. Have lunch at the cafeteria if you can.</p>
<p>Sitting in on a class could be very informative, but no, it is not ok to pop in for 15 minutes and then leave. This would be considered very impolite, I think. I suggest you call admissions and ask about length of tour and attending a class. Do these schools have accepted student days (special events for accepted students)? Talking with current students could be very informative. If there's an intended major or an interest area, it might be possible to talk to a prof in that dept.</p>
<p>In all the schools we visited w/ D, and now S, all of the tours were about an hour -- that's too long? Or are you talking about the combination of the info session + tour? We've done 2 schools in 1 day a couple of times, and that is a little much, but 1/day seems entirely doable to me. But maybe the difference is the size of the school? We haven't done any really huge schools -- and the couple w/ more sprawling campuses just didn't cover the entire place on their tours.</p>
<p>D sat in on classes at a couple of schools -- I think that has to be arranged in advance? She found it somewhat useful -- just another piece of information to add to the whole picture.</p>
<p>Try not to get too stressed out about the visits -- after all, she's already been accepted! Good luck</p>
<p>Yeah, I'd definitely recommend getting in contact with the department your daughter is interested in joining. I used to give tours for my Materials Science department back when I was an undergrad that usually lasted around an hour hitting the spots I figured the normal tour didn't hit (computer labs, engineering library, actual lab facilities they'll use in classes within our major) and then I'd go out for lunch with the family on campus. They all seemed genuinely happy to have met with me, and a few even sent me little gifts after they had gotten back home (one even sent a box of home-made chocolate chip cookies!).</p>
<p>I always felt the guided tours were a little too cut and dry, as they give them so often and have a bunch of major points they have to touch on. If you get a tour from a student in the department (or at least one somewhat close to what you're interested in) they'll address issues a lot closer to what you care about.</p>
<p>I don't think you need to be overwhelmed since you are giving yourselves three days to tour the schools - that seems like enough time. Maybe if your D knows any kids from her high school attending any of these schools, they would be willing to show her around - that might be more fun for her, and then she would be able to have the tour focused on what she wants to see, rather than a general group tour.</p>
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Maybe if your D knows any kids from her high school attending any of these schools, they would be willing to show her around...
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<p>Second this. Spending a day with students at the school is more valuable for the student than a guided tour (for the parents, a guided tour seems reasonable), as it gives a better idea of what being a student is like. Do any of these schools have "campus preview" days? That seems like the best option. If not, spending the day with someone you know there is also good.</p>
<p>I would say to definitely see the student center around lunch time.If its nice out, just sit and watch the students go by.This hub is usually your best opportunity to see a true cross section of the student body.Read some bulletin boards to see whats happening on campus. See the library.I would try to visit with the major dep't of most interest.Things I like to look for on a campus are construction,rebuilding.I think a campus should always be undergoing some sort of rejuvination. I also look for a general state of repair..are the grounds clean,are public trashcans emptied,at this time of year are there flower beds, or at least are the bushes trimmed,etc.I also like to look at the local area around the campus. Imagine a kid attending w/o a car. Are they able to walk places,and walk safely?Is there a drug store, a coffee shop/pizza place/maybe a movie house? Does the campus, if not walkable to town have a transportation system (like shuttle buses) so students can get to places?
Sitting in on a class could be a hit or miss affair.What if its a not so engaging professor,what if its a review class for a test? This time of year becomes tricky in the classrooms as the semester is actually wrapping up.
At this point, won't the colleges be having accepted student days(maybe called preview days)? They might be most valuable of all.</p>
<p>Agree first choice would be the accepted student days. If not, then besides a tour, second getting in touch with a department. They were always willing to talk and sometimes had a students working in the office who could mini tour and talk about the school. Also just sitting in the cafeteria and talking to students. We always found students willing to talk about the school. Much more informative that way. At this stage you are also looking for "fit" and that comes from interaction, too.</p>
<p>You might want to separate, too. Go get a coffee and wait. Let her explore on her own and get her own read without your edits. It's her choice, not yours at this point.</p>
<p>I second the idea of reading the student bulletin boards. You can get a real idea of the culture of the school, the types of activities, etc, by reading things that the students themselves have posted. We toured one school when they were getting ready to hold elections for class officers and the campaign posters were very funny and clever. There were also lots of different activities, and some 'note to the dude who stole my chem book' type things, all of which were helpful in forming an idea as to general atmosphere.</p>
<p>Since she already has the acceptances you are free to make whatever you want of your visits. You already have some great advice but I wanted to add that three in three days is fine. </p>
<p>The student newpapers and message boards really can be some telling reading</p>
<p>I used to be a campus tour volunteer when I was in college, and I always tailored the tours toward the student's interests. Everybody got to see the dormitories, because that is a key component of college life. After that, I focused on going to the particular buildings where classes were held for their specific interests. I always finished with a walk down the center quad on campus, where I could point out all of the other major buildings that they might want to visit on their own. </p>
<p>I suppose that you could start a tour and then "peel off" to go visit specific campus areas on your own. Bring a map and flag down students to ask questions. They will most likely be very friendly and helpful.</p>
<p>My son managed to be accepted mostly at colleges we hadn't visited. April was a busy! One a day seems fine to me. You might want to write up impressions and take photos. I was surprised at how similar WPI and RPI seemed a few days later. Red brick, engineering, cheerful young women guides...</p>
<p>My son would have happily skipped out of tours of the dorms, which he thought all looked exactly the same. Several schools did dorms at the end or as separate tours. The most helpful tour/presentation for us was at Carnegie Mellon where the separate schools within the university gave their own presentations and tours. At CMU we attended session by both the school of science and computer science. </p>
<p>If I could change one thing about tours, I'd make them MUCH smaller. Too often it's almost impossible to hear the guide.</p>
<p>We have found a pattern that works well: arrive in the early evening and eat dinner near campus, then walk over to the college and attend a play, concert, lecture, art exhibit or sports competition. It's an easy introduction to the campus culture, and you can often strike up a conversation with other audience members or the students on staff. This is also a good time to make contact with a student, perhaps a graduate of your HS or a friend of a friend, to talk about the college over dinner or a late snack.</p>
<p>The next day, do take the tour but feel free to skip the information session, unless it's strictly for accepted students. Dorm tours are important for some but meaningless for others. Much more important is attending a class, but this is usually impossible on weekends (and Friday or early Monday classes are sometimes poorly attended.) Definitely eat lunch on campus and see how easy it is to meet new people. You can pick up a copy of the student newspaper to read later, but, in my experience, the kid has pretty much decided by this time.</p>
<p>There are some great suggestions ^^^^here. My D and I became grizzled veterans of college visits and by the end had a system that worked for us. </p>
<p>We would usually arrive the night before. We'd eat at what had been ID'ed as a campus hangout. Assuming the tour and info session was in the morning, we would get to the campus and D would do the tour. Both of us (or neither of us ) would do the canned info session. While she was touring I was people watching , usually in the informal eating area or the "Student Union Building". I would take this time alone to talk to workers (maintenance, security, cashier, bookstore employees- the campus "invisibles". On the way to and from campus I'd stop for gas at a place that sold beer and ask the beertender about the students.) </p>
<p>After lunch we'd head to her "departments" and go down the halls. Grades are sometimes posted as are syllabi, research opps, posters of research done, awards earned. Plus by doing it this way you get a feel for how it would be to "live" those classrooms and halls. D was not a big fan of sitting in on classes. OTOH we saw the research labs and the Prof's offices, which often led to a one on one opportunity. </p>
<p>She always checked out the library and fitness facilities , many times on her own as Dad can't walk very far or fast- but I still get there.;) She almost always saw a first-year dorm on the tour. </p>
<p>At many, many campuses this divide and conquer approach worked very well as she and I would cover more ground, talk to more folks, and most of the time she'd be "adopted" by some student who " just had" to show her something. With dad around that was unlikely to happen. </p>
<p>Do what feels right. That felt right for us .</p>