W&M visit--what to ask, what to watch for?

High school junior daughter and I are going to the basic information session/campus tour combo soon because she has a day off school. We’re only getting started looking at colleges but W&M has major areas of interest to her; however, it seems too soon to request any specific interviews with departments etc. (She’s strong in English, history and drama and also would like to continue dance at some level, and the college seems to have strong programs in all of those).

I wanted to ask W&M students, alums and parents if there are college-specific things we should watch for or ask student guides and admissions officers about while there. Beyond the generic questions about majors overall, financial aid, etc., what should we look for at W&M? Ideas welcome. Daughter is not especially warm or cool toward W&M right now (very focused on junior-year grades, activities, etc.) but may need to hear some specifics to get her at least thinking about it.

Hello @conrad2. I’d like to share my daughter’s experience, in the event it is helpful. My daughter is currently a freshman at W&M and so far it seems to be a perfect fit for her. I knew of W&M by reputation while living in VA two decades ago, so made plans with my daughter to tour Georgetown, UVA and W&M over a 4 day period when she was also a high school junior. It was kind of like the 3 bears finding the perfect fit, and W&M was indeed the perfect fit. W&M admissions dean/staff set the tone from the moment we took our seats for the Information Session/Tour and we remained impressed throughout the visit. The campus is also quite beautiful, historic and charming which further adds to the school’s appeal. Things I would ask about would be related to academic areas of study (majors and minors), the Monroe Scholars program, and typical amount of study time for courses. I don’t know if you’re a VA resident or out of state, but either way you’ll want to inquire about costs and admissions statistics. W&M is a selective school and it is particularly competitive for out of state students to gain admission. Other than that, I would just relax and enjoy the Information Session and tour. Enjoy and good luck!