<p>I've been accepted to several amazing schools, and am hoping to visit.
However, I don't know if I will be able to visit all my "contenders," due to both financial and timing issues.</p>
<p>I thought it would be a good question to ask:</p>
<p>What are the best ways to acquaint oneself with a school, even when unable to visit?</p>
<p>Please, try to be specific, not just "research them."</p>
<p>I had a phenomenal email conversation with one random student, check the web page to see if they have emails or email the college to get an email. Check out the facebook and facebook message random ppl to see their opinions. E-mail/facebook message everyone from your school or neighborhood who went there to get your town's perspective on the school. Look at all college confidential posts but take 'em with a grain of salt (or whatever that saying is). Peruse the website often. Search You Tube. Ask random ppl on the street or in your classes. Look at the weather online for the area. Go to the library and read books about the school. </p>
<p>best way: email a current student</p>
<p>Just to get a quick rundown theu.com offers some campus tour videos that I found to be very interesting and helpful.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the suggestions so far!</p>
<p>It's just so frustrating, when I want to visit everywhere (more like 5 places) but I know I probably can't. April seems like such a short month! Also, I just got some surprise acceptances yesterday, but the plane tickets from Southern CA to east coast are really expensive. Has anybody been successful getting the school to pay for their visit? If so, feel free to share.</p>
<p>Oh, and keep the suggestions going for getting to know a school without visiting. :)</p>
<p>To survey the area around campus, perhaps try Google Street View if the campus is in an area they have up there. (You're screwed, obviously, if you're really curious about Cornell.)</p>
<p>Prioritize: Which school has the best match of program? Does one school have a better merit/financial aid package? Look at what is important to you and then go on down the list. You might be able to do two colleges in one week-end which are in the same area. And then another two the next week-end. Jet Blue has some cheaper flights from Long Beach. Check Virgin America airlines, Southwest Airlines, Orbitz and some of the smaller airports (John Wayne, Burbank) to see if you can get a better flight deal. Remember, one of the headaches of long distance universities is the added expense of flight travel which will always be another expense (even if you book in advance). Do your parents/relatives have any frequent flier miles they can give you to get a free flight?</p>
<p>@ ivanadoeslimbo</p>
<p>I would definitely consider the schools with the best financial aid packages first. Then contact, research and visit those schools nearest you to get a feel of the campus and classroom environment. It's like a process of elimination.</p>
<ul>
<li>pose the various choices to folks here who can give feedback</li>
<li>determine what your priorities are (in terms of size of student body, feel of campus, proximity to a major city, is there a defined campus or are the building integrated into a city, etc)</li>
<li>even if you can't visit that campus, you can visit a school near you that has a comparable composition to help you decide</li>
<li>rule out the schools that are not financially favorable</li>
<li>factor in ease of transportation; if it's difficult to get there for a visit, it will be difficult to get home for visits</li>
</ul>
<p>OP - ... now I see your options on another thread. I can empathize your tough choices! This is a fun decision. Since finances for travel are an issue, finances for everything will be a consideration.</p>
<p>UC Irvine- UCSB - UCLA
Northeastern
Wesleyan
Vassar
Northwestern
Brandeis
Brown
Columbia
Princeton</p>
<p>Who offered the best package from the non-California schools?</p>
<p>should you go to the school with the best financial aid package or the one with the best program that you want to do?</p>
<p>See if they have a local alumni association and talk to some people from that.</p>
<p>Well the majors I'm considering right now are pretty generic.... they're in the humanities/social sciences/cultural studies type.</p>
<p>As far as financial aid, Brandeis gave me a full scholarship, Northwestern gave me good money, wesleyan's was less than stellar, brown's looks a bit disappointing, columbia's also a bit disappointing, and haven't heard back from princeton or vassar.</p>
<p>I've already kind of thrown out UCI, UCSB, and UCLA by elimination. Wesleyan might be out too, because of financial aid... even though I really liked that school.</p>
<p>I don't know how these college keep thinking that I can afford to pay 23-25k a year, while Northwestern is pretty realistic at 16k. It's just so frustrating to think that after all my hard work on my applications, I might not be able to attend the school of my choice because of money. (though i have yet to discover which is my first-choice)</p>
<p>@ ivanadoeslimbo</p>
<p>I will definitely try to visit Northwestern. It sounds like a fantastic financial aid package. I am a NU grad, and they have a strong social science/interdisciplinary studies program. Look up their local alumni association in your area. Research the university. Look up the academics and extracurriculars. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.northwestern.edu%5B/url%5D">http://www.northwestern.edu</a>
<a href="http://hereandnow.northwestern.edu%5B/url%5D">http://hereandnow.northwestern.edu</a></p>
<p>What to do when you can't visit...?</p>
<p>If you are asking how to make some observations about the school from afar. To get a feel for the administration, make some calls or start some e-mails within the school that could be important to you while at school. IE, find out the health center hours (this can become very important to freshman who seem to get sick frequently) and talk to the staff to get a feel for their friendly factor: talk to the security office and find out more about their security system (key card vs keys are all building locketed); toss a few notes out to department chairs in your area of interest and see which schools get back intouch with you; call dining services and learn their opinion of the various meal plans and their observations on which plans work best for kids: how old/new and how many are washers and dryers are in the dorm and will you have to pay for each load? Think about the small but important things that ultimately will make a difference with your happiness and safety at school (especially if you are miles away). Yes, now a days, many of these can be learned online, but you want the human factor. Talking to present students is good, but you don't know them and your comfort factors are different. </p>
<p>If you are concerned about you financial aid picture, don't forget that college tuition will continue to go up each year, which offer will take that into consideration. You need to look past the first year.</p>
<p>My D graduated from NW in 2004. It was her top choice and she did not visit before accepting a very generous FA pkg (huge grants and scholarship). She loved NW, but be aware: Grants/scholarships may be very generous for the first year or two, and then they really 'sock it to ya' the last few years, esp. your senior year (who wants to transfer or drop out their senior year - they'll do anything to graduate!) For her, it was lots and lots of loans her last two years (I even had to co-sign on one). I am sure this isn't unique to NW - I believe some schools "hook you in" with a substantial FA offer, and then start putting more loans in as the years progress. If you can get a guarantee of the same amount of FA for four years, that's a great thing...no surprises.
Also, it seems that every college raises tuition and fees on a yearly basis.<br>
If you choose to live off-campus at NW after your freshman year, be prepared for very pricey off-campus housing within proximity to campus.</p>
<p>Great suggestions above.<br>
Here's one more thought: your guidance counselor should be able to connect you with students from your school who are now students at the colleges you are considering. You might feel more comfortable reaching out to someone that you already have a shared background with.
I would seek out the local alumni assocations, too...they are eager to give you information and support in thinking through the choices.</p>
<p>First of all, you need to choose your career, then relate it to a common major, this will allow you to discard many possibi7llities. After you have done this you can now choose the college you like the most, based on its location and the fraternities. You can now look at the web page and find out all the information you wish about the chosen college.</p>
<p>Princeton is one of the Ivy leagues that give tremendous financial aid. I believe no loans and they pretty much give you whatever their financial aid form says you need. This is closer to the FAFSA than the CSS form because they don't take into account real estate equity. They have a huge endowment and are one of the Ivies that concentrate on their undergraduates.</p>
<p>I am not entirely sure that a guarantee of the same amount of FA for four years is a great deal. As tuition continues to increase yearly, you are locked into a fixed reimbursement, non reflective of the actual costs. </p>
<p>It is a clever path many schools take. I think one more good question for a prospective student to look into is the pattern of yearly tuition hikes.</p>
<p>One more thing that I would investigate, new construction and planned constuction on campus. Many colleges are spending on fiscial developments, so, have an understanding on how this will effect you. Noise, detour, length, benefit to you during you college career. Walking around the construction site of a wonderful new science building for 4 years only to have it open the year after you graduate isn't always so great for you personally.</p>