Q: Hey Abby. I’m a sophomore and my parents are starting to pressure me about college stuff. They want me to go on a couple of campus tours over spring break, and I honestly have no idea what to expect. What are college visits like, and how can I prepare myself?
Signed, Clueless in Chemistry
A: Great question, Clueless! You’re on the cusp of entering a traumatic and monstrously overhyped stage of your life, so prepare yourself. Feel free to refer back to my earlier column, “Tips for the College Application Process,” whenever you need to throughout the next two years. As objectively flawless as that article was, however, reading your question has made me realize that I grossly overlooked the importance of one major step of the college search process: the campus visit.
Campus visits provide prospective students like yourself with the opportunity to make a big impression on the administration.You want them to remember you, even if it’s for the wrong reasons. A visit can also be a good opportunity for you to get a more personal feel for the school, but that’s largely irrelevant. Let’s focus on what you can do to stand out instead.
Once you’ve registered for your visit, the first step is to do some research. Don’t just look for statistics like class sizes or useless information like the majors they offer—any chump could find that information off the college’s website. Instead, shake it up a little. Use sites like ratemyprofessors.com to dig up dirt on the school’s teaching staff. If the school you’re visiting is local, use Yik Yak to familiarize yourself with the student body’s most hated classes, fraternities, and everyday inconveniences around campus. Have this information handy whenever your tour guide or any other representatives start getting a little too florid in their descriptions of how wonderful their college is.
With research out of the way, it’s time to prepare for the day of the visit itself. Usually, the first thing you’ll do upon arriving on campus is check in at admissions. You’ll then be directed to sit in a pamphlet-plastered waiting room, where you’ll spend the next 15 minutes avoiding making eye contact with any other students or parents waiting with you until the tour starts. Use this time as an opportunity to assert your dominance; regardless of whether or not you plan on applying to this school, you should be viewing all other students as your competition. If you see a parent grab two brochures for their kid, grab three for yourself. If another student is reading a book while waiting, find a bigger book and read that. Upside down. It’s all about playing the game.
Once your tour finally starts, the same technique can be employed on your student guide. You’ll notice that they walk backwards—that’s the preferred mode of transportation for most college students. Show your initiative and college readiness by doing the same. Bonus points if you can outpace your guide, and if you trip over fewer objects.
Don’t be afraid to ask your guide the hard-hitting questions. Ask about drug use, crime on campus, if this was their safety school. Snag a few posters when you visit the mock freshman dorm room; it’s pretty much already an extension of the school bookstore, so you might as well.
Long story short: if no one has called campus security before the end of your visit, you frankly haven’t gotten a full picture of everything the college has to offer.
Congratulations! You’re one step closer to college acceptance!
You’re welcome.
—Abby