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	<title>campus visit - Great College Advice</title>
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		<title>When Is the Best Time to Visit a College Campus</title>
		<link>https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/when-is-the-best-time-to-visit-a-college-campus/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jared Hobson]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 18 Feb 2026 17:15:05 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[College Admissions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus visit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[College admission]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[College counseling]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[College selection]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[visit]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://greatcollegeadvice.com/?p=1037</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>When is the best time to visit a college campus?  A campus visit can happen whenever it's most convenient.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/when-is-the-best-time-to-visit-a-college-campus/">When Is the Best Time to Visit a College Campus</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The best time to visit a college campus is during a </span><b>weekday when classes are in session</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, ideally in September through early November or February through April. These windows let you experience authentic campus life from the energy in academic buildings to conversations in the dining hall. And you will avoid an empty, unrepresentative version of the school. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Strategic timing of campus visits is one part of a comprehensive approach to the college admissions process, alongside decisions. Not all colleges offer tours and information sessions on weekends. For those that do, weekend visits are typically only offered during select months—usually September, October, March, or April. Plan ahead and book early, as popular tour dates fill quickly at competitive schools.</span></p>
<h2><b>When Is the Best Time of Year to Visit a College Campus?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The ideal months for campus visits fall into two clear windows: </span></p>
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Fall semester (September through early November) and</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Spring semester (February through April). </span></li>
</ol>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">During these periods, classes are in full swing, clubs and organizations are active, and you can witness the authentic rhythm of student life that simply doesn&#8217;t exist during breaks or summer months.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Fall visits are particularly strategic for juniors beginning to build their college list. September and October allow you to see campuses at their most vibrant while still early enough in the academic year that admissions offices are welcoming and less overwhelmed by application season. Keep an eye out for special admissions events like &#8220;preview days&#8221; and &#8220;open houses&#8221; that many schools schedule during these months.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Spring visits in late March and April are ideal for admitted students attending accepted students&#8217; days, and for sophomores beginning their exploratory campus research. Most colleges have a &#8220;visit&#8221; section on their admissions website with a calendar of dates and times to choose from.</span></p>
<p><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">&#8220;The most important thing is to be on campus when the student body is on campus. It&#8217;s much better to visit during a weekday when classes are in session. Avoid being there during spring break because you simply won&#8217;t get a feel for the student body.&#8221;</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> — </span><b>Sarah Myers, Senior Admissions Consultant, Great College Advice</b></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h2><b>Should I Visit Colleges During the Week or on Weekends?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Weekday visits are significantly more valuable than weekend visits. When classes are in session, you can observe the true academic culture of a school: </span></p>
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Students moving between lectures,</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Conversations in the dining hall about coursework </span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Campus events,</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The hum of activity in the library and study spaces. </span></li>
</ul>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This day-to-day energy is impossible to replicate on a Saturday morning tour.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Morning visits are especially valuable. Sarah Myers, senior admissions consultant at Great College Advice, notes that &#8220;it&#8217;s better to go in the morning than in the afternoon because more classes are in session in the morning.&#8221; If you&#8217;re trying to visit two schools in one day, schedule the first tour for the morning and the second for early afternoon.</span></p>
<p><b>Pro Strategy:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Arrive the evening before your scheduled tour and spend time in the surrounding town when students are out after classes. Stay overnight nearby, then attend the morning tour the next day. This gives you both the social atmosphere of the campus at night and the academic energy during the school day—a much more complete picture than a single mid-day tour.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">If a weekday visit is genuinely impossible, a Saturday morning tour during peak visit months (September, October, or April) is the next best option. However, expect a quieter campus with fewer students visible, and understand that you&#8217;re seeing a partial version of the school&#8217;s personality.</span></p>
<h2><b>What Grade Should Students Start Visiting Colleges?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The short answer: earlier than most families think. Campus visits can begin as early as eighth or ninth grade, though the purpose and depth of those visits should evolve as your student progresses through high school.</span></p>
<p><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">&#8220;I recommend that families start taking their students to visit colleges when they&#8217;re on a family trip, even when the student is a freshman or even an eighth grader. Spending even half an hour dropping by and walking around when your student is really young will create a context for what college is, so that as they get older, they can refer back to those early experiences of visiting campuses.&#8221;</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> — </span><b>Sarah Myers, Senior Admissions Consultant, Great College Advice</b></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Here&#8217;s how to think about visits by grade level:</span></p>
<h3><span style="font-weight: 400;">Freshman and Sophomore Year (Exploratory Visits)</span></h3>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">These are casual, low-pressure opportunities to help your student begin understanding the landscape. Visit a large university and a small liberal arts college to see the contrast. Explore both urban and suburban campuses. The goal isn&#8217;t to pick schools—it&#8217;s to develop a frame of reference. As one parent in the Great College Advice community shared, &#8220;I took my rising sophomore and her two friends on two visits within a five-hour drive. It was eye-opening for them to hear it from &#8216;experts,&#8217; and the subtle shift in responsibility and accountability has been noticeable.&#8221;</span></p>
<h3><span style="font-weight: 400;">Junior Year (Strategic Visits)</span></h3>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"> This is when visits become more targeted. Schedule official tours, attend information sessions, sit in on classes in your academic interest area, and begin meeting with admissions staff. Junior year visits should cover a range of schools on your developing list, from reaches to &#8220;likely&#8221; schools (the term admissions professionals now use instead of &#8220;safety&#8221; schools).</span></p>
<h3><span style="font-weight: 400;">Senior Year (Strategic and Decision Visits)</span></h3>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Find time to visit schools you plan on applying to in the fall. Focus on top-choice schools and admitted students&#8217; days in the spring. These visits help you make your final enrollment decision with real, on-the-ground experience. For schools where you&#8217;ve been admitted, a post-acceptance visit is one of the most important steps before committing.</span></p>
<h2><b>How Many Colleges Should I Visit in One Day, and How Do I Plan an Efficient Itinerary?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Great College Advice Family Handbook is clear on this: </span><b>do not schedule more than two visits in a single day</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">. The handbook explains that &#8220;the most informative visits can be those in which you spend a full day or more on campus, from morning until well into the evening,&#8221; and that cramming in too many schools causes &#8220;your experiences on different campuses to start to blend together.&#8221;</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">For an efficient multi-school itinerary, pair campuses that are within an hour or two of each other. Sarah Myers recommends this approach: &#8220;A good way to do college visits is to arrive somewhere the evening before and spend time in the town. Then the next morning do a tour. If you can find schools that are within an hour or two of one another, there&#8217;s a good chance you could get to a 12 or 1 o&#8217;clock tour at a second school—and you&#8217;ll still catch students on campus at that second school.&#8221;</span></p>
<h3><b>Campus Visit Planning Checklist (from the Great College Advice Family Handbook)</b></h3>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">☐ Travel accommodations arranged (bus/plane, rental car, hotel)</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">☐ Sign up for school-sponsored information session and campus tour</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">☐ Sign up for an admissions interview, if offered </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">☐ Register to sit in on a class </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">☐ Set up meetings with faculty or staff (professors, coaches) </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">☐ Arrange to see specific facilities (physics lab, performance spaces, art studio, sports facilities) </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">☐ Schedule a campus overnight, if available</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">☐ Consult the campus events calendar for activities during your visit (performances, lectures, sporting events)</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Taking detailed notes and photos during and after each visit is critical. Months later, you may not remember which library or dining hall belonged to which school. As the Family Handbook notes, &#8220;Many colleges like to ask about the visit on the college application, so details can be important.&#8221;</span></p>
<h2><b>What Should Students Do During a Campus Visit to Get the Most Out of It?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The official tour and information session are just the starting point. The most valuable part of a campus visit is everything you do </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">beyond</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> the guided experience. Here&#8217;s what Great College Advice&#8217;s expert counselors recommend:</span></p>
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><b>Explore independently.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Sarah Myers encourages students to walk around campus on their own: &#8220;The student should go on their own and walk around campus without the parents. You&#8217;re usually completely welcome, it&#8217;s safe, and sometimes you&#8217;ll just blend in as another student. Sit on a bench or outside a building and be a quiet observer—do people watching, listen to what students are talking about.&#8221;</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><b>Eat in the dining hall.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> This is one of the best places to observe authentic student culture. Listen to what students discuss, see how they interact, and get a real sense of the social atmosphere.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><b>Peek into academic buildings.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Walk through the hallways of departments in your area of interest. See what students are doing in labs, study rooms, and common areas. This is absolutely okay to do and gives you a window into everyday academic life.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><b>Explore the surrounding town.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Myers emphasizes that &#8220;spending time in the surrounding town is important—to see what it would be like there, including understanding the prices of things.&#8221; The town is where students spend a significant amount of their time outside of classes, so it&#8217;s a key part of the college experience.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><b>Assess mental health support.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Sarah Myers, who has a background in mental health, recommends that families investigate counseling resources: &#8220;Are there long waits for an appointment with a counselor? Do they have a 24-hour phone line? How many mental health providers are on campus? Can you get medications on campus or do they have to be mailed somewhere else?&#8221; These practical details matter enormously for</span><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/college-expectations-vs-reality/"> <span style="font-weight: 400;">the reality of college life</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><b>Follow up afterward.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> A thank-you note after a campus visit or interview is a powerful and often overlooked form of</span><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/a-lesson-in-demonstrated-interest/"> <span style="font-weight: 400;">demonstrated interest</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">. The Great College Advice Family Handbook notes that &#8220;sometimes the best demonstrated interest is through conversations that show the student is truly engaged in the process.&#8221;</span></li>
</ol>
<h2><b>What Common Mistakes Should Students Avoid During College Campus Visits?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Even well-intentioned families make avoidable mistakes that reduce the value of their campus visits. Here are the most common pitfalls, according to Great College Advice&#8217;s counselors:</span></p>
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Not taking it seriously enough.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Visiting when campus is empty. </span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Cramming too many schools into one trip. </span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Parents dominating the visit. </span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Treating it as a &#8220;drive-by.&#8221; </span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Forgetting to take notes. </span></li>
</ol>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">When parents and students both attend the tour, the Great College Advice team recommends a smart &#8220;divide and conquer&#8221; strategy: if more than one tour guide is available, split up so the student goes on one tour and the parents on the other, then compare notes over coffee afterward. Alternatively, while the student attends a class, parents can meet with someone in financial aid or student advising.</span></p>
<h2><b>What If I Can&#8217;t Visit a College Campus in Person—Are Virtual Tours Worth It?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Virtual tours are a useful supplement, especially for international students or families for whom travel costs are prohibitive, but they are not a full replacement for an in-person visit. Many colleges offer interactive virtual tours, and some feature a virtual student guide walking you through campus.</span></p>
<p><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">&#8220;A lot of colleges have virtual tours that you can take, and some even have a virtual student leading you around. Those can fill in the gap when you&#8217;re an international student or can&#8217;t fly over to visit.&#8221;</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> — </span><b>Sarah Myers, Senior Admissions Consultant, Great College Advice</b></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Beyond virtual tours, colleges frequently offer webinars, video meetings with faculty and department deans, and virtual panels with current students. To access these opportunities, Myers recommends getting on college mailing lists as early as possible: &#8220;If the school is very large, you might have a specific email list for the business school only or the engineering school only, and then you&#8217;ll be made aware when they have open meetings online.&#8221;</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">For students who cannot visit in person, veteran college admissions expert Jamie Berger advises making your interest known through other channels: &#8220;If your first choice is a school that you can&#8217;t visit, write them a letter so they know you&#8217;re not just applying to 30 schools blindly. Something short, though.&#8221; A campus visit is one of the most powerful ways to show</span><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/a-lesson-in-demonstrated-interest/"> <span style="font-weight: 400;">demonstrated interest</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, but it&#8217;s not the only way.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">One parent in the Great College Advice community shared creative alternatives their family used: &#8220;My child watched college tour episodes on streaming services, did the online tours from the school websites, and even used a virtual reality set to &#8216;walk around&#8217; the campuses.&#8221; Other community members noted the value of visiting after being accepted—waiting to visit until you have admissions decisions can be a financially smart strategy for families on a budget.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Additional virtual research strategies include reading the campus newspaper online, watching broadcast sports games to gauge school spirit, and researching the percentage of in-state versus out-of-state students to understand the campus community.</span></p>
<h2><span style="font-weight: 400;">Plan Your College Visits with an Expert by Your Side</span></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">At Great College Advice, our team of six expert counselors brings over 100 years of combined experience to help students and families navigate every step of the college admissions process—from strategic campus visit planning to crafting winning applications. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Whether you&#8217;re a sophomore beginning your college search or a senior making your final decision, our personalized guidance ensures you find schools where you&#8217;ll truly thrive. Learn more about how we can help your family on a </span><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/contact-us/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">complimentary call.</span></a></p>
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</script></p><p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/when-is-the-best-time-to-visit-a-college-campus/">When Is the Best Time to Visit a College Campus</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>What You Should Not Wear on a College Visit</title>
		<link>https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/what-not-to-wear-the-college-visit/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jared Hobson]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 18 Feb 2026 16:50:50 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[College Application]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus visit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[College Visits]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://greatcollegeadvice.com/?p=13001</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Planning a college visit and not sure what to wear? Here are some tips for what NOT to wear.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/what-not-to-wear-the-college-visit/">What You Should Not Wear on a College Visit</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p class="wp-block-paragraph"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The golden rule for college visit attire is simple: prioritize comfort and authenticity over formality. The most common mistakes include wearing uncomfortable shoes, sporting another college&#8217;s merchandise, choosing ripped or inappropriate clothing, overdressing unnecessarily, and failing to check the weather. For a complete guide to navigating the college admissions process from start to finish, explore our comprehensive resource on </span><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/the-college-admissions-lifecycle-a-guide-through-high-school/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The College Admissions Lifecycle: A Guide Through High School</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p>
<h2><b>What are the biggest clothing mistakes to avoid on a college visit?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Campus visits require significant walking, often covering substantial ground over several hours. The biggest clothing mistakes students and families make center on comfort and appropriateness:</span></p>
<p><b>Uncomfortable footwear:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> High heels, brand-new shoes, or flimsy sandals will leave you miserable and distracted. Choose broken-in walking shoes with good support.</span></p>
<p><b>Another college&#8217;s gear:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Nothing sends a more confusing signal than raving about how much you want to attend a school while wearing a competitor&#8217;s sweatshirt. Admissions counselors definitely notice.</span></p>
<p><b>Inappropriate clothing:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Watch the holes, ripped items, and offensive slogans. Anything too tight or revealing isn&#8217;t the impression you want to make.</span></p>
<p><b>Overdressing:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Unless you have a scheduled interview, there&#8217;s no reason to wear a suit and tie. You&#8217;ll be uncomfortable and stand out awkwardly.</span></p>
<p><b>Ignoring the weather:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Failing to check the forecast means you might freeze on a blustery New England campus or overheat during a Southern tour.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As Jamie Berger, a highly acclaimed college admissions counselor with Great College Advice, puts it: &#8220;Wear clothes you&#8217;re comfortable in, just nothing sloppy. The best version of your normal attire. Not dress-up. They want to get to know you, not hire you.&#8221;</span></p>
<h2><b>What&#8217;s the appropriate dress code for a college campus tour versus an admissions interview?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The dress code varies depending on what activities you&#8217;ve planned for your visit.</span></p>
<p><b>For campus tours and information sessions:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Casual to business casual works perfectly. Clean jeans paired with a nice top are entirely appropriate. </span></p>
<p><b>For admissions interviews:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Step it up slightly without going overboard. A collared shirt or polished blouse with neat pants or a skirt strikes the right balance. You want to appear engaged and respectful, not like you&#8217;re heading to a corporate board meeting. As Bonnie Hale, a member of the Great College Advice community, notes: &#8220;Dress is casual to business casual. Interviews do not weigh heavily on admission decisions.&#8221;</span></p>
<p><b>For professor or faculty meetings:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Paul Wingle, another seasoned voice in the Great College Advice community, offers practical wisdom: &#8220;No coat and tie. You will need to keep a neat appearance for those meetings, but the dining will be in the dining hall, not a coat and tie environment.&#8221;</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The key distinction: interviews and faculty meetings call for a slightly more polished version of your everyday look, while standard tours and sessions are genuinely casual affairs.</span></p>
<h2><b>Why shouldn&#8217;t I wear another college&#8217;s merchandise on a campus visit?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This might seem like a minor detail, but it&#8217;s one of the most common, and avoidable mistakes families make.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Consider the optics: you&#8217;re walking into an admissions office, expressing enthusiasm about the school, while literally advertising their competition. It sends a mixed message at best and shows a lack of awareness at worst.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Admissions staff conduct these tours and sessions daily. They notice. While no one will reject you for wearing a UCLA hoodie to your University of Michigan visit, it undermines the demonstrated interest you&#8217;re trying to build.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The solution is simple: wear neutral clothing. Save the college gear for after you&#8217;ve committed, or at least after you&#8217;ve purchased something from the school you&#8217;re actually visiting that day.</span></p>
<h2><b>How should I dress for different weather conditions during college visits?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Weather preparedness is crucial, especially since many families tour multiple schools across different climates during school breaks.</span></p>
<p><b>For warm weather:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Light, breathable layers work best. You&#8217;ll be moving between air-conditioned buildings and sunny outdoor paths. A light cardigan or jacket you can tie around your waist provides flexibility.</span></p>
<p><b>For cold weather:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Dress warmly but ensure you can easily shed layers. Long information sessions in heated auditoriums can get uncomfortable if you&#8217;re bundled up with no way to remove outerwear gracefully.</span></p>
<p><b>For rainy days:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> A waterproof jacket with a hood beats an umbrella for walking tours where you need both hands free for note-taking. Water-resistant shoes are invaluable.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Effective campus visits help you get beyond the superficial aspects of a campus to learn about that community of people. You can&#8217;t do that if you&#8217;re shivering, sweating, or soaked.</span></p>
<h2><b>What should I wear if I have both a campus tour and a professor meeting scheduled?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">When your visit includes multiple activities with different formality levels, the smart strategy is dressing for versatility rather than bringing multiple outfits.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A smart casual approach works across contexts: dark jeans or khakis paired with a nice blouse or button-down shirt transitions smoothly from casual touring to professional meetings. Add a light blazer or cardigan that you can put on or remove as needed.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Footwear requires more thought. You need shoes that look polished enough for a professor meeting but comfortable enough for an hour-long walking tour. Loafers, clean sneakers, or comfortable flats typically hit this balance.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Avoid the temptation to bring a complete outfit change. Coordinating logistics around changing clothes adds stress and complexity to an already full day.</span></p>
<h2><b>Does what I wear on a college visit actually affect my admission chances?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Let&#8217;s be direct: for standard campus tours and information sessions, your clothing doesn&#8217;t factor into admissions decisions. Tour guides aren&#8217;t secretly evaluating applicants, and admissions officers aren&#8217;t tracking who wore what.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">However, presentation does matter in two specific scenarios:</span></p>
<p><b>Interviews:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Whether with alumni or on-campus staff, first impressions carry weight. Looking neat and put-together demonstrates respect for the interviewer&#8217;s time and the opportunity.</span></p>
<p><b>Direct admissions interactions:</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> If you&#8217;re speaking directly with admissions officers, demonstrating good judgment in your presentation reflects positively on your overall candidacy.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">More importantly, what you wear affects YOUR experience. According to the Great College Advice approach, &#8220;the focus should be on your student: their abilities, preferences, desires, needs, and aspirations. The primary question in your mind should be, does this campus fit my student?&#8221;</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Uncomfortable clothes distract you from this essential assessment. When you&#8217;re worried about blistering feet or overheating in a blazer, you&#8217;re not gathering the insights you need to make good decisions.</span></p>
<h2><b>What should parents wear when accompanying their student on college visits?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Parents should follow the same guidelines as students: comfortable, neat, and weather-appropriate. The goal is supporting your student&#8217;s experience without becoming a distraction—either to yourselves or to others on the tour.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Great College Advice Family Handbook offers wisdom here: &#8220;Let your student take charge of the visit. We know it is tempting to take charge, but try to let your student show independence.&#8221; Your clothing choice should reflect this supportive role—present and appropriate, not the center of attention.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Practical considerations matter too. Parents cover the same ground as students, so comfortable walking shoes are non-negotiable. Avoid formal business attire that might make the family stand out or suggest you&#8217;re treating this more like a corporate transaction than an educational exploration.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Tobi Adeyeye Amosun, a Great College Advice community member, notes that even at schools with traditional reputations, dress codes have relaxed: &#8220;Vandy [Vanderbilt] definitely does not have as much of a dress up culture as it used to and it mostly applies to the handful of kids who are in Greek life. Everybody else wears normal clothes.&#8221;</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The same principle applies to campus visits: normal, comfortable clothes that let everyone focus on what actually matters.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">College visits are valuable opportunities to assess fit and demonstrate interest, but they shouldn&#8217;t be stress-inducing fashion decisions. Aim for clean, comfortable, weather-appropriate attire that lets you focus on gathering information rather than managing wardrobe malfunctions. When in doubt, remember Jamie Berger&#8217;s advice: present the best version of your normal self. The admissions process is ultimately about finding the right match between student and institution—and that assessment goes both ways.</span></p>
<h2><b>Get Expert Guidance for Your College Journey</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Choosing the right outfit for a campus visit is just one small piece of the college admissions puzzle. From building a balanced college list to crafting compelling essays and navigating financial aid, the Great College Advice team brings over 100 years of combined experience to help families through every step of the process.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Our veteran college admissions counselors provide personalized, one-on-one support tailored to your student&#8217;s unique strengths, interests, and goals. We&#8217;re here to help you find not just any college, but the </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">right</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> college.</span></p>
<p><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/contact-us/"><b>Book your free consultation today</b></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and discover how Great College Advice can help your family navigate the college admissions journey with confidence.</span></p>
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</script></p><p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/what-not-to-wear-the-college-visit/">What You Should Not Wear on a College Visit</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
			</item>
		<item>
		<title>4 Reasons Campus Visits Waste Time &#038; Money</title>
		<link>https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/4-reasons-college-campus-visits-are-a-waste-of-time-money/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jared Hobson]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Fri, 05 Sep 2025 08:14:04 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[College Admissions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus tour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus visit]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://greatcollegeadvice.com/?p=20965</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Learn four reasons why college campus tours are a waste of time unless you come prepared.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/4-reasons-college-campus-visits-are-a-waste-of-time-money/">4 Reasons Campus Visits Waste Time & Money</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<h2>Are college campus visits necessary?</h2>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">College campus visits are a ritual. A rite of passage. A requirement. And they also are mostly a waste of time and money unless your student (a) does some research ahead of time, (b) has some criteria in mind as to what is important to them, and (c) sets realistic expectations about what they will learn from an admissions talk and campus tour. We don&#8217;t discourage our families from touring colleges. But, we want them to have an <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/planning-your-college-visit/">action plan in place</a> otherwise they aren&#8217;t worth the effort.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">As a new school year is upon us, the Great College Advice team has been busy debriefing our students and their parents about whatever summertime college campus visits they have done in the past month or two. While my colleagues and I have done hundreds of campus visits as a way to research colleges, our families are embarking on these adventures for the first time.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">In our conversations, here are some of the things that families tell us that we wish the admissions offices around the country should hear.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Information Sessions Are Virtually Identical From School to School</h2>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The father of one of my juniors said the other day, &#8220;After three of these sessions, I could have given the information session myself.&#8221; The canned presentations. The gee-whiz videos. And the obligatory references to &#8220;undergraduate research opportunities,&#8221; &#8220;our robust study abroad program,&#8221; and &#8220;the surprising accessibility of our professors. The recent addition to prepared comments in 2025 is the unique clubs offered by every college. Well, a Cheese Club isn&#8217;t cute, fun, and differentiated if every school now offers one!</p>





<p class="wp-block-paragraph">It&#8217;s true: I hate sitting through these presentations. Every once in a while an admissions officer is able to channel something fresh. Or genuine that helps his audience understand the essence of the school. But mostly these are just superficial, once-over-lightly overviews of college life. It&#8217;s virtually impossible to differentiate these presentations. And it seems that admissions directors don&#8217;t really want to. They want and need to be relatively generic and run-of-the-mill.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Why? Because they don&#8217;t want to say or do anything that might deter a student from applying. They need to hit all the major highlights&#8211;which happen to be the major highlights at the school across town or across the state or across the country. They have to appeal to the widest audience.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Because the more applicants they get, the more selective the institution can be. This will help raise the college&#8217;s ranking, which will then drive more applicants and continued improvements in the ranking.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Thus if the admissions office said something really distinctive about the university, that distinction might not appeal to certain people. So you have Jesuit universities that downplay their religious nature to broaden their appeal (&#8220;everyone is welcome!&#8221;). You have super-geeky institutions that play up the amount of fun kids have (&#8220;We have 106 different clubs!&#8221;). You have campuses where the overwhelming majority of students belong to fraternities or sororities but emphasize that Greek life is just a small slice of the social scene (&#8220;There are all kinds of non-Greek events on campus all the time!&#8221;). Or academically non-selective schools that emphasize their academic research programs (&#8220;Seriously, lots of kids participate in this program&#8221;).</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Information sessions have to promise all things to all people. So they end up not being very informative. And there is very little variability in the presentations from one school to the next.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">So why spend the time and money on a college campus visit if all you&#8217;re going to get is a bland, repetitive, uninformative presentation?</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Student-Led Tours Are Scripted</h2>





<p class="wp-block-paragraph">And so it goes with every campus tour in the land. The senior staff of the admissions department puts together an itinerary and outline of the campus tours, and the students hired to deliver them are told to memorize the itinerary and outline, and given a test to make sure they know what is expected by the employer. It&#8217;s really no different than any other job: know the &#8220;standard operating procedures&#8221; and implement them dutifully. Do the job as expected, and collect your paycheck.</p>





<p class="wp-block-paragraph">But ultimately pretty boring for the students and their families who have traveled sometimes hundreds or even thousands of miles to get the grand campus tour. And pretty darned identical to the tour given at <a href="https://williams.edu">Williams</a>, <a href="https://bowdoin.edu">Bowdoin</a>, <a href="https://yale.edu">Yale</a>, or the <a href="https://und.edu/">University of North Dakota</a> (where all those North Dakotan students apparently stayed). Just change the dates, the names, and the name of the college student giving the tour, and you have an identical experience at any college.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Oh, and don&#8217;t get me started on jokes the tour guides make as they begin to walk backward. It&#8217;s the same joke everywhere you go.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Prospective Applicants Mistake Fellow Campus Visit Participants for Current Students</h2>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">This one is going to sound crazy. But it&#8217;s a real problem.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The other day, one of our students mentioned that he had taken a tour at a small, very selective, liberal arts college. He said he was surprised at how many kids and their families were also on the tour. I asked him how he liked the tour.</p>





<p class="wp-block-paragraph">&#8220;I hated it,&#8221; he sputtered.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">&#8220;Why&#8217;s that?&#8221;</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">&#8220;All the other kids on the tour really weren&#8217;t my type. I found them really annoying.&#8221;</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">And I had to stifle a chuckle.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-5181 size-full" src="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Campus-Tour-ND.png" alt="Expert college counseling in Denver Colorado and Westfield New Jersey" width="720" height="316" srcset="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/wp-content/uploads/Campus-Tour-ND.png 720w, https://greatcollegeadvice.com/wp-content/uploads/Campus-Tour-ND-300x132.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" />I had to remind this young man that the other kids on the tour actually were <strong>not</strong> representative of the students who <strong>attend</strong> this particular school. They are looky-loos, just like him. These tour participants, however annoying they may be, haven&#8217;t even decided to apply, and the admissions office certainly has not invited them to join the student body. They are just sleepwalking from campus to campus, attending the repetitive information sessions and shuffling along behind the well-trained tour guides&#8211;just like he is.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Again, this may seem downright silly for a high school student (a smart one at that) to mistake fellow campus visit participants for the sorts of students who attend a particular school.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">But think about it: the information sessions and the tours do not really provide opportunities for prospective students to interact with current students. Tour participants may view &#8220;real&#8221; students from afar as they walk to and fro across the campus. Or they may passively observe &#8220;real&#8221; students in the dining halls or libraries. But interact? Not usually. At least not as a part of the official college campus visit.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">So what else does the poor prospective student have to go on to make judgments about the campus &#8220;vibe&#8221;? Only on what he is experiencing&#8211;and that is the &#8220;vibe&#8221; of the tour group, itself.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Is the tour guide nice? If yes, then all students on that campus must be nice. If not, then all students on that campus must be annoying.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Are the other kids dressed like me? Do they behave similarly? Or do they seem to value the same things I do? Do they seem like people I&#8217;d want to be friends with? If so, then this campus is perfect. If not, get me away from these goofy people.</p>
<h2>Parent-Child Conflict on College Campus Visits</h2>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">And then there is the parent-child dynamic that also messes things up. Kids trudge through the tour in silent mode (which is mostly a reflection of their utter terror in choosing a college), while eager-beaver parents ask myriad annoying questions about things like &#8220;Where can my daughter do her laundry,&#8221; or &#8220;Are the beds all extra-long,&#8221; or &#8220;where can my son park his car on campus.&#8221; </p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The bottom line is that these tours generally do nothing to give prospective students a sense of what the community is really like. Admittedly, this is a very difficult aspect of a school to put a finger on in a short, one-day (or more usually, two-hour) college campus visit.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Different schools definitely have different personalities. But you&#8217;re probably not going to get a good sense of that on your college campus visit.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Prospective Families Don&#8217;t Know What to Look For During College Campus Visits</h2>
<p>Quite often, as soon as a family hires us as their college counselors, mom or dad calls us up and asks, &#8220;So which colleges should we visit?&#8221;</p>
<p>

</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Everyone knows they <em>should</em> visit campuses. And everyone knows how to make travel arrangements: book the flights, pick the hotels, reserve the rental car. It&#8217;s also easy to figure out how to sign up for those tours and information sessions.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">So let&#8217;s GO, already!</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">But wait.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">What, exactly, are you hoping to find while on that tour? How will you know you&#8217;ve found the right campus when you see it?</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">What are the criteria by which you plan to choose the right college for your student and your family? And how will the college campus tour help you to ascertain whether the college fits those criteria? </p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-5175 size-full" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0px;" src="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/wp-content/uploads/web_campustourhorizontal.preview1.jpg" alt="Campus Tour" width="537" height="302" srcset="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/wp-content/uploads/web_campustourhorizontal.preview1.jpg 537w, https://greatcollegeadvice.com/wp-content/uploads/web_campustourhorizontal.preview1-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 537px) 100vw, 537px" /></p>
<h3>Use a college consultant to help with college selection criteria</h3>
<p>One of the primary reasons to hire a college admissions consultant is to help nail down the college selection criteria. The process of choosing a college can be very emotional. And while it&#8217;s true that a lot of subjective factors and plain, old gut instincts do play a strong role in how most of us choose a college, it&#8217;s also true that the enormous expense of college requires that we try to keep the decision as rational as possible.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">This is why we spend so much time evaluating the factors&#8211;the criteria&#8211;that will drive the college selection process. What are those factors? Well, there can be a whole lot of them. We have an exercise that includes nearly 120 different criteria to consider. But really they boil down to these six categories.</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Finances: does this school likely fit your budget?</li>
<li>Academics: what are the curricular structures, degrees, majors, and other academic programs you seek?</li>
<li>Activities: what activities are you now doing&#8211;or hope to do&#8211;that will be part of the selection process?</li>
<li>Campus Culture or &#8220;Vibe&#8221;: social structures, political activism, religiosity, political persuasion, diversity, etc.</li>
<li>&#8220;Atmospherics&#8221;: geography, campus setting, architecture, landscaping,</li>
<li>Admissibility: how likely are you to be accepted?</li>
</ul>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">As you review this list above, how many of these can be ascertained in ways <strong><em>other than</em></strong> the college campus visit?</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Virtually all of them, in fact.</p>



<h2>How can you evaluate a school without a college campus visit?</h2>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">You can figure out whether a particular school fits your budget by doing research both on the college&#8217;s website and on third-party websites that publish basic financial aid data.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Also, you can have a very strong understanding of the academic opportunities offered by a university simply by spending enough time on specific pages of the college&#8217;s website.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">You can research what activities are offered at the school, and you can easily connect with others (students, coaches, administrators) who can help you gather more information about how you might get involved.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Campus culture or &#8220;vibe&#8221; is perhaps the most difficult for prospective families to get a handle on. But as I mention above, the admissions office and its canned tours aren&#8217;t likely to help much. The best is to try to connect with as many current students on campus as possible&#8211;which frankly can be done online these days as many colleges offer up their students to interested potential applicants.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">In terms of how a college actually physically looks? That is what virtual tours are for. Also, perusing a college site shows you all those pretty pictures of beautiful buildings in beautiful weather surrounded by beautiful students that you can find on every college website.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">And admissibility? Do you really have to traipse all the way across the country to learn the admissions statistics or look up the statistical profile of the kind of students the college generally admits? No, all of that information is available with a few clicks of a mouse.</p>





<h3>Research a college BEFORE you go on those college campus visits.</h3>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">I have actually worked with quite a few students over the years who NEVER visit a college campus before they submit their applications. Of course, I don&#8217;t generally advise this approach, for there are other, very important reasons to visit a college campus as a way to give you a better chance of admission (this is called &#8220;demonstrated interest,&#8221; which you can read about <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/a-lesson-in-demonstrated-interest/">here</a>).</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">But it is undeniable that the Internet has mostly obliterated the usefulness of the campus visit as a way to gather helpful, objective, and otherwise unobtainable information about a college or university. You really can find it all online.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">[Which is part of the problem, to be honest, and why so many families find it hard to make solid college lists and discern which college might suit them best. Sometimes too much information is actually much more confusing than too little of it. It is the surplus of information that helps to keep professional college advisors like me in business&#8211;because we help you sift through the information to find the stuff that is relevant to you and your family.]</p>



<h3>Before you do your homework, however, you have to know what it is you are looking for</h3>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Thus we come back to developing that list of criteria. You will not find your criteria by zipping around the country and looking at schools. Rather, you will find your criteria by looking in the mirror. By having a family conversation about what aspects of higher education are most important to you. And by taking an inventory of your needs, wants, and aspirations. By being honest about things that are simply irrelevant to your own decision-making process. And first and foremost&#8211;by getting real about the costs and sticking to your budget.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Decide what it is you really want and need. Then develop a list of colleges that satisfies those criteria. Do your research in the comfort of your own home. Narrow the list. Then visit only those that really care whether you visit (see that stuff about &#8220;demonstrated interest&#8221; referenced above).</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">And remember that the college campus visit&#8211;by itself&#8211;is not going to be overly useful in helping you make a rational decision. The visit may give you a &#8220;feeling.&#8221; You may have a &#8220;gut reaction.&#8221; Your &#8220;instincts&#8221; may take over.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">But don&#8217;t trust your gut until you have exhausted your ability to use your head.</p>
<h2>Will College Campus Visits Help Me Get Admitted?</h2>
<p>The answer here is more nuanced. It depends. </p>
<p>Some colleges are very interested in students who demonstrate interest in their college. They want students who are excited about attending. Students who know what they are getting into&#8211;and embrace the challenges of joining that community.</p>
<p>Similarly, colleges like to know that your family has the money (and time) to traipse to their campus. Admissions officers know that it&#8217;s a pretty big financial commitment to travel from New York City to visit a college in California. And that commitment indicates a willingness to spend big bucks to pay tuition, room and board, and every other expense associated with attending that college. </p>
<p>So for those schools&#8211;and there are a lot of them&#8211;your visit is definitely going to be a helpful addition to the overall evaluation of your application.</p>
<p>However, other schools&#8211;including the most highly selective ones like the Ivies, Stanford, and many others, it really doesn&#8217;t matter if you visit. These schools have plenty of kids who are demonstrating interest (sometimes they demonstrate too much interest!) and who would flourish. These schools also do not lack for paying customers&#8211;some families would pay two or three times the cost of attendance for that admissions offer. </p>
<p>The most highly selective colleges simply do not care whether you visit. They review applications from thousands of kids every year who have not had the opportunity to visit their campuses. And these applicants are accepted nonetheless.  </p>
<p>Of course, a visit to one of these campuses could help you decide whether or not you would really fit at an Ivy League school, which might be valuable. But the visit will not be a factor in whether or now you are admitted.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">You Can Do College Campus Visits the Right Way</h2>





<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Campus visits are an important part of the college selection process. And most families will do them at some point. But make sure you don&#8217;t waste time or money. Here&#8217;s what you can do:</p>



<ol class="wp-block-list">
<li>Establish college search criteria first. Don&#8217;t leave home on the Grand Tour until you know what you are looking for.</li>
<li>Do your homework before you go. The web is a treasure trove of info on colleges. Use it.</li>
<li>Remind yourself about the limitations of the information session and the campus tour</li>
</ol>



<h2>Need Help Developing Your College Selection Criteria?</h2>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Do you have questions about how to get into college? Let the experts at <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/">Great College Advice</a> help you navigate the complicated and sometimes confusing world of college applications. We have several tiers of services we can provide that can fit any budget. With our years of experience in the world of college applications, we’ve helped thousands of students get into the college of their dreams. We can help you, too!</p>
<p><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/contact-us/">Contact us</a> today for a complimentary consultation.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/4-reasons-college-campus-visits-are-a-waste-of-time-money/">4 Reasons Campus Visits Waste Time & Money</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
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		<title>How to Demonstrate Interest: Practical Methods</title>
		<link>https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/a-lesson-in-demonstrated-interest/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jared Hobson]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2025 11:19:42 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[College Application]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus visit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[College admission]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[demonstrated interest]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://greatcollegeadvice.com/?p=10639</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Follow these tips to show demonstrated interest and improve your college admission chances.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/a-lesson-in-demonstrated-interest/">How to Demonstrate Interest: Practical Methods</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="wp-block-image">Demonstrating interest to colleges goes far beyond simply visiting the campus. There are numerous practical methods to show admissions officers you&#8217;re genuinely invested in attending their institution. The examples start with email outreach and portal engagement, and extend to high school visits and interview follow-ups.</div>
<div></div>
<div class="wp-block-image">This guide walks through each method with actionable tactics you can implement immediately. For the complete strategic framework, explore our <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/how-to-get-into-college/">top-tier college application tips</a> to maximize your chances.</div>
<h2>How Do I Demonstrate Interest Through a Campus Visit?</h2>
<div>
<p>Campus visits are the gold standard for demonstrating interest because they require significant investment of time and resources. A well-executed visit creates multiple touchpoints with the admissions office and provides rich material for your supplemental essays.</p>
<p>Veteran college admissions expert Jamie Berger emphasizes the power of an official visit: &#8220;The first way is to go visit and take an official tour that definitely lets them know that you&#8217;re not just throwing darts at a wall of colleges.&#8221;</p>
<h3>Before You Arrive</h3>
<p>Sign up for an official campus tour through the admissions website—this creates a record in their tracking system. Schedule an information session (ideally, attend before your tour so you can ask informed questions). Request an admissions interview if offered. Arrange to sit in on a class in your intended major. Set up meetings with professors, coaches, or department heads relevant to your interests.</p>
<h3>During Your Visit</h3>
<p>Arrive on time and check in at the admissions office. Take detailed notes about specific programs, facilities, traditions, and campus culture you observe. Photograph buildings and spaces that resonate with you (for essay reference later). Ask thoughtful questions during the tour and information session. Get names and contact information for anyone who spends significant time with you.</p>
<h3>After Your Visit</h3>
<p>Send a brief, personalized thank-you email within 24-48 hours to your tour guide, interviewer, or admissions representative. Reference something specific from your conversation. The Great College Advice Family Handbook emphasizes: &#8220;Remind your student to write a thank you note after a campus visit or interview. Sometimes the best &#8216;demonstrated interest&#8217; is through conversations that show the student is truly engaged in the process.&#8221;</p>
</div>
<h2>What Are the Best Virtual Methods to Demonstrate Interest When I Can&#8217;t Visit Campus?</h2>
<div>
<p>Virtual engagement has become increasingly sophisticated, and colleges recognize the effort students put into online interactions. For families where travel isn&#8217;t feasible, these methods can effectively substitute for in-person visits.</p>
<p><iframe title="Demonstrated Interest" width="800" height="450" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pSa27-OXHKI?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>The Great College Advice Family Handbook notes: &#8220;Many campuses offer excellent virtual visit resources. These may include virtual campus tours available on the website and virtual panels, information sessions, or interviews with faculty, students, staff, and alumni. If visiting is too costly or time-consuming, virtual visits can be a great option.&#8221;</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Live Virtual Sessions:</strong> Attend live virtual information sessions rather than just watching recorded content—live attendance is often tracked and demonstrates real-time commitment. Participate in Q&amp;A panels and ask a thoughtful question to make yourself memorable. Join webinars about specific academic programs, research opportunities, or student life.</li>
<li><strong>Virtual Tours and Interviews:</strong> Complete the official virtual campus tour offered through the admissions website. Schedule a virtual interview when offered—these carry the same weight as in-person interviews. Attend virtual panels with current students, faculty, or alumni in your areas of interest.</li>
<li><strong>Ongoing Digital Engagement:</strong> Follow the admissions office and relevant departments on social media. Engage thoughtfully with the content they post. Sign up for the college&#8217;s mailing list to receive updates and invitations to virtual events.</li>
</ul>
<p>The key is active participation; don&#8217;t just watch passively. Sign up with your real email, turn your camera on when appropriate, and engage meaningfully with the content and people you encounter.</p>
<h2>How Should I Communicate with Admissions Representatives via Email?</h2>
</div>
<div>Email outreach can create valuable touchpoints when done correctly, but poorly executed emails could be viewed as a negative. Quality of outreach far outweighs quantity.</div>
<div></div>
<div>Jamie advises: &#8220;Write to your admissions rep a very short, to-the-point email just so they know that you are interested. That&#8217;s the main point of demonstrated interest: demonstrating actual interest.&#8221;</div>
<div></div>
<div>Best practices for email outreach:</div>
<ul>
<li><strong>Keep It Brief:</strong> Three to four sentences maximum. Admissions officers read hundreds of emails and appreciate conciseness.</li>
<li><strong>Be Specific:</strong> Ask one substantive question that isn&#8217;t easily answered on the website. Reference something specific about the school that connects to your genuine interests. Generic emails that could be sent to any school signal laziness.</li>
<li><strong>Be Professional:</strong> Use a professional email address (ideally firstname, lastname, not a nickname). Include your full name, high school, and graduation year. Proofread carefully—typos and grammatical errors signal carelessness. Use a clear subject line like &#8220;Question About [Specific Program] from Prospective Student.&#8221;</li>
<li><strong>What to Avoid:</strong> Never send form emails to multiple schools—admissions officers can tell. Don&#8217;t ask questions you could easily Google. Avoid excessive follow-ups or requests for information readily available online.</li>
<li><strong>Sample Effective Email Structure:</strong> Introduce yourself in one sentence (name, high school, graduation year). Express specific interest in one program or opportunity. Ask one thoughtful question. Thank them briefly for their time.</li>
</ul>
<h2>How Can I Use High School Visits and College Fairs to Demonstrate Interest?</h2>
<div>When admissions officers come to you—through high school visits or local college fairs—these are prime opportunities to create personal connections without any travel costs.</div>
<div></div>
<div>The Great College Advice Family Handbook advises parents: &#8220;Help plan campus visits, attend information sessions when colleges visit your community, remind your student to visit the college&#8217;s website and request a brochure, take your student to a college fair, and help them figure out when to schedule an interview. Also, many high schools have colleges come to visit. Make sure your student knows when admissions officers are visiting and how to sign up for those visits.&#8221;</div>
<h3>Maximizing High School Visits</h3>
<div>Sign up early because spots are often limited, especially for popular schools. Prepare two or three thoughtful questions in advance that show you&#8217;ve researched the school. Introduce yourself clearly: your name, grade, and intended area of study. Take notes during the presentation. Get the representative&#8217;s business card or contact information. Send a follow-up email within 24-48 hours referencing your conversation.</div>
<div></div>
<h3>Making the Most of College Fairs</h3>
<div>Research which schools you will attend and prioritize your time for the target schools. Prepare specific questions for each school rather than asking generic questions. Engage in genuine conversation rather than just collecting brochures. Fill out contact cards completely and legibly—this adds you to their tracking system. Follow up with representatives from schools you&#8217;re most interested in.</div>
<div></div>
<div>These interactions help admissions officers remember you when they later read your application. A personal connection, even brief, distinguishes you from anonymous applicants.</div>
<h2>What Is the Best Way to Demonstrate Interest Through the Applicant Portal?</h2>
<div>Once you&#8217;ve applied and gained access to a college&#8217;s applicant portal, you have direct opportunities to demonstrate ongoing interest—and many colleges track this engagement meticulously.<br />
Jamie&#8217;s advice on portal engagement is emphatic: &#8220;Once you get into their college portals and they offer you opportunities to explore biochemistry, just say yes to everything. These Zoom meetings, these Facebook groups—everything.&#8221;</div>
<div></div>
<div><strong>Strategic portal engagement:</strong></div>
<ol>
<li><strong>Complete Your Profile:</strong> Fill out every section of your applicant profile thoroughly. Upload any optional materials that strengthen your application. Respond promptly to any requests for additional information.</li>
<li><strong>Attend Everything Relevant:</strong> RSVP &#8220;yes&#8221; to virtual events, webinars, and admitted student programming. Participate in major-specific information sessions. Join official social media groups for prospective or admitted students. Attend virtual office hours if offered.</li>
<li><strong>Stay Consistently Active:</strong> Log in regularly throughout the admissions cycle. Read and engage with the content the admissions office shares. Complete any optional surveys or questionnaires.</li>
<li><strong>Quality Over Quantity:</strong> While clicking through every link matters less than genuine engagement, don&#8217;t just attend events passively. Ask questions. Participate in discussions. Show that you&#8217;re actively evaluating whether the school is right for you.</li>
</ol>
<div>Many schools can see your complete engagement history, so consistent activity over time is more compelling than a burst of activity right before a decision deadline.</div>
<h2>How Do I Demonstrate Interest Through the Admissions Interview?</h2>
<div>When a college offers interviews—whether with admissions staff, alumni, or current students—this is both an evaluation opportunity and one of the most powerful ways to demonstrate genuine interest.</div>
<h3>Before the Interview</h3>
<div>Schedule promptly when invited rather than waiting until the last minute; a quick response signals enthusiasm. Research the school thoroughly so you can discuss specific programs, professors, research opportunities, traditions, or campus features that draw you there. Prepare thoughtful questions that show genuine curiosity—not questions easily answered on the website. Review your own application so you can speak naturally about your activities, interests, and goals.</div>
<h3>During the Interview</h3>
<div></div>
<div>Dress appropriately for the format (business casual for in-person; neat and presentable for virtual). Arrive or log in early. Engage authentically—admissions interviews assess fit and personality, not just qualifications. Show genuine enthusiasm without being over-the-top. Ask your prepared questions and listen attentively to the answers.</div>
<h3>After the Interview</h3>
<div>Send a personalized thank-you note within 24 hours. Reference specific topics from your conversation to show you were engaged. Keep it brief but warm.</div>
<div></div>
<div>The Great College Advice Family Handbook emphasizes this follow-up: &#8220;Encourage them to follow up on a conversation with an email or phone call if they have additional questions. Sometimes the best &#8216;demonstrated interest&#8217; is through conversations that show the student is truly engaged in the process and wants to learn more about the school.&#8221;</div>
<div></div>
<h2>When Should I Start Demonstrating Interest, and What&#8217;s the Ideal Timeline?</h2>
<div>Demonstrated interest isn&#8217;t a last-minute tactic; it&#8217;s most effective when built consistently over time. Admissions offices often have visibility into your entire engagement history, so sustained interest over 12-18 months carries more weight than a flurry of activity right before application deadlines.</div>
<h3>Sophomore Year</h3>
<div>Begin researching schools that match your academic interests and preferences. Attend local college fairs to explore options and practice engaging with admissions representatives. Create a dedicated college email address and sign up for mailing lists. Take virtual tours of schools that interest you.</div>
<h3>Junior Year (Fall)</h3>
<div>Plan campus visits during school breaks: the fall of junior year is ideal timing. Attend information sessions when admissions officers visit your high school. Continue engaging with college emails and social media. Start narrowing your list of target schools.</div>
<h3>Junior Year (Spring/Summer)</h3>
<div>Continue your campus visits to colleges of interest over spring break. Schedule interviews at schools that offer them. Begin building relationships with regional admissions representatives through thoughtful email outreach. Attend any special preview days or prospective student events.</div>
<h3>Senior Year (Fall)</h3>
<div>Finalize any remaining campus visits before application deadlines. Attend information sessions or college fairs for schools still on your list. Apply Early Decision to your top choice if appropriate—this is &#8220;the ultimate demonstration of interest.&#8221;</div>
<h3>Senior Year (Post-Application)</h3>
<div>Engage actively with applicant portals—attend every relevant virtual event. Complete interviews when offered. Send brief updates about significant senior-year achievements. Attend admitted student events and programming if accepted.</div>
<div></div>
<div>Consistency matters. A student who has engaged thoughtfully over 18 months makes a stronger impression than one who suddenly appears highly interested in December of senior year.</div>
<h2 aria-level="2">Get Personalized Guidance for Your College Journey</h2>
<p>Every student&#8217;s path to college is unique. The demonstrated interest strategies that work for one applicant may not be right for another. Knowing which schools actually track engagement, when to visit, and how to make meaningful connections requires expert insight tailored to your specific situation.</p>
<p>At Great College Advice, our team of veteran college admissions counselors has helped thousands of ambitious students navigate the complexities of college admissions. We&#8217;ll help you build a strategic approach to demonstrated interest, identify which schools on your list care most about engagement, and develop an application strategy that maximizes your chances at your dream schools.</p>
<p>Ready to take the next step? <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/contact-us/">Schedule your free consultation today</a> and discover how personalized guidance can make the difference in your college admissions journey.</p><p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/a-lesson-in-demonstrated-interest/">How to Demonstrate Interest: Practical Methods</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
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		<title>Using Food as a Decision Factor in the College Search</title>
		<link>https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/college-food-as-a-decision-factor-in-the-college-search/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jared Hobson]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sat, 02 Sep 2023 21:57:56 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[College Application]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus visit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[College admission]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dining hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[food]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[University of Colorado]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://greatcollegeadvice.com/?p=7914</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Campus food: it's not just a lunch lady wearing a hairnet anymore. Check out what campuses across the country are doing to entice students to eat in the dining halls.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/college-food-as-a-decision-factor-in-the-college-search/">Using Food as a Decision Factor in the College Search</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>One of the most important factors students think about when deciding which colleges to apply to:  where is the best college food? Clearly, this is a very important aspect of your life on campus, and it pays to fully understand your dining options. This post will offer helpful information about how to think about campus catering, and what sorts of questions you should be asking as you investigate the culinary possibilities.</p>
<h2>A campus visit priority: test for the best college food</h2>
<p>Do you plan to eat in a campus dining hall during your college visit? Maybe you should! Students, and parents, are increasingly paying more attention to the food options on college campuses. As families decide where to send their students to college they are no longer just considering a school&#8217;s offering of a particular major, location, or physical beauty. They are also considering how well their student will be fed on campus.</p>
<p>When visiting colleges, take the opportunity to have at least one meal&#8211;maybe two&#8211;while on campus. While most students will be paying for their meals with their campus IDs (which double as debit cards at most schools), you can pay with cash or credit card.  Money is money!</p>
<p>Our favorite meal on campus is dinner, though most families only stick around campus for lunch.  Why is dinner a better meal? Because students tend to be more social and relaxed at dinnertime.  They have finished their classes and labs for the day, students are coming off the sports fields showered and ready for a meal, and many are getting ready for the evening&#8217;s activities (which probably includes studying, but probably other things like music rehearsals, club meetings, and visiting lecturers). Dinner is a good time to observe the social scene.  Lunch, on the other hand, is often all about business.  More students dine alone, staring at their books, checking their schedules, making appointments to meet up with peers, or just downing some food to keep things moving through the afternoon.</p>
<p>And breakfast? Forget about it. Lots of college students simply skip it:  they don&#8217;t get up early.  And if they do have some breakfast, it is usually on a &#8220;grab and go&#8221; basis.</p>
<h2>Campuses compete to offer the best college food</h2>
<p>College officials pay attention to how students perceive campus meal offerings. They know that students (and their parents) are paying a pretty penny for campus dining, and administrators want to be sure that they are offering value for money.  As American palettes and priorities change, campus officials and catering companies want to provide what their customers&#8211;the students&#8211;want. Campuses are making sure those &#8220;foodie&#8221; needs are being met. Colleges are offering nutritionists, accommodating allergies, and focusing on a <a href="https://college.usatoday.com/2011/08/30/green-dining-vegan-and-vegetarian-options-come-to-campuses/">green dining movement</a>. In addition, colleges are supporting students who choose to be vegan, vegetarian, and eat organic. Essentially, colleges are keeping up with what the students want.</p>
<p>Many colleges, including the University of Colorado Boulder&#8217;s <a href="https://housing.colorado.edu/dining/locations-hours/center-community-dining">Center for Community</a>, have moved to a restaurant concept. Today’s students are excited to see fresh and healthy options in the dining halls. While students will tell you that eating healthy is extremely important they also crave variety. To meet those needs some schools are offering up everything from sushi to burritos while still keeping those dining hall staples such as burgers, pizza, and macaroni and cheese on hand.</p>
<h2>Campus dining:  a corporate affair</h2>
<p>Most students and families don&#8217;t realize it, but only a handful of corporate catering companies serve the vast majority of meals on college campuses. Some of the biggest national names in catering serve hundreds of campuses across the country.  These include Sodexo and Aramark.  One smaller company, Bon Appétit, prides itself on serving quite a few of the top universities in the country, as well as many of the most exclusive liberal arts colleges.  The fact is that colleges can actually save money by delegating the responsibility for managing numerous dining outlets to a single company.</p>
<p>So if you have a meal on campus that you either liked or disliked, remember that it is likely that the catering company serving grub on this campus is probably the same company serving students down the road (or three states over).</p>
<p>Just because a campus is served by a corporate catering company doesn&#8217;t mean, however, that the food will be bad. Even when managed by a single company, there are likely to be several different kinds of food outlets on campus (e.g., a sandwich shop, a coffee shop, a late night snack shop,, as well as the full-service traditional dining hall.  Some campuses, as mentioned, might also have restaurant concept outlets or food courts.</p>
<p>Further, larger campuses might also operate franchises of other corporate restaurant companies, such as Starbucks, Taco Bell, or Domino&#8217;s.  In these places, at least, you&#8217;ll get exactly what you expect from these global restaurant conglomerates. And you&#8217;ll be able to pay for the meal with your student ID (thanks, mom and dad!).</p>
<h2>How do you know it&#8217;s the best college food?</h2>
<p>The problem in going to the dining hall on your campus visit is that it can be hard to know whether the meal you are being offered is typical. So you might ask yourself, &#8220;is the food always this mediocre, or am I just hitting it on a bad day?&#8221;  After all, menus change all the time and your meal may or may not be representative.</p>
<p>To find out, ask.  Whether you are loving or hating what you&#8217;re eating for that particular meal, ask some other students questions about their own dining experience. Here are some questions you might ask.</p>
<ul>
<li>What do you think of the food here?</li>
<li>How often do menus rotate?</li>
<li>What sorts of things are offered at every meal?</li>
<li>Are dining administrators responsive to student requests and feedback?</li>
<li>Have you noticed an improvement or a decline in the quality of food services, or has it pretty much stayed the same since you started as a student here?</li>
<li>Where else do you go to get food on campus?</li>
<li>Which cafe or restaurant or cafeteria offers the best food on campus?</li>
</ul>
<h2>Special dietary restrictions</h2>
<p>If you&#8217;re vegan or vegetarian, you might want to gather more information about the dining options.  Similarly, if you suffer from Crohn&#8217;s or celiac disease, you might want to have a conversation with the dining manager, or at the very least talk about your dietary concerns with an admissions officer. Also, if you have dietary restrictions related to your faith (e.g., kosher or halal), ask. Again, because campuses compete to offer satisfying and nutritious meals to their students, the odds are that they are thinking about these special circumstances, too.  When in doubt, ask.</p>
<h2>The best college food:  a summary</h2>
<p>Food is an absolutely critical aspect of the college experience. You&#8217;ll likely want to sample the fare while you&#8217;re on the campus visit.  But do keep in mind that any food establishment meant to serve hundreds if not thousands of customers every day is unable to offer unlimited variety.  No matter where you go to college, you&#8217;re likely to experience the fact that dining on campus can become fairly routine.  After all, meals are provided not just to tickle your tongue but to nourish you through all those papers, exams, labs, and problem sets you have to do. And if you&#8217;re ever in need of a special treat, you can always investigate the off-campus dining options!</p>
<h2>Trying to decide which college campus is right for you?</h2>
<p>The expert college counselors at Great College Advice can help you navigate the college selection process.  Whether food or anything else is your priority in choosing a college, our admissions consultants can help you find the colleges that fit you best.  Give us a call or <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/contact-us/">contact us</a> for a free consultation.</p><p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/college-food-as-a-decision-factor-in-the-college-search/">Using Food as a Decision Factor in the College Search</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
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		<title>Questions to Ask Professors on a College Tour</title>
		<link>https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/connecting-with-professors-during-a-visit-to-a-college-campus/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jared Hobson]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 26 Jul 2023 06:09:38 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[College Admissions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[College Application]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[admissions expert]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Applications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus visit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[College admission]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Colorado]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ivy League]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[New Jersey]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[professor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[visit]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://greatcollegeadvice.com/?p=5645</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>As students and their families organize themselves to visit college campuses, they usually focus on itineraries, on reserving hotel rooms, and on scheduling those campus tours. Only a few,  however, consider direct contact with professors during the visit. Why would a visit with a professor be important?</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/connecting-with-professors-during-a-visit-to-a-college-campus/">Questions to Ask Professors on a College Tour</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>As students and their families organize themselves to visit college campuses, they usually focus on itineraries, reserving hotel rooms and scheduling those campus tours. They may even try to land an admissions interview. But few families are thinking about the questions to ask professors on a college tour.</p>
<p>Sometimes students will also sit in on a class or two, in hopes of getting a feel for what the educational experience will be like. Only a few, however, consider direct contact with professors during the visit.</p>
<h2>Why would a visit with a professor be important on a campus visit?</h2>
<h3>Explore majors</h3>
<p>Many students are still trying to learn about different majors as part of the larger decision about what college to attend. What better way to learn about an unfamiliar major than to talk to an expert? A professor in the department can give a first-hand account of what one is supposed to learn in that department.</p>
<p>Most professors are accustomed to &#8220;selling&#8221; their discipline to undergraduates, and most are willing to take the time to talk with prospective students and efficiently introduce them to the department. To give a concrete example of this, a student of mine was trying to decide whether she was more suited for a business and marketing degree, or whether she was more interested in psychology.</p>
<p>She had taken some introductory courses in both in high school, and she liked both. But she didn&#8217;t quite understand what the difference would be in terms of the courses she would be required to take. The format of those courses, and the career implications of both disciplines. So when she recently toured three campuses, she talked to two professors on each campus&#8211;one in marketing and one in psychology.</p>
<p>Upon her return, she had developed a very clear idea that while she wanted to take a few more courses in psychology, she was absolutely sure that she would be a marketing major in college. This self-awareness came through well-organized discussions with experts. Not only will her applications be stronger for having made this effort, but she is more certain of her academic path in college.</p>
<h3>Establish contact with someone who shares your academic passions</h3>
<p>If a student has a particular interest in (for example) the history of the Cold War and believes that he would like to focus on that period while pursuing a history major, it makes sense to learn more about the individuals in the history department who share that passion. And there is no better way to learn about that professor as a person than by sitting down in his office for a few minutes. By establishing rapport as an applicant, it will be easier to build on that rapport once you matriculate.</p>
<h3>Gather information that will help on your application</h3>
<p>Admissions officers all want to know why you have chosen to apply to their college. If you have taken the initiative to meet with a professor, and you can clearly articulate what makes a particular department stand out, or that you want to pursue advanced study with a particular professor (of Cold War history, for example). Then you can make a strong case for why you are academically suited to this school. Meeting a professor demonstrates that you are doing your homework and that you are really considering the academic fit between your interests and college offerings.</p>
<h2>How do you prepare your questions to ask professors on a college tour?</h2>
<p>If you decide to include a visit with a professor during your campus visits, you need to be prepared. Not only do you need to think about what sort of questions to ask, but you need to think about the practicalities of asking to meet with a professor in the first place.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s really not so hard to connect with professors. In many cases, they are really hoping to teach students who are genuinely interested in the academic subjects to which they have devoted their lives. They want to meet you.</p>
<p>Of course, this is less true at the most highly selective colleges. They are inundated with requests by applicants to meet with them. And don&#8217;t be too surprised of professors at these competitive schools refuse to meet with you. They just don&#8217;t have the time or interest.</p>
<p>But at schools that may be just a bit less competitive, professors are eager to help recruit bright-eyed and bushy-tailed students who want to learn the subject that they teach.</p>
<p>So how should you go about asking professors for a meeting while on a college tour?</p>
<h2>Tips for contacting professors on a college tour</h2>
<h3>Identify the appropriate professor</h3>
<p>For some purposes, you may want to start with the department chair. If you are hoping to talk to a specific person (because you share their academic interests), then go right to that faculty member. You can find full lists of faculty in every department on a college or university website. Make sure you find their bios, their teaching responsibilities, and perhaps even links to the courses they teach. Do your homework before you initiate contact. Remember: faculty members are teachers, and they like students who do their homework.</p>
<h3>Start with an email</h3>
<p>Explain briefly who you are, when you will be on campus, and why you want to meet with the professor. Address the professor formally, and respectfully (i.e., not, &#8220;Hey, professor!&#8221;). Set the tone by demonstrating that you are serious. The note does not have to be dull, but it has to be formal. Sign your name at the bottom and give your email and phone number. Also, your parents should <em>not</em> do this for you. The email must come from you. Professors have even less patience for parents than admissions officers.</p>
<h3>Establish your goals or agenda for the meeting</h3>
<p>Are you trying to learn more about a couple of different majors? Do you want to learn about research opportunities in a particular field or sub-field? Do you want to understand more about this professor&#8217;s research and teaching interests? How well your particular interests can be supported in the department?</p>
<p>Did you read about a particular program or curriculum element that interests you, about which you want to learn more? Don&#8217;t just say &#8220;I&#8217;d really like to meet you.&#8221; Tell the recipient of your email <em>why</em> you want to meet. Refer to specifics in the course catalog, the professor&#8217;s publications, or the departmental website.</p>
<h3>Follow through</h3>
<p>If the professor recommends that you contact someone else, thank her for the guidance, and then immediately turn around and follow that advice. I repeat: do not forget to say &#8220;thank you.&#8221; If the professor does agree to meet you, make sure to write down the appointment (and tell your parent or whoever is accompanying you on the campus visit), and then call and/or email the professor the day before to confirm the appointment.</p>
<h3>Be prepared with questions to ask professors on a college tour</h3>
<p>Come to the interview with three or four pertinent, relevant questions that relate to your agenda. Remember, this is not an admissions interview. You have asked for this appointment to gather information. So make sure you know what your questions are. Come with a pad of paper and a pencil, and be ready to take a few notes. Since you are asking for advice, be prepared to receive it. Furthermore, your notes may come in handy when you have to write that essay, &#8220;Why I want to go to College X.&#8221; You can make some specific references to things your new professor friend taught you.</p>
<h3>Don&#8217;t be afraid</h3>
<p>Just because someone has the letter &#8220;<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_of_Philosophy">Ph.D</a>.&#8221; after his name does not make him particularly scary. Professors are people, too, and they actually like it when students take an interest in them and their work. Most have chosen this profession because they enjoy students and genuinely enjoy dispensing advice. So if a professor agrees to meet with you, it&#8217;s because he wants to, and because he takes his job seriously.</p>
<h3>Don&#8217;t invite your parents</h3>
<p>As you explore a campus&#8211;and the people who inhabit it&#8211;you need to act independently. Professors expect you to act like an adult. Nothing will make you seem more juvenile than having Mom and Dad in tow. Of course, Mom and Dad may like to hear what the professor has to say. But this is your journey of discovery.</p>
<p>This relationship is one that you need to build yourself&#8211;adult to adult. So gently remind your parents that you are perfectly capable of handling this meeting alone and that you will meet them at the front door of the building in thirty minutes. While some parents may be a bit miffed not to be invited to this meeting secretly They&#8217;ll be impressed by your demonstration of your maturity and independence.</p>
<h2>Need Some Help in Developing Questions to Ask Professors on a College Tour?</h2>
<p>The expert college admissions counselors at Great College Advice can help guide you in coming up with your own list of questions to ask professors on a college tour. It&#8217;s not easy to think through what it is you want from your college application. It can be even more daunting to think about sitting down with a professor in his office to ask about your academic interests.</p>
<p>If you feel like you need some professional guidance, give us a call or <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/contact-us/">contact us</a>.  We&#8217;d be happy to talk to you about how we can help you map your college journey.</p>
<p><a title="educational consultant on college campus visits" href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Great College Advice</a></p><p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/connecting-with-professors-during-a-visit-to-a-college-campus/">Questions to Ask Professors on a College Tour</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
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		<title>College Counselor on Campus Tours</title>
		<link>https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/expert-college-advisor-on-touring-universities/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jared Hobson]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 01 Sep 2014 14:18:58 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[College Admissions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus tour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus visit]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://greatcollegeadvice.com/?p=14529</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Great College Advice explains what to expect from campus tours and universities large and small.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/expert-college-advisor-on-touring-universities/">College Counselor on Campus Tours</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p class="wp-block-paragraph"><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a> gives some good advice on touring universities from the beautiful campus of the <a href="https://www.washington.edu">University of Washington</a>. At large colleges, the tours are more rigid and scripted. At smaller institutions, such as the nearby <a href="https://www.pugetsound.edu">University of Puget Sound</a>, tours tend to be more flexible and personalized. Either way, you should give some thought to what you want to learn before you come.</p>




<p><iframe title="Big College vs. Small College: Campus Tours" width="800" height="450" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/54kS_lzqyFs?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><br />TRANSCRIPT:</h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Tour at University Of Washington</h3>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">So today I&#8217;m on the campus of the University of Washington in Seattle. Beautiful, comprehensive university, 29,000 undergraduates, fantastically beautiful campus, trees. Of course it&#8217;s January, so they&#8217;re not in bloom, but I&#8217;m sure in the springtime it&#8217;s absolutely gorgeous here. I want to talk a minute about taking tours at large schools versus small schools. Yesterday, I was at the University of Puget Sound, which has about 2,300 students, and here there are 29,000 students. And it&#8217;s such a different experience going on a tour here.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">There are probably 30 or 40 people on the tour today. And it is very scripted. The tour guide was terrific; she was very, very personable and very well, very knowledgeable about the school. But it was clear that we had a series of stops. And every place she would talk about specific things. So in one place, in fact it was just right over here, she was talking about academics, and she talked about majors. And then in other places, she pointed out housing options and dining options. And then the next stop was something about student clubs, and how to participate in student life here.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Tour At University of Puget Sound</h3>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The contrast was that yesterday when we visited the University of Puget Sound, really there were only two of us on the tour, and there were two tour guides, and it was very, very, very, very personal. So the two student tour guides really wanted to know about us and what we were interested in learning about, and then they kind of tailored the tour to whatever we wanted to do. And there were a couple of places that we passed by a building, and it looked kind of interesting, so we just went in, right? We didn&#8217;t have to take the whole thing. We didn&#8217;t have 40 people on the tour.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">There is really no way that your individual interest can dictate what you&#8217;re going to learn on the tour. You&#8217;re going to learn what the tour guide has been told to tell you, and at this particular stop, at this particular place, and about these particular topics. Again, not really one is better than the other, but it helps to highlight how important it is that no matter what kind of school you go to, that the tour is only a small part of what you can and should learn about the university that you want to attend.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Ask Questions!</h3>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">So if there are things you want to know about the campus that are not on the tour, then it&#8217;s your responsibility to learn that, to find out if there are other resources on campus, other people, other offices that you need to visit, or if you need to be looking more on the web for certain kinds of details or things that you want to know about the opportunities that you are looking for.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The tour is helpful, but it is certainly not the only thing you should do when you&#8217;re on a campus. And that is very true, probably the most true, on these large campuses where the tours are very scripted, very rigid, and perhaps less helpful because they&#8217;re just, they can&#8217;t be very personal. It&#8217;s the law of numbers. So again, think about what it is you want to learn about the campus before you even come, so that you can have the most productive visit possible.<br /> <br /><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a></p><p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/expert-college-advisor-on-touring-universities/">College Counselor on Campus Tours</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
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		<title>The Philosophy Behind Jesuit Schools</title>
		<link>https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/the-philosophy-behind-jesuit-schools/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jared Hobson]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 06 Aug 2014 14:04:13 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[College Profile]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus visit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jesuit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Seattle University]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://greatcollegeadvice.com/?p=14480</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>You don't need to be Christian -- or religious at all -- to attend a Jesuit school. Mark explains the expectations and requirements of these great colleges.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/the-philosophy-behind-jesuit-schools/">The Philosophy Behind Jesuit Schools</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><iframe title="The Philosophy Behind Jesuit Schools Explained" width="800" height="450" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/j1nf70hpQs8?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Transcript:</h2>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">So today I’m on the campus of Seattle University in Seattle, Washington, of course, and it is one of 28 Jesuit universities in the United States. Now Jesuit refers to the Society of Jesus which was founded by Saint Ignatius of Loyola way back in the olden days to, as part of the Catholic Church, to educate people. So our current Pope Francis is a Jesuit, and again the idea of these Catholic schools is to educate people.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Athletics and Academics</h3>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">One of the hallmarks of their education is mind, body and spirit. So you are educating not only your mind, but they also are very big into athletics. Most of the Jesuits are very big into athletics. Seattle University just went back to Division One athletics. Almost all of them are big basketball schools, like <a href="https://www.gonzaga.edu">Gonzaga</a> and <a href="https://www.georgetown.edu">Georgetown University</a>. And then spiritually they also are promoting the idea that part of being an educated person is to give back, to participate in community life. And community can mean a lot of different things. It can mean your local community.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">It can mean the world at large. So the Jesuits really do have this focus not only on really great academics. They almost always have business schools, they almost always have engineering schools, this one has a law school. So they are very academically focused. But at the same time again they have athletics, the body, and they are talking about the spirit.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Jesuit Versus Not Jesuit</h3>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Now, what is different about the Jesuit schools from say one of the other schools down the street here, Seattle Pacific, is that there is no requirement that the students and the faculty and the community have a particular kind of faith, or that they even be Christian, much less Catholic. So it is very possible for a student who is either a non-believer or has some other faith, to fit into a Jesuit community. What is required really from the student is to want to have a conversation about humanity’s role in the community, in the world at large. Why are we here? So students are required at Jesuit schools to take a combination of philosophy and theology.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">You can see behind me here the chapel here this is an architectural gem. It’s a beautiful chapel on the inside, very modern, very interesting. Very stark in comparison to many Catholic churches, gorgeous. But students are required to take some sort of courses, a couple of courses—it depends on which school—but they are required to take some course in religion or philosophy. Now, they don’t have to take Catholicism. They don’t have to take anything about theology, Christian theology. Also, they can take Buddhism.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">They can take religious ethics. They can take philosophy. Again, it’s not so much about believing in a particular thing except believing that being educated also gives us a responsibility to our world. So the Jesuit schools like Seattle University, they are all over. Georgetown is perhaps the most famous. <a href="https://www.marquette.edu">Marquette</a>, Gonzaga, the Loyolas in <a href="https://www.luc.edu">Chicago</a> and <a href="https://www.loyola.edu">Baltimore</a>. Great universities and interesting heritage with religion that you probably want to consider as you are deciding which college to attend.<br /> <br /><br /><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a></p>

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/the-philosophy-behind-jesuit-schools/">The Philosophy Behind Jesuit Schools</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
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		<title>Tips for What to Do After a College Visit</title>
		<link>https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/three-things-to-do-after-you-visit-a-college/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jared Hobson]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 25 Mar 2013 16:31:14 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[College Application]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus visit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[College Visits]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://greatcollegeadvice.com/?p=13521</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Coming back from a college visit? Don't forget these three important "to-do" items once you get home.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/three-things-to-do-after-you-visit-a-college/">Tips for What to Do After a College Visit</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Are you spending your spring break visiting colleges? Don&#8217;t forget that once the visits are done there is still plenty to do when you get home.<br />When it comes time to filling out college applications next fall you will thank yourself for keeping clear and accurate records of your visit. Come August it may be hard to remember which library and rec center went with which school. It may also be tough to remember who you met with while you were on campus. Why is this important? Well, many colleges ask questions in their application supplement about your visit. Do yourself a favor now and make sure you don&#8217;t forget any important details when it comes to filling out that section.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Here are three things you should do after a college visit:</h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">1. Jot down notes</h3>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">After each visit you should write down a few notes about the college. These notes will help to trigger your memory. These might include: the dates you visited, what you liked or disliked, what you did while you were on campus, questions you still have for the school, etc.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">2. Record names of the people you met with during the visit</h3>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Make sure to write down the names of the people that you interacted with during your campus visit. These names might include: coaches, deans, professors, students, or admissions officers. You may want to refer to these people later on during the application or interview process especially if they influenced your decision to apply.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">3. Follow up</h3>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Make sure to follow up on any loose ends after your visit. Did you interview while you were there? Make sure to follow up by writing a thank you note. Did you have lingering questions? Follow up with an email or phone call. Unsure if you are on their mailing list? Follow up by giving them your contact information and requesting to be added to their distribution list.<br />Have a great college visit!<br /> </p>

<p><a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/">Great College Advice</a></p><p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/three-things-to-do-after-you-visit-a-college/">Tips for What to Do After a College Visit</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
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		<title>When is best time to visit a college campus</title>
		<link>https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/when-is-best-time-to-visit-a-college-campus/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jared Hobson]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 25 Feb 2013 17:41:14 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[College Application]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[admissions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus tour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[campus visit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cold]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[educational consultant]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Lawrence University]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[university]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[visit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[winter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wisconsin]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://greatcollegeadvice.com/?p=13383</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Mark explains why the dead of winter can be absolutely the best time to see a school as students experience it.  And you get a better idea of how students interact--and cope with the weather.  Winter can be fun!</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/when-is-best-time-to-visit-a-college-campus/">When is best time to visit a college campus</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>As an independent college consultant, I&#8217;m asked all the time my opinion on the best time to <a title="expert in college admissions on planning a college visit in the winter" href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/choosing-the-right-college-planning-the-campus-visit/">visit a college campus</a>. My usual answer is, &#8220;Whenever you can.&#8221; There are pros and cons to visiting a campus at every time of year. But some of my favorite visits have been in the middle of the winter&#8211;especially on campuses where the weather can be quite cold. On a recent visit to <a title="independent educational consultant on visiting college campuses" href="https://lawrence.edu">Lawrence University </a>in Appleton, Wisconsin, I took a few moments to explain why wintertime can be the best time to visit a university.</p>
<p><iframe title="Why Major in Music? Because It Prepares You for Any Career" width="800" height="450" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xPCqzbj-AZk?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h2>***************<br />
Transcript</h2>
<p>I’m here now on the campus of Lawrence University up in Appleton, Wisconsin. You know a lot of people ask me, “What is the best time to visit a college campus? Is it summer time? Is it spring break, fall break?” Actually, I think probably the best time to visit Appleton, Wisconsin is in the winter because it’s really cold. And it will give you a better sense of what the campus life is really like while students are here on the campus and in session.</p>
<p>Despite the cold this is a really, really vibrant, active place. You see students walking across campus. They’re not afraid of the cold; they’re dressed for the cold. Okay, maybe a few of them are wearing, you know, a little bit too skimpy outfits, they’re parents might be, you know, a little bit upset. But they all deal with the weather.<br />
So, one of the best times to come visit a college campus is when students are in session, and wintertime can be great. Especially in these cold places, you’ll get a better sense of what really happens here.</p>
<p>Mark Montgomery<br />
<a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/">Expert Educational Consultant</a></p><p>The post <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com/blog/when-is-best-time-to-visit-a-college-campus/">When is best time to visit a college campus</a> first appeared on <a href="https://greatcollegeadvice.com">Great College Advice</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
					
		
		
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