n integral—perhaps even the most important—part of researching a college institution is the on-campus visit. A website can only give you so much, and after a while they all seem to be saying the same thing: “holistic admissions process”, “thriving social scene”, “the perfect environment for work and play.” Some of these things may be true; some of them are probably not. One person’s opinion of a perfect environment may be an isolated mountain top with no cell phone reception in a tiny village ravaged by frequent bear attacks. Imagine the shock on the plucky New Yorker’s face when they leave the concrete jungle to discover their “perfect environment” on September 1st. There are a lot of things to be done during an on campus visit that can help in the decision to apply.
Take in the surroundings.
It’s easy to tell from the website if the college is situated in an urban or rural location, but there’s a lot to be said for the vibe you get as you walk around. Do people look happy? Are there any movie theaters nearby? If a zombie apocalypse occurred, would you be able to hold up and survive the fallout in one of these buildings? I must have visited around 15 campuses as a college applicant, and didn’t apply to six purely because the atmosphere didn’t seem right to me—things like being too quiet, or too cold, or too urban. There’s a lot we can learn from Goldilocks.
Step off the beaten path.
Ever wonder why the tour guide only shows you 4 blocks of campus and doesn’t adequately explain the loud, obnoxious construction noises coming from just behind that building? They are programmed to show you only the very best the college has to offer. Once they’ve made the sales pitch, try taking a self-guided tour of the rest of town. We’re so blinded by academics, financial aid and admissions statistics that we forget this place will be home for the next 4 years. College websites don’t always tell us about where we can find the nearest Laundromat. There’s so much more to college life than academics (gasp!) so it’s a great idea to check out whether or not the college is a good place to live, as well as to study.
Talk to people!
It’s likely that the person you’re exchanging emails with has been strictly directed by the college to tell you only good things about the institution. You may find that students you politely stop in the street have a different opinion of certain things. I’m not suggesting that admissions counselors, tour guides and programmed students aren’t a valuable source of information; they are and you should absolutely take advantage of them. But they will inevitably try to place a positive spin on things, which isn’t always helpful.
Do they have coffee here?
Okay, so this was a kind of an irrational criterion of mine when applying to college. I wanted to go to a place that had lots of small, diverse coffee places where I could envision myself studying whilst under the influence of the bean. Your irrational criterion might not be coffee, but if you have a weird yet totally significant notion of what you want from a college campus, just go with it. To quote Jesse Eisenberg in Zombieland: “enjoy the little things.”
