Visiting the campuses of the colleges you are applying to is one of the most important ways to determine if the college could be the right fit for you. As one of our students Emmett Turner, class of 2018 Saline High School, Michigan, says, “I wanted to give every school a full and fair inspection from me and I wanted to see how I would fit in on campus. I was planning on spending my next four years there so I wanted to be sure I liked it.”
From our experience, there are certain colleges where the college admissions officers will generally look favorably on applicants who have “demonstrated interest” in the school. They do have the ability to track your interest or they will ask you in the application process if you visited the campus. Some of the things that they track, other than your visits, is your email contact with the college admissions representative, your presence at information sessions at the college, and your conversations with admission reps at college fairs or at a visit to your school.
On the flip side, it is also important to contact a college if you need information. There is no need to inundate their Office of Admission with an overwhelming interest; a weekly phone call or email or card may be more harmful than helpful. While demonstrated interest is important, coming across as too demanding or annoying will not help your chances in any way. If you are planning a visit, please make sure you do your homework beforehand so that you can ask some relevant questions that can’t be answered on the internet. We always suggest that you let your admission counselor know you are coming and to make it an official visit. If they will not be there, they will let you know who else you can meet.
Can’t get to visit all of the colleges on your list? I remember when we set up our college visit itinerary with our son that some colleges just did not fit into the schedule even though they were high on the list. So what should you do? The first thing to do is to use the internet to research the school, dig deep into what they offer, and read about the students that attend the college. Try to find similarities between your life/interests and the students and programs that the school offers to have a better understanding of the school. Next you should find out who your admissions counselor is for the school and reach out to them either with a phone call or an email. You can also find out if the representative is coming to your school or an event near your school in the future. If so, try to attend such events in your area so that you can meet them in person, make an impression, and have your questions answered. Building connections with your counselor is important and you can do this easily.
College tours and connections made with their admissions teams are so valuable, but only when you know how to get the most out of them. We at Parros want to help make sure you take advantage of all that’s available to you through these tours and get you one step closer toward the perfect school for you. For more crucial information, schedule a consultation with us today.
