One of the most important parts of choosing a college is actually visiting the college’s campus. Most students have it in their mind that they have to send out dozens of applications and let a college pick them. However, you have an equal weight of both control and responsibility. What happens if you get accepted to a school and realize that you don’t like the campus? What happens if you don’t like the classrooms or the facilities? What happens if you simply have a bad feeling? It is important, maybe even critical, that you visit the college and see things with your own eyes.
Visit the Facilities Where You Want to Study
Indeed, most colleges will have specific buildings or wings for different fields of study. For instance, if you are studying political science, there will be number of classrooms and facilities devoted to just this program. If you are interested in science, you want to check out the laboratory. It is important that you check out the areas where you would be spending the most time as a student.
Ask Lots of Questions
It doesn’t matter if you are taking OU’s MBA no GMAT program, or if you are getting your degree in medicine, you want to ask a lot of questions when you attend your college tour. There is a good chance that you will be checking out the college with an advisor or a designated tour guide. This person will have a lot of knowledge about the school you are visiting. This is one of the benefits of taking the tour – you can ask a lot of questions in person.
Check Out the Dorms
Of course, if you plan on living in the dorms, you want to check out the living facilities. Not only do you want to see individual dorm rooms, you also want to check out common areas, the kitchen, the bathroom and more. It is important that you get a sense of where things are and if you are actually comfortable there. After seeing the dorms in person, you may not be entirely comfortable with a shared bathroom. If that is the case, you may want take note of that and consider the costs of private housing in your budget.
Spend Some Quality Time Taking It All In
When you go on a college tour, you want to spend some of the time just relaxing and letting things soak in. If you are only touring and rushing from one place to another, then you aren’t giving yourself the chance to let the experience soak in. Ideally, you really want to live the experience. You may even want to find a bench and just sit down. This will be a helpful exercise when you tour a college.
Don’t Let the Social Life Overshadow Priorities
On top of everything, you don’t want to let social life get in the way of your tour. Sure, there may be other students there asking if you want to spend time, but it important that you continue on with your tour and stay focused on the task at hand.
