Planning University and College Tours in 2023
Every fall I meet with students to establish their plan of action for the course of their 10th and 11th grade years. This meeting includes conversations about course selection, when and what standardized test to take, and what schools should they start to view.
I spend hours planning tour routes based on student lists and have come up with a few ideas of how to make your tour process much more manageable and accessible so you don’t get boxed out during the busy times when everyone else is scheduling their campus visits.
Tips on College Tours for High School Students
Vet your list. Before you embark on any travel, you must have done the homework to narrow your list. It is not feasible to see 20 schools in a week, so think about the 7-10 that you want to cover and what is essential in that group. Spending an hour in a campus tour does not offer you the fit or feel so committing 4+ hours to grab a coffee, meet with a friend who attends the school, take a tour, sit in on an information session, schedule an interview, and engage with a professor will make the experience much more valuable.
Plan ahead. If you are scheduling tours for MLK, President’s Day, and your spring break, you will want to schedule them between Thanksgiving and the New Year. Once you wait until January, tours book up and you will be unable to get the spot, date, and time to tour.
Make a route that is time-efficient and makes financial sense. If you are from the northeast and you are looking at schools from the mid-Atlantic to New England be sure to tour the states least impacted by winter weather in January and February and save your spring break trip for a northern route. If you are touring schools in the south, they tend to be further apart so consider flying into one city, renting a car, connecting the dots on how you can efficiently see the schools, and then flying out of your ending city. This can get expensive, so finding the best route that is cost-effective, packing only carry-on, and researching flights on Spirit, Avelo, Silver, Frontier, and Southwest can really help trim costs.
There are no tours on Sundays. Remember colleges and universities do not offer tours on Sunday and typically their last tour on the weekend is 1PM on Saturday or earlier if there is a big sporting event. Plan ahead to use days off and weekdays. Stack nearby schools to see two in one day where you take the first tour and info session at one and the last tour and info session at another to help you get through your list. However, if you find yourself visiting a college campus on a Sunday, utilize their apps and virtual tours online to help guide you around their facilities, it can at least be useful if you cannot take a live tour.
Dress appropriately. Touring can require a lot of walking so look pulled together in a business casual outfit that can include a polo shirt, button down, sweater, breathable…not skin tight… pants, and comfortable shoes. I recently attended a conference and you can see how I am dressed in bright, fun professional clothing, but with walking 7+ miles daily, I was so thankful for those comfy sneakers on my feet!
Talk to everyone. Don’t be afraid to speak to everyone you meet. Every time I tour a campus, I engage with the students who are working at check-in desks, standing in line for coffee, and hanging in the waiting room. There, you can learn about their experience, what classes they have enjoyed, their general happiness factor, and the “feeling” that comes with being on campus. College is what you make of it, so why not get started by understanding what you are potentially signing up for by speaking with the student body?
Be courteous. Kindness goes a long way, those who are rude or abrupt are remembered quickly. Be polite, calm, and as generous as possible. Sometimes there are delays, sometimes students or admissions officers are running behind, and sometimes your specific question will not be answered by a 19-year-old tour guide, just be patient and respectful as it helps diffuse any tension or worry for all of the players who are there to help you learn more about the institution.
Take notes. Keeping a log in your notes app with pictures, video, and comments about your time on campus can make it so much easier to reflect on your experience, especially when writing the “why us” essays that may not be for another year.
Write thank you notes. Thanking your tour guide, admissions speaker, interviewer, and professor that you engaged within a campus community goes a long way. It demonstrates respect for their time, your feeling about the campus, and can open the door to future conversation should you have a need for clarifying questions.
If you would like to check out recaps of the schools I have visited, take a look at College Flight Path’s Instagram @collegeflightpath for details about schools, programs, and pictures of what campuses look like. You never know, you may see something you like and it too could wind up on your list. Of course, for all of your college needs feel free to reach out to College Flight Path!
