“MY POINT IS, DON’T THINK YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW.” -LEE NORWOOD
Junior year is busy. Your student is preparing for the SAT or ACT, maximizing junior year GPA, participating in extracurricular activities, learning to drive, and having a social life. All super important teen things. Why not wait until summer to visit colleges? Unfortunately, campus visits in the summer are missing one key element: students. It is ideal to visit during the school year because your teen can get realistic first hand exposure to the campus atmosphere (e.g., Greek life, school spirit, academic climate, classroom experience, sports, or performing arts activities) and a real vibe of the place. Also, check out the restaurants, shopping, and the fringe around the school. How do you know where to go? Our friends at College Scoops have the inside info, curated by students and families just like yours. We even have a special discount code www.collegescoops.com ANNAPCC-z21.
In the “ghost-town” weeks of July, you can’t attend a basketball game, musical production, or freshman seminar. Teens need to measure potential “fit” by actually observing students in classes, eateries, bookstores, or hanging out on the green. Do students wear Birkenstocks or Lilly P. fashions? How diverse is the student body? Are students focused on academics, campus activities, urban entertainment, sports, partying, activism, business careers, or tech startups? Is the atmosphere eclectic, enthusiastic, isolated, or dead? Can your teen say, “I can picture myself here!” (or not?).
Don’t forget the weather! Upstate New York is lovely in summer, but what if your student is seasonal affective, and would become depressed during four months of subfreezing temperatures, grey skies, snow, and ice? Everyone loves Boston in the Fall! But a winter visit may change your mind completely about the location of the university. And Florida? If your daughter is worried about constant humidity, this southern zone may not be for her.
“WE DON’T APPLY UNTIL SENIOR YEAR, WHY THE RUSH TO VISIT NOW?”
There is so much to do to prepare to apply to college. It is quite a bit of work. Even if you do not have to officially decide until May of senior year, you should KNOW you want to attend the schools on your list because you have seen the real-life campuses. Most aha moments happen after the visit. Did the college meet your expectations? Was it as “perfect” as you thought since your visit with the admissions officer or after seeing the marketing videos? Once you get your boots on the ground, some schools will be crossed off immediately: in fact, he or she may dislike a campus setting so much vs. its reputation that he or she may not even want to get out of the car. This is a REAL THING- don’t wait until October of senior year. And don’t force them to get out if they have been enthusiastic about other schools on the list.