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by Dr. Andrea Malkin Brenner | Estimated reading time: 7 minutes

Spending time on a campus is the best way to determine whether a particular college is a good fit, but it’s also challenging to make such a significant decision by visiting for only a few hours. These insider tips will enable you and your student to get the most out of exploring different colleges while encouraging parents families to step back and college-bound students to step up as they embrace the process.

Tip 1: Visit Multiple Colleges to Narrow Down Best Fit

Visiting as many colleges as time, money and effort allow will help your student understand the application process, compare campus cultures, and create, narrow, or expand their college list. The process will also help them envision the next step of their life as an independent adult. Visiting multiple campuses and learning what differentiates schools may help your student feel motivated to improve their grades, engage in high school activities, connect with teachers, and feel inspired to work on their college applications.

It’s a great idea to visit local colleges first to learn about the type of campus your student prefers before spending money on travel. Another budget-friendly tip is to tour colleges in areas you’re already visiting when your family travels. Consider visiting campuses that are different from each other (large vs. small; urban vs. rural). Use these experiences to help your student identify and narrow down their preferences and choose the next set of colleges to explore. 

Tip 2: Carefully Consider When (and How) To Schedule Your Visits

Visiting campuses when those colleges are in session can offer a more authentic campus experience. Make sure to check the academic calendar of the colleges before deciding when to visit. It’s also important to think about the time of day you’ll be visiting; campuses tend to be calm in the mornings and lively in the afternoons. Make sure you give yourself time to explore the college with your student beyond the information session and tour. Perhaps plan your visit when a campus sporting event, exhibit, or performance is scheduled. 

Once you decide when you’ll be visiting a particular college, have your student register as soon as possible through the admissions office webpage, as there may be limited availability. Ideally, attend the information session before the tour to get a better introduction to the campus. You can also ask about a waitlist if the tours are filled. Your student can call or email to inquire about additional opportunities such as sitting in on a class, meeting with an admissions counselor, interviewing, or shadowing a current student.

Tip 3: Don’t Miss the Information Sessions

Information sessions are 30–60 minute presentations where an admissions counselor will introduce families to the college. It’s a great idea to arrive early to find parking, have your student take the lead when you arrive: sign in, gather brochures and publications and talk to student ambassadors and staff. 

During the session, you and your student should take photos of the presented slides. Make sure to note what stands out about each college including the student body demographics, core curriculum/required courses, first-year experience programming, living/learning community opportunities, college traditions, and any upcoming initiatives and construction. It’s also a great idea to write down words you hear that describe the characteristics of current students and the mission/values of the college. These will be useful in your student’s school-specific essays. Following the information session, make sure your student takes the presenter’s business card to send a thank you email.

Tip 4: Take the Campus Tours

College tours of 60-90 minutes typically run rain or shine, so make sure to be prepared for all types of weather. Visitors are usually divided into groups and assigned or asked to select a student tour guide. If possible, encourage your student to select a tour guide who is an engaging speaker or who shares their academic or extracurricular  interests. You might even consider having family members take separate tours to hear different student perspectives.

Locate yourself near the front of the tour, as tour guides often have informal conversations with visitors while walking. But remember to let your student take the lead in asking questions and chatting with the tour guide. The majority of college tours include a stop at the main student buildings including the student union, the library, a classroom, a residence hall room, a sports complex or fitness center, and a dining facility. Among other key points, you’ll probably hear your tour guide speak about the types of transportation on and around campus, student clubs and organizations, campus traditions, and student support services.

Most importantly, remember that as employees of the admissions office, student tour guides use positive language to describe the college; it isn’t their role to discuss the school’s weaknesses. If your student doesn't fully "click" with the tour guide, encourage your student not to let that lack of connection cloud their judgment of the campus visit. Remind them that the tour guide does not represent every student on campus!

Tip 5: Make Time to Explore Each Campus on Your Own

Many families leave campus immediately after their information session and tour, missing a very important part of the campus experience. Plan to revisit buildings of interest to your student, explore others that were not covered on the tour, and eat in a campus dining facility or cafe. You can also explore offices and programs that match your student’s interests including academic departments, labs, makerspaces, practice rooms, studios, and designated spaces for clubs, organizations, and affinity groups. 

In advance of your visit, encourage your student to reach out to the regional admissions counselor at the college to arrange to sit in on a class. Your student can also schedule a meeting with support offices (disability services, financial aid, student athlete services, counseling, academic support, etc.) or with departments supporting specific student groups when they visit.

Tip 6: Observe and Talk to Current Students 

Observe the current students you pass on campus. Notice if they are talking with one another, staring at their phones, studying alone or in groups, wearing school swag, or demonstrating self-expression in their presentation or actions. If you know any students at the school you are touring, arrange to meet them. Let them know your interests so they can show you specific areas of campus or introduce you to their friends. 

If you don’t know any students on a particular campus, make an effort to chat with students who are working in academic departments that interest your student, those advertising campus events, or students in line at a dining hall or campus bookstore. Some questions you might consider asking current students include: What surprised you about this college? What are your favorite campus traditions? How can students get to know the faculty? Is there anything you would like to change about this school?

Tip 7: Check out the Local Community

It’s important that your student will feel welcomed and comfortable in their new local community outside of campus. You may want to explore whether your student’s needs will be met by local shopping, medical professionals, grocery stores, restaurants, coffee shops, and pharmacies. You can ask about local internships and employment for college students in the area and check out where upperclass students live if/when they move off campus.

Consider safety and ease of the local community, including how your student would travel to off-campus locations (public transportation, rideshare, car, walking, etc.). Finally, make time to check out what’s important to your student including bike trails, neighborhoods with cultural traditions, houses of worship, support groups, fitness classes, community organizations, and off-campus health providers if necessary (many colleges and universities provide on-campus health, wellness, and counseling services at no additional cost to students).

Tip 8: A Special Note for Parents and Families

Your role as a parent or family member is an important one when visiting campuses with your student. First, it’s important to keep your student’s personality, interests, and needs in mind throughout your visits. Try to view each campus through their lens. Second, don’t forget that college visits are an opportunity for your student to take the lead in making decisions about their future. Following a campus visit, ask them to list what’s unique about each college, what they found surprising, which student activities interest them, if the academics feel like a good fit, and what types of campus support they might use.

Finally, remember that although you may be heavily invested in touring colleges with your student, the search process is ultimately your student’s journey, and it’s important that they come to their own conclusions once they have visited. Your comments about a campus will most likely influence their opinions about that college. Therefore, after time spent at an information session, tour, and an opportunity to explore more of the campus and the local community, try to stay quiet. Instead, encourage your college-bound student to share their impressions with you before sharing yours with them.

Dr. Andrea Malkin Brenner is the creator of the Talking College™ card decks and co-author of How to College: What to Know Before You Go (and When You’re There). She brings 25 years of experience as a college professor and university administrator to her presentations with college audiences. See Dr. Brenner’s website for her articles, resources, podcast recordings, and upcoming talks and webinars.