Essential Questions for College Visits

Visiting colleges can be an exciting time. You may have your heart set on one place of learning only to do a complete 180 once you step foot on campus. Or, you may be riding high after the tour, but when you do further research online, you realize the visit left you with many questions that were not answered.

To help you make your college decisions and make sure no stone was left unturned, we created a list of categories and questions to guide you on your visits.

Meals

• Is a meal plan mandatory all four years, or can you get dining dollar options?
• If allergies or dietary restrictions are a concern, what options does the school provide? Are ingredients listed on all items? Is there an opportunity to meet with dining services to check for accommodations?
• Is the cost of food calculated per weight or item, or do you get unlimited meals per sitting?
• Do the dorms have kitchens to create your own meals?

Dorms

• Are single rooms an option for freshmen?
• How many students can room together?
• Does the school have suites? How are they configured?
• Is there special interest housing?
• How are roommates chosen freshman year?
• What are the pros/cons of different dorms? Which dorm is the guide’s favorite/least favorite and why? *Note: The reasoning behind a guide’s least favorite dorm may be the reason you would actually prefer that dorm!
• Are the RAs focused on creating activities to help floormates bond?

Academics

• How many students are in your major?
• What is the class size?
• Is the class taught by professors or TAs?
• If the class size is large, does the school provide weekly opportunities for lessons in smaller cohorts to ensure you understand the material?
• What internship opportunities are available and how involved are the professors (or college services) in helping you obtain these opportunities?
• Is it possible to study abroad? Will studying abroad hinder your graduation timetable?
• Will studying abroad come at an additional cost, or do your semester fees transfer?

Campus Life

• What percentage of the student body participates in Greek life?
• Do most students stay on campus on the weekends or do they go home?
• What is the tour guide’s favorite campus activities?
• What special traditions does the school have?
• Does the college have consistent weekend activities for students? What were some of the most recent?
• Are you allowed to have a car on campus? If not, does the school provide transportation to nearby attractions or a nearby town?
• What is the tour guide’s favorite and least favorite thing about the school/campus? You will be surprised about how honest many of the guides are!

Sort through the above questions and create a cheat sheet for your visits. While all questions may not apply to your interests, they provide a good framework to give you a feel of each institution. After all, your college or university will be your main home for the next four years. You want to make sure it’s a good fit!