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College Visit Questions
return to Walther's Virtual Guidance Office
Contact: Gail Grebasch, Guidance Counselor
SUGGESTED QUESTlONS FOR COLLEGE VISITS
The college visit is one of the most important Items in the college selection process. There is no substitute for a personal visit to the campus. This is the only way to really assess the atmosphere of the college and determine whether or not it is the right school for you.
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Try to visit campus when school is in session and plan to do at least three separate things:
- schedule a visit with an admissions counselor
- tour the campus
- visit the Placement Oflice Also, plan to talk with many students- don't let the tour guide be your only source of information.
Take notes of your impressions and start a file for each college.
The questions listed below offer some suggestions for issues to consider during your visit.
- Physical facililties
A. Geographical location
B. Proximity to other colleges or attractive cultural opportunities
C. Size of the school
D. Size of the freshman class
E. Residence halls
1 Location of classes and dining room to residence halls
2. Are they coed? If so, how are they organized (by floor, by suite, by room)?
3. Are there special residence hails available (single sex, quiet floors, etc.)?
4. Are there enforced quiet hours? What are the other rules?
5. Where do freshmen tend to live? Are they grouped together within residence halls or are they randomly distributed?
6. Are there sufficient rooms for all interested students? (some sophomores and juniors may find themselves without rooms on campus.)
7. Are most rooms singles, doubles, triples, or suites?
8. Is there a variety of food of plans available?
F. Please give me a copy of your campus crime report.
- Academics
A. How is the school calendar organized? (semester, trimester, 4-1-4)
1. Are summer programs available or required?
2. Is there a special winter or January program?
3. How many courses do students usually take during each term?
B. Alternative study programs
1. Are there exchange programs with other colleges for a term or for a year?
2. Are foreign study programs available?
3. Is Pass-Fail a grading option?
C. Academic policies (These are usually found in the school catalog)
1. How many courses are needed to graduate?
2. How soon does a student have to declare a major7
3. Are there distribution requirements in different subject areas?
4. Are then any interdisciplinary majors available?
5. What unusual undergraduate majors are available?
6. Am I eligible for the honors program?
D. Academic issues
1. What are class sizes? (Don't use averages.) What differences exist between introductory and advanced classes in terms of size?
2. Are tutors available?
3. What departments are particularly distinguished?
4. Are large classes broken down into discussion sections? Who leads these discussion
sections?
5. Do the "academic stars" of the faculty teach undergraduates?
6. How competitive is the department in which I am interested?
7. Can I enter my major immediately, or do I have to wait one or two years? Am I guaranteed
entrance to my major field?
E. Attrition rate
1. For freshmen?
2. By the end of the senior year? (also check ncaa.org for this info)
F. Placement Office
1. Is there an active placement service here?
2. What is the placenent percentage for students in my major?
3. Will the Placement Office help me find an internship during school?
G. Student Health Center
1. Are good hospital or clinic facilities available?
2. Is there a strong counseling service?
- Extracurricular Facilities
A. Computers
1. What specialized computers and software are available?
2. Is there high-speed access to the Internet from all dorm rooms?
3. During wbich hours are the on-campus computer labs open?
B. Libraries
1. How extensive are the hours?
2. Do many students use the library to study7
C. Laboratories
1. Are there foreign language labs?
2. Are the science labs available outside of scheduled lab time?
3. What is the access policy to computer labs throughout campus?
D. Athletics
1 What are the facilities for men? for women?
2. What opportunies exist for the non-athletic but interested student?
E. Theater
1 Are the programs open to non-theatre majors?
2. Are there student directors
- Don't forget
A. Pick up copies of the student newspaper to get a feel for the issues on campus
B. Arrange to eat a meal where the students normally eat
return to Walther's Virtual Guidance Office
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