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The Most Important Thing For You To DoJan 29 '00 Write an essay on this topic.Selecting a college is not as easy as picking what academic program you like, but it requires you to choose where you want to live in the next four years of your life. Visiting a college is the only way to decide if that city is where you want to live. Below I will describe some things to look for in both the college and the city to determine if that particular college is the place for you. I will start with the school: Take the tour. The tour is the best way for you to get a good overview of the campus. The tour should show you all the buildings, and give you a good idea of what facilities are available for students. In addition, you should check out a classroom to see what kind of atmosphere they offer. Also notice if the professors' offices are in accessible places. Walk around the campus yourself. When you do this you will be able to observe the students. See if students walk around in groups or only alone. See how diverse the campus is. Will you be able to associate with people who have the same religion beliefs? Also, check out people of the opposite, or same, sex. Is there anyone there that you would like to date? Does the campus look clean? Is it beautiful? Would you like to sit out in a quad on a sunny day? Those are some of the questions you should be able to answer when you visit. In addition, you may want to see how easy it is to get around campus. Do you have to walk everywhere or is there some sort of transportation? Go to a class. Do not just go to any class though, pick one that interests you. In addition, you may want to go to two or three classes. This will help you to determine what a classroom atmosphere is like. See how well the professors interact with the students. If classes are taught by teaching assistance, see if they speak English. Talk to students. Students are friendly and they will usually talk to you about their school. Ask them to give you the dirt about the school. Is it easy to get into classes? Do professors interact with the students? Remember, the students that conduct the tour are trained to say what they say. They will always put a positive spin on things. Ask them what social life is like. How are parties? How much drinking/drug use is there? What is there to do off campus? Also, ask more than one student. Just stop someone, explain to them you are a perspective student and ask them if they have time to answer questions. Also remember that some people may not answer questions because they are running off to class, so be persistent. Some nice student may even exchange e-mail addresses with you so you can ask him/her later. Visit the financial aid office There is no particular reason to do this other than trying to get more money or seeing what you can do to get more aid or scholarships. Spend the night. This will help you determine if you like the dorms. Are the bathrooms clean? Do people interact? Are you able to study? Is it a nice atmosphere? This will also help you to determine what you should bring and how much room you will have to store your belongings. You will also be able to experience the social scene and interact more with the students. If you cannot spend the night, at least make sure you can see a room and learn as much as possible about them. I will move on to the surrounding area Visit some of the surrounding stores. Does the surrounding area seem student friendly? Is the area a college town? Are there stores around where you can buy personal items? How easy is it to get to these stores? How are the prices? Are there any hotels where you parents can visit you? Check out the transportation. How easy is it to get to an airport or bus station? Is the transportation reliable? Is there a good system of mass transit? Check out places to live. You will not want to live in dorms your whole life, so observe some of the housing around the city. Are there row houses? Apartments? You may even want to ask some students about the housing. In concluding… In conclusion, the more time you invest at the campus, the more you will sure you will like it there. Take the time and make sure you examine all aspects of the campus. Remember, you will be spending four years of your life there. Make sure you like it.  |
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