By now, most grade 12 students have already received decisions from the universities that they have applied to. The long wait extending from the moment when you first clicked that submit button until now is finally over, and yet, a new problem arises: which of the schools that has offered you admission should you register at?
To answer this question, most of us begin by scouring the internet for online opinions, student experiences, college rankings, and other online sources of information pertaining to the university. Many students can make a decision based off of the information that they have gathered through online sources or the advice of friends and family members, but there is one crucial factor that is often missing: The campus visit. Reading about the experiences of others, and listening to the advice of close friends are definitely helpful in gaining insights into the university, but at the end of the day, these experiences and advice are merely the experiences and opinion of others. Not yourself. Factors such as the rigor of courses, campus feel, social interactions, and enjoyment at a particular university are highly subjective, and will range tremendously from one individual to another.
Recently, my parents and I flew out to one of the universities which had admitted me to get a feel for what the student body and campus life is like. This particular university had been, in fact, near the bottom of my list of universities that I was intending on registering at, but the campus visit proved to be all that was required to completely change my opinion. In short, I fell in love with just about everything that I saw while I was physically at the university. Many hidden aspects of the university that I simply could not experience through online forums were made available to me, and shortly following this trip, I enrolled at this university.
Of course, not everyone will have the means and opportunity to visit each of the universities to which they have been accepted to. In such circumstances, the internet is truly your best friend. However, for those who have the means to make a short visit, I highly, sincerely, imploringly suggest that you make the visit for it will truly leave a lasting impact on your image of the school.
Deciding on a university is the equivalent of deciding where you will spend the next four years of your life. It is arguably one of the most important decision that you will have to make in the entire course of your life, and as such, every effort should be exerted to make the best decision possible. A college campus visit is definitely one of the most important steps that you can take in making the “correct” choice for the life that you wish to lead for the next four years!