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"&amp;quot;With several campus visits scheduled, I want to make the most of them. What are some uncommon, but important, things to do, look for, and ask while I&amp;#039;m there?&amp;quot;  Ditch your parents! Your best bet to get a sense for if a school is a good fit for you is to actually experience it. Schedule to sit in on a class, attend a band rehearsal or team practice. Check the calendar of activities on the college website for sporting events, concerts, or other events that you could attend while you are in town. Roam around campus \u2014 spend a bit of time in the student union, dining hall, library and other student hot spots. This will give you an opportunity to talk candidly with students and determine if the school is right for you. \u2014Lynette Mathews - Director, The College Planning Center OBSERVE, QUESTION, TASTE your way to a great campus visit! Imagine you are a detective who needs to observe people in their natural setting. Can you determine how they socialize, study and what&amp;#039;s important to them? Can you get a sense if these &amp;quot;natives&amp;quot; are the people that you would want to hang out with? Check them out carefully: Do they dress like you or are they too preppy or funky? Talk to them. Ask concrete questions: How do they spend their weekends? What was their best and worst classroom experience? And finally, be sure to eat some food in the dining hall. Could you live on this for four years? \u2014Susan Reznick - Independent Educational Consultant, The College Connection Whatever you do, see the college outside of the formal tour! College tours are great, but if you are interested in seeing the ins and outs of a campus, be sure to stay overnight, and if you can, visit the schools you&amp;#039;re serious about during the weekend. Staying overnight and visiting during the weekend gives you the opportunity to interact with students in a more relaxed setting, and helps you get the real &amp;quot;scoop&amp;quot; on the institution. Non-peak times on campus may also help you view the school&amp;#039;s campus security in action and give you a look at the social environment. \u2014Yolanda Watson Spiva - Executive Director, Project GRAD Atlanta Take Notes During and After Your Campus Visit It&amp;#039;s easy for your impressions and reactions of a particular college to become blurry months later when asked on the Common Application supplement, &amp;quot;Why do you think our college is a good fit for you?&amp;quot; Articulate answers to that question will be easier when you take good notes during and after your visit. Jot down details about unique college programs, quote things that professors or students said during your visit and bring a digital camera with you to remind you what the campus looks like. Show that you&amp;#039;ve been observant and done your research and you will make a favorable impression. \u2014Howard Verman - Sr. Associate, Strategies for College Ensure that students speak with students who are not employed by the university while on campus visits Securing informal conversations with staff, faculty and students at prospective campuses can be a daunting process; having to introduce yourself to people you&amp;#039;ve never seen or interacted with off-campus or in other venues. Leave the &amp;quot;teenager&amp;quot; at home when you visit college campuses \u2014 be sure to have the student draft a list of questions and review it prior to the visit. This is the structural question and all others are peripheral and secondary. Current students will give direct answers to these structural questions and relate their own experiences to parents and family \u2014 but make sure to strike up informal conversations along the tour route to determine if tour guides and paying customers have similar views about the campus \u2014Charles Moore - Director of Enrollment, CSU Fullerton Irvine Get the full story from 30 more experts at www.unigo.com/expertnetwork. To send your question to our experts, visit www.unigo.com/expertquestions. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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