School Visit Checklist

Visits to schools beat pictures and brochures any day! If you have the opportunity, you should experience college life firsthand during your junior and senior years to be sure your home away from home will be the right one for you. Carefully plan each visit... and limit the number of visits to the schools that are most important to you.

Planning the Visit
o Get a map of the campus!
o Plan at least a full day (and stay overnight, if possible) at each school.
o Visit when school is in session.
o Arrange an interview with an admissions officer or sign up for a group session, if available.
o Prepare a list of questions you might have about the school.
o Get a notebook to record the answers and your impressions.

What to Do
o Take the campus tour.
o Talk with students and faculty.
o Attend a sporting event, if possible.
o Check out the stuff that’s important to you (e.g., dorms libraries, student union, athletic facilities).

What to Look For
o Watch how students spend their time: studying, partying, socializing, exercising...
o Check out the size of the average dorm room and what normal furniture is.
o Look at what students have in their rooms and how they’ve arranged it (e.g., computers, TV’s).
o What’s available off campus? Restaurants, theaters, museums, public libraries, public transportation, job opportunities?

What to Ask
o Are there active fraternities & sororities on campus?
o How good is the food in the dining facilities?
o Can you stay in the dorm for more than freshman year? Can you have a single room or must you share? And if you are sharing, with how many others?
o What intercollegiate and intramural teams are represented on campus?
o What kinds of clubs and societies are represented on campus?
o How well are the campus and its facilities maintained?
o How safe is the campus? Where are the campus police located? Are there safety programs such as escorts and emergency phone boxes on campus?

Copyright 2002 by Sallie Mae. All rights reserved