someone with experience in this arena, was indeed a college admissions representative…I asked her to give me some advice to share with you about what not to do on a campus visit—just in case you didn’t quite get it from the last musings on the subject☺☺
Here is Ms. Hembree’s take on visit sins:
• Pride: Walking around campus you get the sudden feeling you are better than every person/professor/class that you encounter. There is clearly not enough ivy on those bricks, the student union is outdated, what do you mean the rec center doesn't have a lazy river? Don't get so uppity about yourself that you miss an important opportunity!
• Gluttony: You hit the campus a little too hard! Every meal is “all you can eat” (and boy can you eat).
You jam-pack visits to 14 classes into a one-hour session—not the best way to favorably impress a potential professor for next year, is it? And then after hours...you are seen hitting every party on frat row--this will not seem like such a good idea the next day. Actually, it probably won’t seem like a good idea at the time if you just stop for a minute and think about it.• Envy: It seems everyone on campus got a brand new luxury car as a graduation gift, the "in" backpack is from Louis Vuitton or Prada, the girls all wear Jimmy Choos and the boys wear Armani. And you, you are wearing Chucks and a ratty t-shirt from your favorite band. Don't give in to status symbols and max out the emergency credit card (there is no such thing as a fashion emergency) in order to fit in with the "cool kids." There is a wide range of students on every campus; you will find you place if you give yourself and the campus time.
• Lust: Cute guys or girls playing frisbee on the quad smile at you and are super nice. Don't go to a school for the student "body."
• Anger: Your college visit turns into power struggle between you and your parents—a bad faux paw, a reallllly bad faux paw! Visiting campus while wearing red colored glasses is not the best way to get a good idea of what your next four years will be like. Take a deep breath, urge mom and dad to do the same and have your priority list figured out ahead of time (along with your itinerary)!
• Greed: You've worked hard in high school and now you want it all in college. Don't hog the time of your campus tour guide or the professor whose class you are sitting in on or the student life rep giving a presentation. Your questions will get answered, or you can always send an email or *gasp* snail mail to follow up.
• Sloth: Don't spend your entire visit lounging in the dining hall; don't sleep in until noon (see gluttony above); don't skip visiting classes just because you got invited to a flag football game (see lust); make the most of your visit because it may be the only one you get!
OK—all this talk about what to do and not do has definitely made me hungry—I’m going to go find a good snack.
TTYL8R,
Clyde
