10 Tips For The Best College Tour

College tours can be very exciting but the collegete atmosphere and crowd of peole you don't know can be very intimidating as well. However its important that you don't waste any opportunities on your tour due to fear and anxiety. These tips can help remind you to put away the insecurities and let your confidence shine through!

1. Wear comfortable shoes
I cannot stress this enough guys! College campuses are BIG and quite often the walking tours go on for about an hour up and down hills, grass and even water if its just finished raining. I understand that as girls we often have this need to look cute but for the day just remember comfy and casual. these tour guides have seen it all before and they can tell who's trying to hard to look nice and is suffering because of that. If its hot outside pick an appropriate pair of shorts and a loose top with your most comfortable pair of sneakers. Your feet will than you later!

2.Listen
No....im serious. Listen. Your college information session speaker may be a student OR they may be one of the head professors on campus. No matter who they are its important to hear what tey have to say. You'll be surprised by how much of the information isn't on the website. You're bound to learn something interesting!

3. Take Notes
I just discovered this one myself and its really helpful! make sure tp take notes during the information session and write down any questions you think of or specific places on campus you want to see. Often times there is a small notes section in the back of the information section. Taking notes will also keep you alert and in tune with what the speaker is saying.

4. Bring Friends!
Having your friends with you on a college tour can make a seemingly serious and tense situation extremely fun. your friends will encourage you to relax and laugh while you're on your tour. You and your friends can also feed off of each other when it comes to your opinions about the school! there excitement becomes your excitement and a good school becomes even better! after a tour me and my friends like to go out for a good burger or a milkshake and evaluate what we thought of the college.
5. Ask Questions
There is nothing worse than getting home after a tour only to realize that you still have a slew of unanswered questions going trough your head. Take advantage of the opportunity and every question that comes to mind (even the silly ones). On my last college tour I asked the student tour guide if she was "allowed to leave the classroom to potty whenever she wanted too" she laughed but she also understood where I was coming from.

6. Avoid the Curve
I love to be in the front....of everything. I see myself as the tour guides friend because im one of the only people that will talk to them in a casual manner. So naturally I hate it when other potential students try to get in front of me in the line (curve) especially if they aren't going to carry on a conversation with the guides! Always make sure you are in the front and attentive, not pushy, interactive. If your tour guide asks a question ANSWER IT! I've never understood how a question could be met with complete silence. This is the time for you to interact with actual students! And I promise once you start talking other people will too.

7. Take Pictures
As luck would have majority of you have a camera built right in to your phone! well look at that! therefore there is no excuse to neglect taking pictures for yourself. Those high gloss pictures of the campus online are great but your real time photos with your friends will always be more memorable! Don't forget to post those pictures too and even tag the school. Universities are very in tune with social media now a day and they regularly check applicants social media accounts, it cant hurt if your latest picture is of there school!

8. Don't compare
This rule is one I also have a hard time following. If your like me then you might have lucked out and fell absolutely in love with one of the colleges you toured early on in the process. however I also find myself comparing other colleges to my original love time and time again. This wills seriously fog up your college tour and cloud your judgment of that school (see what I did there). Its always good to have a plan but you want to make sure you have a backup and that you give all of the schools you visit a fair chance. Some schools have a higher focus on Sports some have a higher focus and Social events and others have a complete focus on academic. It is important for you to know what you want out of the school you pick but also for you to take note of what every school has to offer. 
 
9. GIVE YOURSELF A TOUR
Most people fail to realize just how open a college campus really is. Once you're in you're in! you can walk into almost any building (except for residence halls), peak in on classrooms and even eat the food in the cafeteria! do not allow your tour to end when the guide says it does! they actually encourage you to take a map and venture of on your own. I know that I want to study neuroscience and psychology so I made sure to check out the psychology and ethics buildings as well as the laboratories. Touring a college on your own can be a little intimidating but the people are very nice and will try to explain there individual programs to you at the front desk.

10. Imagine
This is the last and most important step of a college visit. look around and think carefully. Ask yourself if you could be happy here. envision what you would do during your down time . map out the courses you would be interested in, where you would study and what time of resident hall you would live in. Be honest with yourself about what you want to gain from going to college? Whether it be a great social scene or division 1 sorts teams. Regardless of how high the school is ranked you have to know if it is right for YOU. Could you see yourself getting out of bed, going to class and getting good grades as well as having fun? that's the question, because whether you pass or fail you still have to pay the tuition.


What is your favorite college tour memory?
Kayla xx