A girl sits at a desk with a determined look in her eyes. She’s sifting through college pamphlets and browsing university homepages. She hopes if she just looks hard enough, something will jump from the page to make her decision easier.

A boy paces across a room plastered with pithy sayings about education and reaching goals. He’s waiting to see his guidance counselor to talk about his post-high school plans. He hopes the counselor has some sage advice, because he’s intimidated by the magnitude of the decision before him.

A bit melodramatic. Yes, but one of these teens could be your daughter or son. During their junior year, if not before, many students begin choosing a college. Maybe they have already done extensive research and have narrowed their choice to 10, five or two schools based on reputation, academics, sports programs, region and cost. Now it’s time to walk the campuses and meet the people.

The college visit gives your teen a chance to fill in the missing pieces. It replaces statistics with firsthand experiences and exchanges the nicely printed rhetoric of brochures for the everyday voices of students who live and learn on campus.

Indeed, many students who were previously undecided come away from their travels with a gut feeling about which college is the place for them. That’s why it’s important to make every visit count. Here are some ways to do just that.

Plan ahead
Do some homework before driving hours to the first college on your teen’s list. Ask the high school guidance office for a campus video to see if the school warrants the time and expense of a real tour. When you’re ready to visit, sign up through the college admissions office. If possible, make appointments to meet faculty members. Also, ask the guidance office for the names of Port Jervis graduates enrolled in the university so your child can contact them, either on campus or back at home, to find out their impressions of the school.

Don’t sit this one out
Make sure you accompany your teen on each visit. Whether you ever attended college or not, you’ve had plenty of life experience. Your questions and observations will help your teen make a final decision. At the minimum, you’ll feel more connected to your child once freshman year rolls around.

Take a campus tour
You’ll see the library, campus center, dorms, academic buildings and sports facilities through the eyes of a student already living there. Ask questions. Your son or daughter may feel too self-conscious to speak up or not know what to ask. Find out about campus security, alcohol policies, parking regulations, public transportation, diversity, cultural opportunities and so on.

Pay attention to dorms
Keep in mind that living environment affects academics. How large are the dorms? What role does the resident assistant play in helping freshmen adjust? Are there smaller, theme-oriented dorms that would make your teen more comfortable?

Learn about student organizations
It is within these organizations that many students find their niche – their families away from home. These may include fraternities and sororities, student government, or the campus radio station. The earlier your teen connects to others with similar interests, the faster he or she will adjust to change.

Sit in on classes
Prospective students can contact faculty members and get a class schedule in advance. The Internet is a perfect avenue for this. Your teen will discover if a lecture hall filled with 300 other freshmen is conducive to his or her learning style, or whether a smaller classroom setting is preferable.

Learn about internships
It’s not just your GPA and the prestige of a university that earns jobs after graduation. It’s also professional experience. Find out what internships are available in your prospective field. How easy are they to get? How many students actually take advantage of them? Faculty members are good resources for this information.

Meet the coach, talk to teammates
If your teen is joining a sports team, realize it can be a different game than in high school. Training and winning may take a higher priority. Find out what kind of schedule team members keep. Are they expected to practice off season? What kind of courses do they take? What is the average GPA? A coach will know these answers. Your child may want to choose a school with a less demanding sports program to ensure academic success. Whatever the decision, the more your teen knows, the more prepared he or she will be to face the freshman year.

The choice of a school should rest with your teen. But you can help guide that choice by sharing your impressions and lending support at this momentous time in your son or daughter’s life.

 

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