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That was not my experience at all either. We toured mostly selective schools, but even touring Tufts vs. NYU gave us some insight into the differences. We learned about the different programs, policies, etc. Of course the dorms were all sanitized but they vastly differed based on the campus location. The only public university that we visited was the University of Maryland, but that was for a special program where they were offering free tuition plus a stipend. However, we did get a basic tour of the campus plus the history. And after all of those tours, my kid ended up at a school that was sight unseen in a different state that we had never been to before.
At the other end of the spectrum, this past spring, I became involved in my alumni association and I ended up tagging along on tours and answering questions for the parents and students.
We’ve gotten an immense amount of information/insight from the tours. Some are a little better done than others but regardless I am very glad to have done them.
Someone really needs to come up with a better idea. Tour after tour. Parents sit in a room for an hour to two hours and they tell you the exact same things as all the other universities. Sometimes interlaced with lots of "Let me tell you all about me" Then you go on a tour of buildings that look pretty much the same as the last university, dorm rooms that look pretty much the same as the last university. The kid tours are the same, they just get separated out for some sort of scholarship competition first, which is really more of a marketing tool to get kids and parents to come to the tours. Then they get their own tour that was exactly the same as the previous university.
About all the tours accomplish is some universities are really disorganized, boring or condescending. That can serve to turn you off to a school. I do not think anyone is going to choose one school over another based on these stupid tours.
On top of that, you cannot believe most of what they tell you. Either they simply do nto know what their school is actually like, or they lie.
I think it is probably better to visit on your own. Talk to some students, see the things they prevent you from seeing. Visit on a Friday night. -
One professor this weekend "This is not a party school at all to my knowledge and I would know since i teach here" Well my other son already attends here and you are pretty much clueless prof. While it is a good school, it is definitely a party school. Also that BS about supporting the freshmen in their transition? Why did it take five arrests for you to do something about his criminal roommate in his freshman year? IN fact, you refused to move my son or his other non-criminal roommates and did nothing about the kid until he was sentenced to jail for a year for stealing one of the other roommate's car and a computer, among other things (on top of the repeated drug, drinking and petty theft busts, raucous drug parties with scary people from the local city (gangbangers - not students)), then when he got out, you re-admitted as a student, an stuck some other poor freshmen with this criminal. Sure, you are great for freshmen - the criminal ones anyway, but for the good kids who get stuck with them - not so much.
At another school they went on and on about how they were different because they support students one on one with people who actually care about their well being and success in every aspect of being a student, even after graduation. "Not many schools do that" This coming from a school where my daughter had to go an extra year becasue of incorrect academic advice from a counselor, and where I had to threaten to sue them to get them to release her degree and they still failed to include the honors she earned and was awarded. they gave her a letter instead saying she had three levels of honors, but they could not include it in her transcript (because they messed up and could not go back and correct it). I nearly laughed myself to sleep in that meeting.
I would be fine skipping the endless dull presentations by lying clueless people who mostly want to tell you about themselves. I could skip the guided "tours" of empty sanitized dorms and classrooms. Instead why not have a couple of empty dorm rooms students and their parents can spend a night in, and maybe attend a couple of classes? That might give you an idea of what the school is actually like and how it actually differs form other schools. (However I am becoming convinced they are pretty much all the same. , with the only substantive difference being reputation and location).
I agree college tours can be misleading. Long ago, as a young teenager I went on a visit to
my dream school in the midwest - a large Catholic University. I was obsessed with going there.
But after about a month as a freshman the euphoria wore off. I saw the school for the way it really
was. There were problems with racial tension and the "rich" students often could not get along with
the "poor" students at this expensive university. The school also was very rigorous to the point
where wealthy students who had gone to expensive college preparatory HS or lived in a high-income
school district with extreme resources (e.g. > 12 AP courses) had the advantage. The experience
was rough and unnecessary.
Looking back, I would have just gone to a community college for the first year or so to save money and
get a quick associate's degree that was strong in the job market (e.g. medical billing, networking,
electrician, HVAC, programming, etc). Then, I would have transferred to an in-state university as a
junior. With that associate's degree, I could have worked part-time or during the summer and gotten
really good experience.
Then, in graduate school I think it would have been more realistic to go out-of-state with a
more mature mindset and realistic experiences in the job market. Also, the academic preparation
would have been far more robust to attend an elite university far from home at an older age.
Graduate students also get far better financial aid than the typical freshman when far from home.
But as a HS teen I was totally unaware of the realities involved in making a decision like that.
A quick campus tour can be ridiculously misleading and unrealistic.
It has been two decades for us. In fact, back then glossy full color View Books were the most widely used means of communicating college features to prospective students. We found the school tours validated or repudiated opinions gleaned or statements printed in the view books.
Tours were useful in exposing the lies and exagerations.
No aimless touring here. I told my three that they should apply to schools based on the strength of the programs they intended to major in. Once they received letters of acceptance, then we would do in-person visits. I saw no point in wasting time touring a campus if they didn't get in, or having them fall hard for a school only to be rejected, and some of the schools were quite selective.
They each got into their top choice, we visited campus, over and done. Nobody transferred elsewhere, or regretted their choice, all graduated.
Been on many colleges tours. We have experienced the regular tour but on many occasions have sat in on a class, met with the department we were interested in, discussed study abroad with that dept., met with financial aid, had a question and answer session with students, got to eat on campus to see what they food was like. All colleges are not the same- been to colleges with a population of 2000, also with 20,000 and everyplace in between.
By going on the tours we experienced what the college was like on a daily basis. My favorite is when the college president goes out of his way to meet with the parents and students.
Who is using an admission office tour as their prime criteria for deciding where to go?
If you don't research your choices with due diligence, and make selections based on limited criteria, you kind of deserve what you get. Visiting campus is simply one facet of gaining information to examine critically.
We approached college tours as a taste of the different archetypes available beginning freshman year of high school. What does a small private school feel like vs. a large state university? Small town vs. large city? In-state vs. out-of-state? That kind of thing. When it came time for the kids to apply, they had a good handle on how the settings differed and what appealed most to them. One chose a private university close to home where he could continue working at a job he loved while studying. The second chose a large state university a little farther from home. In any case, neither regretted their choice, so I'm glad we took the time to explore their options.
Having two boys 17 months apart, we have been on many college tours in the past two years. Are they worth it ; yes and no. The youngest dosnt want to do anymore as he feels they are all the same (he came with us when the eldest was touring). They are pretty helpful. I try to ask the tour guides what they are doing after college ; one was a senior and graduating in two months of the tour ; she didn't have a job yet and would worry about it in a few weeks. Hello ; you are graduating soon and have not even looked yet ; we struck that college satellite campus off the list immediately.
Another college that one son was interested in to play rugby, has a pretty good name, but he didn't like it as it was too small.
I am stressing to the kids that they are going to college to learn, not to party 100% of the time. They at not going for the college experience.
Yes I do expect some partying, but its not all fun and games.
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