College Visits: Required or Optional?

To be honest, college visits are never mandatory. There's always the option to visit the school if you want to. But when you think about it, shouldn't a college visit be required? If you're going to spend four or more years at a university, shouldn't you have first-hand experience of what it's really like there?

Many people disagree, saying that students are perfectly capable of doing the necessary research to find out if a school is right for them without making the visit. Truth be told, it is much easier to get a sense of what a college is like thanks to the Internet. Most schools have extensive websites where students can explore everything about the college. Some even have virtual tours of the campus, including classrooms and dorm rooms. These features make it easier than ever for students to find out about the colleges they like before making a decision about which one to attend.

However, many others recommend that students visit every school they are seriously considering in their college search. These colleges include only the schools the student is applying to and expects a chance of actually being accepted. Counselors, professors and college students often agree that the on-campus experience can't be traded for exploring a school's website. The feeling of being on campus, sitting in on classes and talking to actual students can be some of the most powerful aspects of a student's decision to attend a school. Some even liken the experience to buying a house without ever setting foot inside; you may see plenty of pictures or video of the house online, but it doesn't compare to the feeling of actually being inside the house.

Why not visit a college then? There are several factors which may influence a student's decision about whether to attend a school, and it doesn't necessarily have to do with whether they need that in-person experience to make a choice. For some students, travelling long distances and possibly even staying in hotels to visit several colleges is simply too expensive. They either have to choose one or two colleges to visit or none at all based on their financial situation. Many students are also too busy to make college visits. Unless the college is very close by, it's hard for some students to make time in their schedule between high school classes, homework, study groups, athletic teams, student organizations and time with friends and family. These are all important aspects of a high school student's life which make it difficult to stop everything in order to go on several college visits.

In any case, the decision about whether to visit a school is completely up to the student and their family. Therefore, it's always an optional part of the college application process. However, students who have the opportunity and the means to visit their top schools should do whatever they can to make that trip. The experience they have could end up being the deciding factor in their final college choice.