Summer College Visits

Summer College Visits May 4, 2012 Summer college visits arent such a great idea. Do you see many students in this photo of Rice University? We didnt think so. With summer approaching, youd think it would be the perfect time to go and visit colleges. Students have a couple of months off from school. Their schedules are emptier. Theyve got the time and the weather is nice! But summer college visits are not a great idea. A number of folks in the college admissions community recommend visiting colleges over the summer. They think its an opportune time to check out schools. But theyre wrong. Dont listen to them. And whys that? Because, at most universities across this nation, college students arent on campus during the summer. Are there exceptions to this rule? Yes. For instance, sophomores at Dartmouth College spend their summers at the College on the Hill, taking classes and going off the rope-swing into the Connecticut River (when the administration isnt busy taking it down). But overwhelmingly, most college students are not on campus during the summer months. And when you visit colleges, its important to get a sense of the kinds of students who attend each school. What if you were to like the weather at a school over the summer when the campus was devoid of students, only to enroll the following year and realize that every student at the school has purple hair? What if you dont like jocks and you realize when you enroll that the school is full of jocks? You cant get a sense of the student body during summer college visits. Its just not possible (except at a couple of colleges). You cant ask students questions. You cant see if students are smiling, if theyre happy. You cant walk inside a dormitory and chat with first-year students. You cant do any of this. Because they just arent there over the summer. So visit in the fall, winter, or spring of your junior year of high school. Visit in the fall if you still havent made up your mind. But summer visits they are, in many ways, a waste. In spite of what others in the college admissions community might say to the contrary!