» 2009 » July

 

I’m a little different from our previous staff blogger in that I’m actually not an NC State graduate.  So……I’m here to offer a different approach and outlook at the college experience.  My higher education journey began at community college.  This was something I swore I’d never do….attend what we called “13^th grade” because Harrisburg Area Community College (in PA) was where so many people from my high school went after graduation.  But, because of a tight budget and the fact that I had no idea what I wanted to study, it seemed like a logical starting point and man, was I right!  I’m very thankful to have gotten my college start at community college.  It allowed me to experiment with many different classes and save lots of money.  I, like the average college student, changed my major about four times.  I studied photography, music business, business administration, and finally ended up back in my original major, Mass Communications.  While this major-changing process was a learning experience, I will say that I wish I had been given the opportunity to go through a program like the First Year College here at NC State that helps students narrow down their options and select a major that’s best for them.  Excellent program!

 

After two years at H.A.C.C., I transferred to Carson-Newman College, a small liberal-arts college in Tennessee near Knoxville.  My reasons for choosing Carson-Newman were that I wanted to be at a small, religiously affiliated school and I preferred to be in the South because I was tired of snow!  I visited many colleges and universities during my college search but CNC was the only one in the South I actually visited.  What people will tell you is true:  VISIT CAMPUS!  Pick your top 3-5 schools and visit, visit, visit!  I’ll admit that when I stepped onto campus and toured CNC I just knew in my gut that’s where I was supposed to be.  I’ve recently learned in a grad class I was taking at STATE that something like 80% of females make their college selection based upon the fact that it “felt right” when they were on campus.  Isn’t that funny?  So anyway…….I had a fabulous college experience and again was very involved on campus in choirs, a touring rock band, I was a Resident Advisor in charge of a hall of 30 girls, I played intramural sports, and was part of the “Mossy Creek Maniacs” which was basically the student athletic fan club that sat together and cheered obnoxiously loud at all the sporting events.  College was an absolutely amazing experience and I hope you’re excited for your future college search and experience! 

 

 Summertime is one of the best times to visit college campuses and I realize that many of you are probably doing just that.  With that in mind, I wanted to offer you some suggestions of things to consider and questions to ask during your upcoming campus visits:

 

 Questions to Ask While Visiting College Campuses:

ü      What is your student to faculty ratio and average class size?

ü      What are your admissions requirements and deadlines?

ü      Are students required to have a computer?

ü      Is your campus wireless?

ü      What academic resources such as tutorial centers are available on campus?  Is there a writing center?  Are there fees for these services?

ü      Are freshmen required to live on campus? 

ü      Is housing guaranteed?

ü      What is your housing arrangement?  (Hall, Suite, Apartment-style?  Co-ed?  Arranged by major?  Freshmen together? Accept roommate requests?  Are they air-conditioned?  Does each room get a micro-fridge or are they available to rent? Internet in room is private connection or shared with roommate(s)?  Any special living & learning communities?) 

ü      May I have a car on campus my first year?

ü      What student health services are available on campus? Where is nearest hospital?

ü      What campus security measures are in place?  Is it a safe campus?

ü      Are your professors required to keep office hours and how available are they to students?

ü      Is there free public transportation for students to use?

ü      What are the scholarship and financial aid opportunities available and what does a student need to be competitive for a scholarship?

ü      Am I automatically considered for a merit-based scholarship when I apply?

ü      How is campus and student life; what is there to do on campus and in the area?

ü      What is it like on campus on weekends?

ü      Do you have sororities and fraternities & if so what percentage of students participate in Greek life?

ü      What is your policy for accepting AP and/or IB credit?  (Obviously only ask this one if you’ve completed AP or IB courses that you think may transfer.)

ü      Will I have an academic advisor within my major?  How are courses scheduled each semester?

ü      What are your study abroad opportunities?

 ***There are many different types of college visits that students and families can participate in.  Some of these various types are also explained below.  Regardless of what type of visit you choose, some good things to do while on campus are:  attend an information session and have your questions answered, attend a campus tour, and speak with a current student.  Other things you may like to try would be the food—eat in a dining hall on campus, or speak with a faculty member.

 

Types of College Visits:

Colleges and Universities host a variety of campus visit experiences.  It’s best to select the type of visit that best meets your needs.  These are some examples of visit programs that are out there:

ü      Information Session:  These are typically hosted by an admissions representative and will provide an overview of the university and admissions requirements.)  They’re offered on weekdays and some colleges/universities may tag a catchy name on them like “Closer Look Day” or “Showcase Saturday”  and offer them on a Saturday. 

ü      Campus Tour:  Typically hosted by a current student “Ambassador”) and provides a walk-through of the main parts of campus, academic buildings, perhaps the library, student center, etc…and sometimes will go to a residence hall room as well.  Some larger universities incorporate a bus tour along with their campus tour; some ask that you reserve a bus tour separately; while many other colleges/universities do not have bus tours available.)

ü      Driving Tour:  available on some larger campuses or on campuses in urban locations

ü      Open House:  These are typically on weekends and are often times an opportunity to speak with a wider population of student services and academic departments.  Attendance to Open Houses may be much larger than a week-day information session.  NC State’s Open House, for example, is one Saturday in the fall (October 17, 2009) and we’ll host multiple information sessions, campus tours, tours of academic facilities & labs, performances by student groups, and our gymnasium will be set up in a fair format which allows students and families to speak with representatives from every academic department and other offices such as Housing, Financial Aid, Student Life, Greek Life, Student Health Center, Study Abroad, etc…

ü      “Spend-a-Day” programs or other “Shadow” programs:  These allow the student to be paired with a current student and attend classes for the day, eat in the dining hall, etc….

ü      Academic department information sessions:  These may allow you to make arrangements to gather information from one, specific academic department on campus.  They’re typically hosted by faculty or recruiters for this department.  They may include a tour of labs or other academic facilities. 

ü      Overnight programs or ‘admitted student day’ programs:  May be hosted in the spring for students who are admitted for the following fall semester.  These programs cater specifically to the needs of students who are admitted and allow them an even more personal experience with the college/university by allowing them to possibly stay overnight with a current student, meet faculty, perhaps even pre-schedule courses. 

Happy Visiting!  Hope you’ll make a stop at NC State along the way!  Register online at:  http://admission.ncsu.edu to visit any weekday or plan to attend our Fall Open House on Saturday, October 17th.

 

Until next time,

Dana