If your teen has been getting more mail than you have lately, you know that the college brochures he or she has been receiving make every campus look amazing and seem outstanding. The best way to find out what the colleges on your child’s dream list are really like is to pay a personal visit.
During a college visit, you’ll both get to see how students live, what the classrooms and college buildings are like, where students hang out, and what the surrounding community offers. Your teen will begin get a feel for how he or she would fit in and whether he or she can imagine spending four years there.
You’ll also discover make-or-break details that the college brochures leave out. For instance, when Beth visited a college in upstate New York, it was high on her list until her tour guide mentioned that in the winter, cross-country skiing was the easiest way to get from the dorms to the classroom buildings. Since cross-country skiing was not part of Beth’s college plan, that school dropped from the list.
When should you and your child begin visiting colleges? The earlier, the better. Eighth grade is not too soon. Visits don’t have to be formal; you can attend a collegiate sporting event, sign him or her up for a summer academic program, or bring the kids along when you visit an older child at college. Even if your child has no list of dream colleges, he or she can begin to figure out what he or she likes and dislikes in a campus. When Matt spent a week at a Big Ten campus for a Scouting event, he learned that a large university was not right for him. When he began college shopping seriously, only small and medium colleges made his dream list.
By the spring of junior year, you and your child should begin looking seriously at colleges. Check with your kid's high school counselor to see if the school provides any excused absences for scollege visits. If not, plan to spend part of your child’s spring break on a college road trip. These trips can be tiring but are also wonderful opportunities for you and your child to share some quality time together and discuss plans and dreams for the future. Once your child has been accepted at one or more colleges, he or she may want to plan a longer overnight stay without you to confirm impressions and make a final decision.