Students usually think about what they want to do with colleges, careers, etc. when they are in their junior and senior years of high school. With a heavy decision comes much research, discussing, and thinking about the future. Those students who have identified colleges they want to go to will make the time to travel to the campus for a private or public tour. Sometimes it is with friends, other times with their parents/guardians, or even an alum of the college.
“It is imperative to do college tours, to see what the campus is like, what the area is like, and the vibe of the campus,” stated Cascade High School Career Counselor Ms. Rieke. She also suggested that students should do college tours in the fall of their senior year or summer before senior year starts to have time to pick the college that they will go to.
It can be overwhelming at first, but at the same time exhilarating to view a place you might stay at for several years. However, keep in mind that not everyone's career path includes college, and that is okay. Everyone's path, however, should include researching all the options that are available for them and picking what is best for them and their future. The four main universities in Washington State are Central Washington University, Western Washington University, Washington State University, and Eastern Washington University. They are all four-year public universities.
Each university has its own style of doing private and public tours. If you are already accepted into a particular school during the beginning of your senior year you might have received an email asking if you would like to go on a public campus tour. Each of these college websites are easy to navigate and find information on setting up or attending a tour. Simply go to the admissions page and follow the prompts. Follow the links below to access each school’s website:
Central Washington University: https://www.cwu.edu/
Western Washington State: https://www.wwu.edu/
Washington State University: https://admission.wsu.edu/
Eastern Washington University: https://www.ewu.edu/
If you are still confused after that it is best to email the university's Admissions Office and/or talk to your school counselor about helping you.
After you have scheduled a private or public campus tour, you should have a before, during, and after plan to make sure you have all your questions, thoughts, and ideas sorted out. These suggestions will help you organize a plan and have a solid layout of your tour day.
Before:
Have a written or typed page of all the questions you have about the college, the staff, the buildings, etc. so you can answer them when you get there.
Keep in mind or write all the pros and cons of the university to compare to the other universities.
Bring a phone or camera to take pictures to remember what it looks like from a first-person perspective.
Accounting for the weather on the day you will arrive, dress appropriately so you will not be too cold or too hot.
Review the campus tour plan: they will most likely have times for different groups-so pick out which groups you will stick with.
Calculate how many hours it will take to get to and from the university and how long you are willing to stay.
During:
Ask questions from your list and write down the answers.
Take pictures.
Make sure you see the buildings of the major you might take.
After:
Treat yourself to some nice food to end the day with a successful note of researching.
Discuss what you saw, how the people were, etc. with somebody familiar with the specific college or overall knowledge of the school.
Regardless if you followed the suggested campus guide or made up an alternative guide for yourself, one of the best pieces of advice for going on college campus tours is viewing it in person and experiencing it without bias. Ms. Rieke stated that students must keep in mind that “they should have an open mind and keep in mind that campus is very big, and they show only the important things. So, they cannot show you everything. It is usually dictated by the person is giving the tour.” Good luck to all going on those college tours over the next eight to nine months.
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