SanTan FAMILY FUN
February 2012 5 College tours 101
Contributed by Sylvan Learning Parents of high school juniors are gearing up to hit the road over spring break to visit colleges of interest to their teenagers. While families can get a tremendous amount of valuable college information online, even in today’s Internet age, there’s no substitute for an in-person visit to get a true feel for an institution, its campus and its students. Organizing a college tour road trip can be a daunting task for parents. Which schools should be visited? How many schools? How do you make the most out of a campus tour? Here are 10 tips from Richard E. Bavaria, Ph.D., senior vice president of education outreach for Sylvan Learning, for organizing a spring break college tour. Cast a wide net: If you and your teenager haven’t already done so, start by putting together a long list of potential schools of interest – up to 20 schools – for further investigation and research. Carefully consider a wide range of selection criteria, such as, geographic location, rural / suburban / urban campus setting, size of student enrollment, religious affiliation, academic strengths and offerings, tuition, tuition assistance and athletic programs, among others. Include a range of “dream,” “target” and “safety” schools. Targets are ones with strong odds of acceptance based on your teen’s SAT or ACT scores, grade point average.
Finalize your target tour list: Once you have compiled your initial pool of possible school targets, narrow down that list to a more realistic number of
College tours 101
schools to visit – schools that meet the criteria for your teen and your family. Fine tuning your list is a task that can easily be accomplished by visiting schools’ websites, reviewing college guides from the library or bookstore and by working with your teen’s school guidance counselor. Other students, friends and family members can also offer invaluable insights.
Get SAT/ACT test prep support: If you remove a school from your teen’s final target list because his or her SAT or ACT test scores aren’t in that school’s typical accepted student range – or you’re afraid they won’t be –consider obtaining SAT/ACT test prep support from your local Sylvan Learning
(
www.sylvanLearning.com). With student application submissions hitting record highs – and acceptance rates at historic lows at many schools around the country – the level of competition to get into the “top” colleges is more intense than ever before.
Visit while college is in session: Every family’s final “visit” list of schools is different; some travel to 12 or more campuses while others only visit a handful. Based on the geography of your target tour list, you may, in fact, wind up making a few road trips – perhaps one over spring break and then one or two long weekend treks. Regardless of how many campuses you visit, make sure to schedule your visits while college is in session and students are attending classes. Don’t visit during midterms or finals and avoid weekend visits
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