The Coronavirus, or COVID-19, is now present in almost every state in the United States, and colleges and universities are having to make tough decisions to protect their students, faculty, and other employees. For many schools, this means sending students home and all but shutting down. Professors are transitioning their courses to online learning, and dorms are emptying out. With all that is going on, hosting students for tours, information sessions, and interviews are out of the question for the foreseeable future.
As we are writing this post, we are working under the assumption that you cannot physically go to tour colleges right now, and that tours probably will not restart for months. This is good for public health, but it does leave a gap for high school students, and especially juniors, who are preparing to apply to college and want to know more before they press submit. If you fall into this category, the question you are probably asking is, “What can I do to stay proactive?”
This Isn’t About Demonstrated Interest
First off, let’s all get on the same page as to what college tours are for in the first place. College tours are not just for expressing demonstrated interest. If you don’t believe us, remember that demonstrated interest used to be a large piece of college admissions, but times have changed.
At The Koppelman Group, we view touring colleges as a process of information gathering. Generally, they are a pretty good method of doing so. You get to speak with your tour guide, see things in person, and maybe even sit in on a class. However, we’ve found that there is an even better way of gathering information about a college that you can take full advantage of without having to visit: talking to people.
Gather Information
Many of our international clients aren’t able to tour schools due to some mix of cost and scheduling conflicts. And yet, somehow, they manage to pick great schools that are also their perfect fit without ever stepping on campus — or even visiting the state — before orientation. Now it’s time for you to follow their lead by using your social and family networks as your own personal virtual tour platform.
Start by reaching out to people from your high school or broader social network who are at a college that you are interested in applying to. It’s ok if you aren’t close friends. That’s not important here. It’s also ok if they aren’t studying something you are interested in pursuing, but we’ll get to why soon.
Once you’ve found someone to talk to (ideally 2-5 people), ask if they would be willing to speak with you on the phone about their experiences. Prepare a few questions ahead of time, such as “What has been your favorite academic experience so far?” and “What has been the biggest surprise?” Be sure to take notes. If they are studying something you are interested in, talk to them about the pros and cons of the program. If they aren’t, ask if they know anyone who is. It is likely that they do and that they’d be willing to connect you. Remember, always be polite and appreciative of their time.
Communicate What You Know
After you’ve talked to as many people as you can connect with about a particular school, it’s time to email admissions. Do not skip ahead to this step. If you do, you are hurting your application. Our goal is to present our students as proactive, solution-oriented, and hungry for more information. If you email admissions before seeking out information and insight from current students, you are undermining yourself. You will leave a bad taste not just in the mouth of the person who reads your email, but also every other person who sees it in your file when they are reviewing your application.
Now that’s clear, you can email admissions. Write a concise, specific, and spell-checked email that lays out what you’ve done to learn more about their school. Something along the lines of the generalized example below:
“I’ve spoken with five current students about their experiences because, due to COVID-19, we cannot tour. Through this process, I’ve learned about these particular programs that I’m excited about and the work of this one particular professor that links closely to what I am most interested in studying. I would like to continue to learn more about your school. Are there any particular resources that I may have missed?”
Talking to people may not feel like a substitute for a tour, but it can actually result in a much more well-rounded and measured understanding of an institution than going on a tour can even achieve. Keeping each other as healthy and safe as possible needs to be our biggest priority right now, even if it’s a little inconvenient.
Are you looking for support and guidance as you navigate the college application process in an uncertain time? We help students, and their families, find stability and success. Reach out to learn more.