A Crucial Piece: The Campus Visit

Now that you have done research on a variety of colleges and universities, the crucial piece of your puzzle of college admission will be your visits to college campuses. Visiting the colleges on your list will provide you with a firsthand impression of the students, faculty, staff, facilities, and programs. A visit to a college campus should enable you to meet with admission staff in order to obtain an idea of what they expect from applicants and what the admission process entails, gain a feeling for the academic and social atmosphere, see the facilities to be used for study, living and recreation, talk with students, and gain an understanding of the surrounding community.

WHEN TO VISIT

While most admission offices are open throughout the school year, the best time to visit a college campus is when college classes are in session. Although summer visits may work better within your schedule; remember that while you can take a campus tour and talk with a member of the admission staff, you may be unable to talk with students and faculty or attend class. It may be difficult to gain a good feeling for the atmosphere of a college community if you visit during the summer. If you visit campuses in the summer, plan to make return visits to your top choice institutions when the institution is in session. Spring break of your junior year in high school is a good time to take a trip to get an overview of many different schools. Once you have narrowed your list in the fall of your senior year, you may want to make return visits to schools to which you have chosen to apply. Some students will apply to schools, wait to see where they have been admitted and then make return visits during April of the senior year as they are trying to make their final decisions.

BEFORE YOUR VISIT

1. Contact the school at least two weeks in advance to schedule your visit. If possible inform the college of your areas of academic or personal interests. This information may help the admission staff to plan a more meaningful visit for you. The college admission office can arrange for you to talk with an admission counselor and take a campus tour. Some colleges will offer the option of an individual interview or a group information session. Many offices will be willing to help you set up housing, classes or other appointments. Plan to spend as much time as you can on the college campus, a minimum of half a day. Keep in mind that a thorough, well planned visit of a college campus may take a day and a half. Make sure that you have good directions to the admission office.

When scheduling your campus visits the following things are important to include:
- Talk with an admission counselor.
- Take an official tour of the campus.
- Attend classes, preferably a freshman level class and an upper level class. List of classes to visit are usually available in the admission office.
- Meet with a professor in an academic area that interests you.
- Eat a meal in the campus dining facility.
- Speak with a coach or an advisor of an extracurricular activity that interests you.
- Spend the night in a residence hall.
2. Read the catalogs and brochures from each college you plan to visit. After reading, come up with a list of questions that are important to you.
3. Check with your high school or ask the college to get a list of the names of current students who may have graduated from your high school or who may live near your home. Contact them before you visit.
4. Ask for the names of faculty members in your areas of interest and try to schedule appointments with them before you arrive on campus.
5. Buy a notebook to keep a journal of impressions from your trips to all of the schools you visit.

AFTER THE VISIT

1. You will probably visit several schools on your trip and it is easy for your impressions to run together. Once you have left a school, while your thoughts are still fresh, write down your impressions. Be sure to note what you liked and what you disliked.
2. If you think of questions that you did not ask during your visit, don't hesitate to contact the people that you met.
3. Write thank you notes to those with whom you had appointments and to student hosts if you stayed overnight.
4. If the school gives you a campus visit evaluation form, take time to fill it out. Your thoughts and suggestions are important to the admission office and may help future visitors have productive, positive visit.

Best Wishes,
A2Z College Planning
www.a2zcollegeplanning.com
info@a2zcollegeplanning.com
919-450-0171

Prospective Student Athlete- What do I need to do?

Prospective Student Athletes-What do I need to do?

Freshmen and Sophomores
• Start planning now!
• Work hard to get the best grades possible.
• Take classes that match your school’s list of approved core courses.
• You can receive your school’s list of approved core courses at
www.eligibilitycenter.org.

Juniors
• At the beginning of your junior year, register at www.eligibilitycenter.org.
• Register to take the ACT, SAT or both and use the Eligibility Center code (9999) as a score recipient.
• Double check to make sure the courses you have taken match your school’s list of approved core courses.
• Ask your guidance counselor to send an official transcript to the Eligibility Center after completing your junior year. If you have attended more than one high school, the Eligibility Center will need official transcripts from all high schools attended. (The Eligibility Center does NOT accept faxed transcripts or test scores.)
• Before registration for classes for your senior year, check with your guidance counselor to determine the amount of core courses that you need to complete your senior year.

Seniors
• Take the SAT and/or ACT again, if necessary. The Eligibility Center will use the best scores from each section of the ACT or SAT to determine your best cumulative score.
• Continue to take college-prep courses.
• Check the courses you have taken to match your school’s list of approved core courses.
• Review your amateurism responses and request final amateurism certification on or after
April 1 (for fall enrollees) or October 1 (for spring enrollees).
• Continue to work hard to get the best grades possible.
• Graduate on time (in eight academic semesters). If you fall behind, use summer school sessions before graduation to catch up.
• After graduation, ask your guidance counselor to send your final transcript to the Eligibility Center with proof of graduation.

For additional information, visit ncaa.org

Best Wishes,
A2Z College Planning
www.a2zcollegeplanning.com
info@a2zcollegeplanning.com
919-450-0171

Climate LEAP - Opportunity for high school students in Chapel Hill/Carrboro, NC

Rising 9th-12th graders who are interested in science and math and who either live in or go to school in Chapel Hill/Carrboro are eligible to apply for the 2010-2011 Climate Leadership and Energy Awareness Program (Climate LEAP). Females and minorities are especially encouraged to apply. Application forms have been posted at climateleap.unc.edu; a copy of the brochure and a flier are also available for download. A complete application includes both a completed student application form and teacher nomination form. Applications are due by 5PM on Friday March 26, 2010.

If you don't reside in Chapel Hill/Carrboro, please share with your family, friends, and coworkers who may live or know others in Chapel Hill/Carrboro. All program questions should be directed to Dana Haine, Program Director, at 919-843-5735.

Kind Regards,
Rhonda Manns, M.Ed., LPC, NCC
A2Z College Planning, LLC
PO Box 13056
Durham, NC 27709
phone (919) 450-0171 fax (919) 237-3416
wwww.a2zcollegeplanning.com

Specializing in helping college bound students climb the steps to success and achieve their college dreams.

College Planning Tips for March

Freshman, Sophomores, Juniors

1. Look for opportunities to attend college presentations at your
school or in your community. It’s not too early to start collecting
information.

2. If you have a career interest but are not sure about how to pursue
it, talk with people in your community who have found success in that
career track. Find out how they got started as well as the colleges they
attended and the programs they pursued. Record what you learn.

3. Start thinking about how you can use the upcoming summer months
productively. Waiting until school is out to start planning will only limit
your opportunities to pursue activities that truly interest you.

4. Choose summer-time activities that are natural extensions of your
interests. Resist the temptation to choose programs because they will look
good to colleges.

Seniors

1. Stay focused academically. As decision letters start rolling in, you
will be tempted to ease up in the classroom. Even though you might have
been accepted, colleges expect you to finish with the same performance (or
better) that justified your offer of admission. The last thing you want is
to receive a letter from the dean of admission sometime in July that
rescinds your offer of admission!

2. Continue to update colleges as well as scholarship-granting
organizations informed of new achievements, honors and awards.

3. Plan to take end of year exams for any Advanced Placement courses
you have taken in the last year. You have taken the course, you might as
well see if you can get college credit for it!


A2Z College Planning
www.a2zcollegeplanning.com
info@a2zcollegeplanning.com
919-450-0171