Navigating the college search from the comfort of your living room is not the easiest thing to do.
Making your college decision includes many heavily weighted factors, not the least of which is actually getting to know the campus, city, and surrounding area that you could potentially call your home for the next several years.
With that in mind, this blog will provide some helpful tips on how to get the most out of the virtual tours and events offered by Colorado State University — from learning how to maximize your virtual tour experience, to connecting one-on-one with the true experts.
Virtual tour tips
In today’s increasingly crowded world of virtual tours, there are a number of ways to explore a campus. However, the only true way to get a feel for a college without actually there is to take it from the people who have expertise and enthusiasm about the subject.
With that in mind, be wary of third-party virtual tours with little to no affiliation with a university campus. Whether you’re looking for specific information on an academic building, admissions requirements, or the history behind CSU’s famous Oval, the best way to find what you need is to go straight to the source.
For example, CSU’s free live virtual tours are hosted by staff and students who can answer the important questions — the ones that can’t be Googled — and help provide insight about what life on campus is really like.
Whether you’re tuned in a live virtual tour, or you’re navigating an immersive virtual tour at your own pace, you can rest assured that the information is up-to-date, reliable, and relevant to your interests.
Live webinar tips
At this point, we’re all more than familiar with the structure of a webinar. They usually start out with a brief presentation highlighting some unique features, application deadlines, and more.
After a healthy serving of the virtual meat and potatoes, you may have the opportunity to ask questions of your own. This is your time to shine!
The Q&A the most important piece of any webinar experience, mainly because it’s unscripted and offers you a chance to get real answers from real people with real experiences.
Take advantage of this portion and ask questions. For the most part, you can all of the general information you need on an admissions website — but if you want to get a glimpse at what the food actually tastes like in a dining hall, or ask about the best place to study for an exam, or what types of things you should bring to your residence hall that you may not be thinking about, then the Q&A portion is the place to be.
Individual appointment tips
One final key to rounding out your virtual college search is an individual appointment. Maybe you didn’t get the chance to ask your question during a live webinar. Maybe you were pre-occupied during the presentation and missed some information. Or, maybe you simply didn’t feel comfortable asking your question in the group setting.
All of these are valid, and make the individual follow-up appointment all that much more valuable.
With a one-on-one appointment — whether it’s with an admissions counselor or a current student — you have the chance to get a personal touch via a phone or video call that other virtual experiences simply can’t offer.
Take advantage of the fact that the Office of Admissions can match you up with a counselor or student who knows answers to questions you may not know you have. Whether you’re an out-of-state student looking for support and resources, or you want to match up with a student who is in the same field of study you want to head into, an individual appointment might be the best way to dive in.
