Every year, seniors around the country are contemplating which colleges to apply to and eventually, which one to attend. It is a complex process that involves the consideration of multiple factors including, college size, statistics about the college and the campus itself. There are many different ways to get access to such information, but as Vashista Chinatalapalli, a senior at Pleasant Valley High School, said, “On can only understand these notions through a college visit.”
College visits, usually lasting between half an hour and an hour, allows students to see what the campus is like and gives them a taste of what the college facilities and dorms are like. Chintalapalli also said, “College visits are critical when deciding if a particular institution is the right fit. A firsthand view can often prove to be a very different outlook than what is seen on a college’s on paper persona.”
However, with the advancements of virtual technology and the access that many people have to the internet, the cost of going on a college visit may not be worth it. As Varun Vedula, senior, said, “College visits allow people to visit the campus of a college they may choose to attend, but many people may not be able to afford going on such trips and for them, the internet provides a much more worthwhile experience for things like virtual tours and online statistics.”
In an age where everyone is connected through their mobile devices and the internet provides access to information that wasn’t previously available, there is no reason to travel just to see the campus of a college anymore. The practice of touring colleges and going on college visits is something that used to be a very integral part of the college application and selection process, but in today’s society, that same process is becoming easier and easier to the point where college visits are no longer necessary.
With the rise of connectivity and access to information, the process of going on a college visit isn’t as prevalent as it was before. Much of the actual information, such as statistics and ratings from the college, are available online. Physically going to the college to acquire this information is an outdated and inefficient way to gather up the facts when there are a plethora of sites and sources online that provide the same information.
Along with that information, one no longer has to physically go to the campus in order to see what the facilities are like. Many colleges now offer virtual tours for those who may not be able to attend a college visit that, for some, are as far away as across the country and also for those that may not be able to afford making such a trip. These virtual tours offer an in-depth view of what the campus looks like while also describing each building and facility very carefully and elaborating with information about the students who use each building. The virtual tours include the dorms, the classrooms, and many other features.
These online tours provide just as much information as any normal college visit, but it also includes one benefit that traditional visits don’t: no cost. Virtual campus tours are free on college websites and they also eliminate any cost of travel to college campuses since everything is on a computer screen.
This new age of information and the internet has made many traditional and familiar concepts/processes obsolete and college visits may have just become one of them. Although seeing a new college in person may be exciting, think about the cost and how much easier it would be to simply get on a computer and take a tour from the comfort of one’s own home.
