Day 4 - Tufts University and Emerson College

August 13

A.M.

Having checked in to and arrived at our hotel in Boston last night, we set out early for my first college tour in Boston for a Tufts info session and tour at 9:00 and 10:00.

First Impression: This is pretty, and is this actually an information session?!

^^ I'm feeling like I have to explain that.  I didn't have a giant reaction to the physical campus of Tufts, but the information session leader was really entertaining, so it made it feel less boring.

Stand-out points: The students and staff are nice and overall great, and there's a lot of pretty green space, distance to/from Boston

I seriously fell in love with Tufts University.  Even though the information session wasn't totally as informative and thorough as the one at Columbia, even just the tour was enough to make me want to go there right away.  The tour guide was SPECTACULAR, and he was interested in a lot of the same things I would be.

P.M.

Then we drove back into the heart of downtown Boston for an information session and tour at Emerson College at 12:00.  Emerson was actually really hard to find, as it's not a set aside campus, it's just a few buildings in downtown, and there isn't any dedicated parking.

First Impression: This is... small.  But interesting.

Stand-out points: The downtown setting, specialized majors (Writing, Literature, Publishing)

Honestly, I was really surprised by this school.  I liked some things that I didn't expect, and then some other things were kind of a turn off.  I'm thinking that this school would be really a challenge for me in many ways, but it was good to see that I actually didn't mind the city setting.

More colleges to follow tomorrow!  I'm also considering writing a full review for one or two of the colleges and putting them up while I have the down time.

Day 3 - Columbia University and Vassar College

August 12--

A.M.--

I woke up in our hotel in Times Square to prepare for the 10:00 information session at Columbia University.

We took the subway there, which was fun, and it's only 9 stops away from Times Square (in Morningside Heights).

First Impression: Impressive, a bit sparse, quiet

Stand-out points: Starbucks right across from the main gates, Low Library

This was the first information session I have been to, and it was informative in a way that the campus tours were not.  Yeah, it got a little bit dry after a while, but to me, I think that the way the administrators present information is very representative of some of the thought processes throughout the university.  It also gives a condensed version of important information.

P.M.--

Following the Columbia info session, it was a mad dash to get back to our hotel, check out, and drive up to Poughkeepsie, NY to Vassar College.  Though I had signed up for the information session as well as the tour, I had not planned quite perfectly, so we ended up missing the info session and getting most of the campus tour.

First Impression: This really is in the middle of nowhere, isn't it?

Stand-out points: Medieval/Dutch architecture, cool, very personalized tour.

The tour was the perfect combination between info session and campus tour.  The tour guide was so friendly, and I felt like it was less scripted, and pretty much honest.  She was really proud of Vassar, which was encouraging, but the surrounding town was a little lacking.

After the Vassar tour, we then drove to Boston, MA, where we will be for several days, touring lots of different colleges.

Day 1 & 2 - Princeton University

August 10--

We left our town at about 12:00 p.m., headed north via the eastern shore to our first stop--Princeton, NJ.

We got in to the town late, and after dinner, we proceeded to drive to the Princeton University campus so that we would be able to find our way in the morning.

First Impression: Oh my god, this is where angels go to die.

Stand-out points: Panera Bread, Sperry store, the buildings

I found it extremely helpful to drive around campus before the actual visit the next day, as I could more easily get my bearings having already seen the basic outlay.


August 11--

We woke up leisurely and filled our stomachs before heading out to campus.  We had planned on leaving about an hour and a half to two hours to explore campus and the surrounding community before the guided campus tour at 1:00 p.m.

The campus was just as stunning in the daylight as it was the night before.  Parking was super convenient and easy... I suggest Lot 10 to get as close as possible on the weekends.

We walked through the famous gates to arrive at Nassau Hall.

We walked around the Frist Campus Center, found some of the important buildings, and for me, we walked around McCosh Hall, which houses the Department of English.

Our tour was at 1:00, departing from Chancellor Green, and was well-led, constructed, and overall very informative.

Look for a detailed review later.  

Now, off to NYC!

Profiling. Of the good sort.

So, in preparation for my college tours this upcoming week, I decided to create a one page document with all the basic and pertinent information for each college I am interested in attending. (There are 17.)

To give you all an idea of how I went about doing this, here are some pictures of the profile I compiled on Boston College.

Yes, this does fit on one piece of paper, 8.5 x 11", with 1" margins all around.

I decided on what information to include in this based on what is important for me in a college or university.  For example, I included things about the English department that would be beneficial to my education, as well as opportunities to advance my academics.  I also included information about activities and clubs I would be interested in.  These are obviously going to vary for each person, but the general layout is the same.

I got all of this information from bigfuture.collegeboard.com , and I have an account there on which I store a list of all 17 of my schools.  The information is mostly accurate and up-to-date, but the centralized data organization is really the most helpful part.

After making the college profiles, I took 17 white paper folders, placed the profiles in sheet protectors, and then assigned each college a designated folder.  I will keep any information or propaganda from my visits this week in one side of the folder, and I will also place lined notebook paper in the folder to take notes as I tour the campuses.

I still have yet to design a master checklist and question list for the college visits.  I guess that's up next!