Upperclassmen utilize spring break to tour colleges

Senior Liana Riley was overjoyed when she found out that she had been accepted into Cal Poly and American University. However, as she basked in her moment of victory, she realized that she had to make one of the toughest decisions of her life— which college would she attend?

“My final decision is between those two schools, and will be based on how they look, what the students are like and if I have a good time,” Riley said. “Then I'll know for sure which one is my top choice.”

Riley, like many upperclassmen, is spending her spring break touring colleges — a process, counselors say, that is crucial to college decisions.

“I think it is a great idea to visit colleges to get a real idea of the environment and culture of the campus,” guidance counselor Eileen Allen said. “Many students have narrowed it down to a few schools, and they are trying to take one more look at their options before making their final decision.”

Allen added that spring break is the perfect time to visit schools since Saratoga holds spring break later than most colleges. 

“[Our spring break] is often at a time when colleges are in session and you can see the campus when it is alive with students,” Allen said.

Additionally, Allen said that she recommends that juniors and underclassmen visit schools only in California,  and to hold back on visiting all of the out-of-state schools.

“[Students] can do excellent research online through the application process,” Allen said. “It makes more sense to save your money and to pay to visit the schools that you have been accepted to [when] you have that college as a viable option.”

Because Riley has already been accepted into the schools she plans on touring, she is willing to travel out of state to tour American University in Washington, D.C.

“I want to see the campuses,  atmosphere, nightlife, class sizes, who goes there and [what] the general feel for what college life will be like.” Riley said. “I'll take tours, eat dinner in their cities, and meet new people so I can really get the feel for the schools.”

Like Riley, junior Jessica Pham will also be visiting college campuses during spring break.  However, Pham aims to decide on which schools she would like to apply to in her senior year. She will tour [UC] Irvine, Davis, Berkeley, Cal Poly and Pomona.

“I think it’s a good idea to tour during your junior year because you can see what types of schools you want to apply to so you don’t waste time in the application process,” Pham said.

“Senior year you are going to have to think about college apps and you wouldn’t have that much time to go visit schools.”

Pham said that the most important part about visiting colleges is to find an environment that you would want to spend four years of your life living in.

“Visiting colleges gives you a chance to see colleges before you apply to them and go to them,” Pham said.  “There’s really no way for high schoolers to experience the college life, but touring colleges helps you get an idea of what going to college is really about.”