QUESTIONS FOR FACULTY AND ADMINISTRATORS

  1. What would you change about the school if you could?
  2. What is your favorite thing about working here? What happens to the graduates?
  3. What percentage go on for advanced degrees? In what subject areas?
  4. What is the record in graduate school acceptances?
  5. How interested do the students seem in learning?
  6. Do they truly enjoy learning or are they simply interested in doing well for the tests?
  7. What is the track record at this college for student job placement?
  8. How is the school spirit?
  9. Does the college take a healthy pride in itself, or is it so smugly sure of itself as to be chauvinistic?
  10. Is this a safety school for most students?
  11. How does this affect morale? How utilized is the library?
  12. Are students really studying?
  13. What do you enjoy most about the students here?
  14. How do they compare with students at other places you may have taught?
  15. How much emphasis is there on publishing verses on teaching?
  16. Who teaches introductory courses – professors or graduate students?
  17. What kind of services are available when someone needs extra help?
  18. How effective is the advising system? What departments are considered outstanding, weak, and average?
  19. What is I am unsure of my major?
  20. Is this a good place to explore?

Planning College Visits

"The Carnegie Endowment team for the book, 'College', found in their college visits that only 20% of the liberal arts college students did not feel a sense of community in their school, verses 40% at all institutions." - Loren Pope, College Placement Bureau

Visiting a college is your chance to "test-drive" the merchandise. What happens outside the admissions office, however, is just as important than any organized tour or interview. Ask lots of questions. Talk with as many students and staff as you can. Look at bulletin boards to learn what is going on outside the classrooms. Is it interesting to you? Get a sense of the school’s social life, academic climate and where you might fit in.

  1. Call the Admissions Office at least one week in advance to set up an appointment. Many competitive schools book up months in advance. Plan ahead!
  2. Visit when the school is in session. If possible, spend the night in a dorm. You’ll get a chance to think about what you have learned and to ask follow-up questions.
  3. Go on an organized group tour of the campus if possible. Ask the guide questions. What other schools did he/she apply to? How did he/she choose this school? Is it what he/she expected? What would he change about it if he could?
  4. Meet with an admissions counselor after your tour to ask questions and interview.
  5. Attend at least two classes: a typical freshman class, especially a required or lecture style course and an upper class course in your area of interest. Are students engaged? What is the teaching style? Does the conversation continue after the class ends? Do students linger after class to talk with the professor?
  6. Eat in the dining hall. This is the place where you can get a feel for the "pulse" of a place. What are students talking about? Who is socializing with whom? Sit at a table with six or eight students so that you get varied responses to your questions.
  7. Talk with current students and faculty. What are their favorite/least favorite things about the college? What would they like to change if they could? What kind of students seem happy here? What is the balance of intellectual and social life?
  8. Visit the bookstore. Ten minutes here will tell you a lot about the character of a school. Does it sell mostly beer glasses and ashtrays or does it offer a wide range of good books and classical music?
  9. Visit the newspaper, radio station and student government offices. These people have their fingers on the pulse of the place. What do students and faculty care about on campus?
  10. Check out the surrounding area and nearest town.

 

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Portsmouth, NH
603.430.3711
aforbes@forbesedconsulting.com