With all due respect to Madonna, I think we need to revise her lyrics from “material world” to “virtual world”. We are definitely living in a virtual world. Everything from play-dates to school classes to doctors’ appointments to yoga have all moved to a virtual platform. And I am constantly amazed at the creativity and responsiveness on such a vast spectrum. In fact, it inspired me to apply a little out of the box thinking as well.
In addition to this being a big time of year for college visits, it is also when many of the national college fairs take place. It’s a wonderful opportunity to learn about a wide array of colleges from all over the country, one that is not going to be possible anytime soon. So, I thought to myself, “what are ways to virtually recreate this scenario for my students” and once I started thinking about it, the wheels were turning!
To do that, I started with the “game plan” I have them develop to prepare for attending college fairs:
1. Find 5-6 colleges you’ve not heard of
2. Evaluate them using your criteria to see if want to visit the booth
3. Prepare 2-3 questions to ask the admissions rep to get more information
4. Get a brochure and a business card from the admissions rep
5. Follow up after if it’s a college they’re interested in
Okay, all of this is totally doable, but where and how to put together the colleges? I was thinking about that when at a recent meeting, one of my students said to me “I have all of these brochures that have been sitting here for over a year, what should I do with them?”
YES!!!! And just like that, the idea of the mini/individualized virtual college fair came to fruition. We did it over two meetings and had a LOT of fun. And, it strengthened my student’s skills for researching and knowing how and where to find the information they need to feel confident to include it on their “list to apply”.
You can do it too! Using the game plan above, here is what we did:
1. Find 5-6 colleges you’ve never heard of: What my student did was to gather together all of the brochures and correspondence that they had been getting in the mail over the last year, but students can also use all of those emails they’ve been getting as well. Once a student signs up for the PSAT, their information is given to colleges across the country. They’ve probably been getting a ton of college emails that they haven’t opened, let alone read. Whether you’re sorting through emails or brochures, you’re basically virtually browsing through a bunch of colleges, probably that you’ve never heard of!
2. Evaluated them using their criteria: Starting with 5 specific criteria helps you compare “like to like” and makes it easier to decide if it’s a college that is initially interesting. It’s also important to include checking the majors to see if the college has the ones that you’re interested in.
3. Decide if you want to “visit the booth”: After evaluating the college, separate them into “like”, “want to know more” and “definitely not”.
4. Prepare 2-3 questions to ask the admissions rep: Figure out what info you need for the college to go from “need to know” to “like” and reach out to their admissions rep. This is a great time to reach them as they are usually on the road during this time and instead are home and virtual as well. You can also ask them to send a brochure or pamphlet, if you want.
5. Follow up after if it’s a college you’re interested in: There are many ways to do that. You can follow the colleges on social media, subscribe to their newsletter to get updates and find out if they are holding virtual info sessions, and take virtual tours through websites like YouVisit, CampusReel, or checking on the college’s website.
And here’s an idea! Once you finish you can take any unwanted brochures and pass them along to another family. One student’s “no way” could easily be another student’s “totally yay!”
Creative, productive and environmentally sustainable!