The biggest decision many seniors face as they finish their final year of high school is what they will do once high school ends and where they will go to achieve their goals. In the case of many seniors, attending a college is part of their plan, but even with this decision there is still a high level of uncertainty. Out of thousands of colleges in the country, most students find it difficult to choose which school is right for them.

In my case, visiting the college itself has proven the most helpful. Originally, I planned to apply to Texas Tech so I could stay relatively close to home but still get the experience of living on my own in a different city. However, before I applied, I signed up for their “Preview Day” to get a better feel for the university.

When the day came to attend the event, I was filled with excitement to experience what the university would be able to offer me when I attended it as a student. Upon arrival, I attended a welcome seminar with hundreds of other prospective students and their families. The number of people attending the event immediately overwhelmed me, but I was still excited to continue with the day.

After the welcome seminar, a series of breakout sessions to learn information about the university and campus tours were available to the attendees. I began with one that discussed scholarship opportunities that were available for incoming freshman. I found immediately that the event was incredibly disorganized. People ran around looking for where they needed to go but there was hardly a way of knowing for sure. When I finally found the place I was looking for and entered the small room that the session took place in, I felt as if I had been thrown into a mosh pit. The room was wall to wall with people and there was absolutely nowhere to sit down. I was not able to even see the speaker when he introduced himself to quiet the room and start the session. The speaker began by saying that, there were extensive scholarship opportunities available at Texas Tech, however the only scholarships he spoke of were for top performing students, and not more average students like he made the presentation seem, which further deterred me from attending the school.

The next day, we were given the opportunity to tour the college we would be studying at in order to earn our degrees. I toured the business school and the facility was state of the art, but the feel was very pretentious. I felt as if I were at a doctor’s office rather than a place to learn. After the tour, we waited for 30 minutes for a shuttle to come pick us up, but such a shuttle never came. We were forced to pack onto the public transit bus among college students and attempt to find our way back. I felt as if the disorganization of the entire experience spoke volumes on the university, and I did not feel comfortable attending somewhere where I felt like I would not have the resources I needed to succeed.

With the experience at Texas Tech still fresh, I signed up to attend OSU Up-Close, a similar event that took place at Oklahoma State University. When I first arrived in OSU the feel was completely different. I felt less crowded, and I felt like the event was far better planned. I attended a presentation on the business school at OSU where the room was of adequate size and had more than enough seating for the people attending. The session covered all information and placed a spotlight on business students who have already used what they had learned at the university into their careers, which made the presentation more personable and real.

I attended a few more seminars, which highlighted more in depth opportunities at OSU, and each seminar did not feel overwhelmingly crowded and pretentious as it had at Tech. The tour process itself also was far better organized than at Tech as well. The group was only about 20 students instead of 70 so it was easier to move around and see everything. On the tour, I fell in love with the gorgeous campus and could envision myself there as a student next year.

Visiting schools has helped me understand that not all colleges are the same and each one may feel different for some people. I still have not made my college decision, but I have been able to add a university to my consideration list as well as take one away. Next month, I plan to tour Johnson and Wales University in Denver, Colorado and hope the tour gives me a clear decision just as the comparison between OSU and Tech has.