Check for virtual admissions events

Many college admissions offices have moved their information sessions for prospective students online. Pack says that schools are using Zoom so students can ask questions in real time. Virtual sessions may actually provide more opportunities for prospective students to connect with the school, she adds.

For example, it can feel less intimidating to type into the chat than it is to raise your hand during an in-person event, and you may be able to reach an admissions representative directly via email or Zoom after the fact if your questions aren’t answered.

Look on your school’s admissions website for live events, Q&A sessions, and Zoom appointments, and be sure to sign up or schedule in advance if necessary.

Explore several virtual tour platforms

There’s no shortage of video and photo content on social media covering campus tours and student life, but there are a few platforms dedicated to virtual college tours. Check out a few to get different perspectives on your prospective schools.

• YouVisit: YouVisit has interactive virtual tours for more than 600 U.S. colleges. You can walk through an official 360-degree campus tour narrated by a guide, view additional photos, videos, and panoramas of each stop, and track your location on Google Maps.

Take notes for later

On an in-person tour, you’d have the chance to stop and ask questions—but a pre-recorded virtual tour may not offer the details you’re interested in. Pack recommends writing down questions to research later or to ask in a virtual information session.

Plus, virtual tours may not follow a logical walking route, especially for bigger campuses, so it’s helpful to have a campus map or Google Maps to follow along.

Narrow your focus

The sheer amount of information can be overwhelming, so don’t be afraid to focus on places, programs, or opportunities that really matter to you. Skip around in a virtual tour to see athletic facilities or chemistry labs or freshman dorms. Search for videos that cover dining options or Greek life or intramural teams. And proactively reach out to students, faculty, or admissions representatives with questions—if you’re interested in a specific sport, academic program, or club, a general info session is unlikely to cover those topics.

“It’s really important to find the content or the students that align with you and hear what they’re experiencing,” says Rob Carroll, cofounder of CampusReel. “It’s all about trying to tailor it as much as you can to exactly what you’re looking for and what your background is.”

Use social media

Pack recommends searching Instagram for official (college-led) and unofficial (student-led) accounts. You may find admissions-specific accounts as well as feeds for academic departments, student organizations, athletic teams, and more.

This gives you “a glimpse of what life is like at that university for a student and how active their interests are on campus,” she says.

Explore the surrounding area

An important part of a college visit is getting to know the surrounding city or town, and no virtual tour can replicate that experience. You can, however, hop on Google Maps. Zoom in to view restaurants, bars, and attractions around campus, switch to Street View for a virtual tour of neighborhoods around town, and plug in specific locations to find out how long it takes to walk or drive from place to place.

Emily Long

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Emily is a freelance writer based in Salt Lake City, UT.