Own Your College Visit

A college visit is more than a campus tour.

It is an opportunity to self-reflect, build relationships, and evaluate whether a school can help you become who you are striving to be. Regardless of where you’re at in your academic career, college visits allow you to deepen your understanding of a school and the opportunities they provide. An incredible visit can be the catalyst for all that follows next for you, while a lackluster visit can be even more beneficial if it provides you with a sense of clarity and heightened self-awareness. Sometimes the best visit is the one where students walk away knowing they’re not going to move forward with applying to that particular school, because those ones open the door to truly finding your best fit. 

At Polaris Athlete, we believe college is the vehicle, not the destination. When you approach visits with clarity and intention, you take ownership of the journey.

Here is how to do it.

Identify the stakeholders

Before you step on campus, know who’s who when it comes to finding your fit.

Nearly all colleges and universities take a regional approach to admissions, meaning specific representatives are assigned to geographic territories. That admissions representative may be reading your application. They’re also the point of contact for you when it comes to any questions you might have as it relates to your college search and their institution. 

Start by identifying:

• Your regional admissions representative

• The department chair for your program(s) of interest

• Relevant directors or program leads

• For aspiring collegiate student-athletes, appropriate coaches or athletic staff

Communicate in advance

Proactive and professional communication sets the tone.

Once you have identified key stakeholders, send a concise and professional email that introduces yourself by sharing your intended major or interests, your upcoming visit date, while asking if there is an opportunity to briefly connect while you’re on campus.

If a school tracks demonstrated interest, connecting in advance can make a meaningful difference. Reaching out before your visit allows you to introduce yourself while expressing genuine interest. You’re also able to coordinate meaningful conversations which in turn builds rapport. By taking this step, when you arrive on campus, you are not just another name on the tour list. You are known.

For student-athletes, this is especially powerful. Coordinating time with admissions or academic departments, in addition to athletics, demonstrates maturity and alignment.

Confidence is built through preparation.

Register early and confirm

In-person tours and information sessions often require advance registration and they tend to fill quickly.

We encourage our students to register well in advance and save their confirmation details. Additionally, sending a brief and professional follow-up email confirming attendance is a great way to surface in advance of your visit.

Surfacing is a term that I tend to use a lot when it comes to college admissions. Public flagship universities have been experiencing a surge in demand as of recent admissions cycles. To put it into perspective, The University of Texas at Austin received a record 90,690 freshman applications for the Fall 2025 term, a 24.4 percent increase from the prior year and a 51 percent rise since 2022.

With the increased volume of applicants at many of our public universities, it’s important to surface via proactive efforts during the college search and application process to assist with determining fit and demonstrating interest when applicable. 

Prepare questions that matter

This is your opportunity to go deeper. When you think of college as the vehicle rather than the destination, your perspective shifts. You stop asking surface-level questions and start asking transformational ones. Every question should help you evaluate how that particular school will help you get to where you’re looking to go. Remember, your goal is to find the school that best fits who you are and who you want to become.

Move away from asking about questions that you could answer by simply looking at their website and consider asking questions in these four domains:

• Career Preparation & Outcomes
  Can you share examples of students with similar interests who have gone through this program and where they are now professionally? How does the program intentionally prepare students for long-term career success in this field?

• Internships & Experiential Learning
  What internship, research, or experiential learning opportunities have students in this major recently secured? How does the school actively connect students to industry networks, alumni, or employers?

• Faculty Access & Mentorship
  Can you describe what mentorship looks like here? How accessible are professors outside of class, and are there examples of faculty helping students with research, internships, or career placement?

• Student-Athlete Academic Support & Outcomes
  For student-athletes in this program, what does academic and career support look like in practice? Can you share success stories of athletes who successfully balanced competition and academics and transitioned into strong postgraduate or professional opportunities?

Reflect and follow up

The visit does not end when you leave campus. Reflection is where growth happens, so take time to consider what energized you, what aligned with your strengths and goals, what did not feel like a fit, and whether you can truly see yourself growing there academically, athletically, and personally. Then follow up with intention by sending thank-you emails, expressing genuine gratitude, asking any remaining questions, and coordinating additional conversations if needed. 

This level of thoughtfulness demonstrates professionalism and reinforces authentic interest.

College visits are powerful opportunities for self-reflection. They are not just about evaluating schools, they are about evaluating yourself. Each visit helps you clarify what you value, what you expect, what environments help you thrive, and who you want to become.

When you approach visits as an opportunity to deepen your self-awareness, you move through the admissions journey with greater confidence and clarity about what matters most: you.