One Way or the Other

As a student athlete, one of the steps in committing to a college where the student hopes to continue an athletic career while perusing an education is to visit the campus.

There are two ways to accomplish this task. The first is to visit the college on an unofficial visit where you go at your own cost. The second option is to wait until you are a senior and use one of your five official visits. This is when a college that is attempting to entice the athlete into joining one of their teams can invite you down and show you the campus on the school’s time. This method can result in a more in-depth tour of campus. Time is all located for touring the main structures, sporting facilities, and on-campus dorms. In addition, there is significant time spent in understanding the role of the academic counselor.

Often, official visits are on a football weekend so that the perspective student can attend and get a feel for campus life outside of the academic disciplines. There is usually an opportunity to speak with student athletes at the university, allowing for honest dialogue with young people who are already in the situation. Many times official visits are over dinner resulting in long conversations with coaches to get acquainted with one another. 

The final day of one’s visit is spent having breakfast with the coaches to give that last good impression as one is headed home to make the final decision.

By: Kevin Elder