What every prospective student should ask themselves is 'why should I go to an open day”?
For some, they see it as just a day out from school where you avoid some classes, but open days can, and are, very important events and require a lot of preparation if they are to be of any value to you. College is not just a place where you will be spending the next four / five years studying, it is also a place where you will make new connections, new friends and all kinds of new experiences. The social aspect to college life is equally import to the academic life. Sometimes career choices can be a rushed affair, lacking sufficient thought or research, so there is no point in going to open days unless you have questions, if you don’t you will most likely come home without answers.
Preparing for college open days
Here is a quick guide for preparing for open day so that you can be confident of finding out exactly what you need to know and where to get this information:
Check when and where the college days that you wish to attend takes place.
Check if they are going to have information about the courses / colleges which are relevant to you.
What the entry requirements are, for example, am I studying the subjects that are required for the relevant course at the level required? Is higher level maths required? is a science subject, or a modern European language, an entry requirement? Apart from the points requirements, do I have the subject requirements? Points change from year to year but entry requirements rarely do.
Explore course structures that suit you best, for example, is my preference to study a course that is predominantly theory based for the next three or four years? Or would I prefer a more practical course where I learn more from doing?
Check exactly what is on the curriculum in year one, two, three and four of the course.
Make sure that you have sufficient knowledge regarding the courses you are interested in, so that you can ask relevant questions at the open day. For example, how many hours will l need to attend lectures? Do I start late on Mondays and finish early on Fridays? this may be important if you are moving away from home and want to travel home at the weekends.
Is on campus accommodation available? are there options in the surrounding areas close to the college if its relevant to you?
Will I have the opportunity of a placement abroad?
What type of student supports are available?
If I have medical problems, is there a doctor / nurse on campus?
What sports facilities and societies can I get involved in?
When you get to the open day
Make sure that you obtain a map of the location of where the different stands are located, this will be available online, or will be sent to your school prior to the event. Make sure to familiarise yourself with the map and the location of the college / course you want to get information about.
Careers fairs can be daunting places when you arrive. You can easily get lost in the crowd especially if it’s your first time. If you arrive without a plan it may result in you running out of time while looking for what you want. Each stand should have a number displayed on it, this will help you to navigate your way around the venue.
You need to ask very specific questions. There are usually scheduled talks where you can sit down and listen to a speaker in your area of interest. There will always be an opportunity to chat to the speaker after the talk if there are still some unanswered questions.
Check out what scholarships are available, if you feel that it would be relevant to you most colleges colleges offer both academic and sporting scholarships. Check what the deadlines are for these courses and scholarships, because you do not want to miss those deadlines.
After the open day
If for whatever reason you did not manage to gather all of the information you required, college faculties will only be too happy to reply to any queries you may have after the open day.
You will find their details online or in the college prospectus. However, you cannot replace the benefits of face-to-face interaction and visiting the college in person, which should give you a feel for college life. While you are there visiting, you can soak up the buzz of college life, what is on offer and using this you can weigh up what you from college life.
There are always second or third-year college students at the stands, giving you an opportunity to chat to them about college life in general. You may also be able to wander around the college and see what current students are doing, maybe have a look at the canteen, the sports grounds, the library - check out everywhere and make the most of the opportunity that open days offer.
