University open days can be an exciting and informative day for prospective students to learn more about higher education. But how are you supposed to fit everything into one day? To help make your next university open day a little easier, we’ve put together a list to help you prepare:
Decide on travel
Yes, this might be an obvious decision but consider open day travel as a test-run for life at university. You will probably travel from home to campus at least a few times a year (hello Christmas holidays), so have a look into the travel routes to see how far you will be travelling come September 2022/23.
Prepare your questions
If it’s your first open day at a university, things can seem a little overwhelming as there is a lot to see and do. It might be a bit of a squeeze to fit everything in so make a priority list and also prepare some questions hat you want to ask beforehand, whether it’s about your course or entry requirements or alumni – have them written down and remember to take a pen so that you can make notes to refer back to.
Visit your accommodation options
Where you’ll be living is an important part of the university experience. See if you can arrange a couple of tours on the day so that you can explore your options. Visiting student accommodation in person will give you a much better view on things like room size, amenities, and the on-site team. This real-world experience will allow you to weigh up your options and give you a more calculated decision when deciding on your student accommodation.
Chat to a current student
There will be plenty of current students on campus during a university open day; utilise the opportunity and ask if they’ll answer a few questions. Ask them about important things like how courses are run, how valuable the lectures are, and what sort of job opportunities they’ve had. Also, don’t forget to ask them about university life! If you’re going to be living somewhere for three years, then you want to make sure it’s fun!
See the sights
When you’re visiting the open day, make sure that you leave enough time to explore the town/city. Check out the local coffee shop, student bars, and shopping facilities. You’ll spend a lot of time in your university town and it’ll shape a lot of your university experience, so make sure you take a minute to explore it first-hand.
Weigh up your lecturers-
Another benefit of going to an open day means that you will get to meet your potential lecturers in person. As they’ll be teaching you for three years, you need to know if their teaching style is suitable for you. Sometimes meeting your lecturer in person can be the main clincher in deciding if the university is right for you. Ask them questions about the course, and how they’ll help you if you are struggling…
