Campus visit pays off in picking college
By Zenaida Serrano Espanol
Advertiser Staff Writer
For Mona Sakai of Kuli'ou'ou, visiting prospective colleges on the Mainland this week with her son, a Kaiser High School senior, will be a worthwhile trip.
Following advice from a friend, Sakai, 48, visited five campuses in Oregon and California in 2000 with her daughter Erin, then a senior at University Lab School.
After the trip, Erin decided on Pacific University, where she will graduate in May with degrees in accounting and Japanese.
"I had a friend whose son went to school on the Mainland, and he hadn't visited the campus before. And when they took him up, he didn't like it," said Sakai. "He was miserable."
Visiting campuses is an essential part of the decision-making process for college-bound students and their parents, said Dan Feldhaus, director of college counseling at Iolani School for 34 years.
"Some of (the college costs) now are $41,000 or $42,000 a year," Feldhaus said. "If you bought a car for that, you would be darn sure you looked this thing over from stem to stern. I think, if at all possible, the child and the parent should visit the campus to feel good about their decision."
Sakai and her 17-year-old son, Marc, will visit Loyola Marymount, University of San Diego and California State University-Fullerton — colleges he has applied to and is waiting to hear from.
Meanwhile, Feldhaus and a group of sophomores and juniors leave today for his annual tour of East Coast colleges.
Spring and summer of junior year are some of the best times to visit college campuses, counselors say. Visits should take place before students begin applying, to explore their choices, as well as after they have been accepted, to help make the final decision.
Some local families find it tough to afford a visit to Mainland campuses, Gwen Mau, college and career counselor at Moanalua High School, pointed out.
"But if you're making a big investment (for college), what's a few hundred dollars more to make sure they'll want to go there and that they'll be happy there?" Sakai said.
Students and parents are encouraged to hunt for cheap airfares and plan their trip to take full advantage of the experience.
"Most times, for our students it's out of the question," Mau said. "So in order to make the most of it, preparing is the most important thing."
Other points to consider:
Plan to go when classes are in session. Families should visit when they can get a true flavor of campus life, said Suzanne Kaneshiro, career and college coordinator at Mililani High School.
Avoid going at the very beginning of the semester, when the campus may be in a frenzy, or during finals week, when most students will be holed up studying, Kaneshiro said.
Call the school at least two to three weeks in advance. Find out if and when the school offers a tour and information session (each of which usually lasts about an hour), and schedule an appointment. Some schools provide prospective students with overnight accommodations, so inquire about that, Kaneshiro said.
Do your homework. Get background information online or from a college handbook beforehand. Know the basics — size and cost, if the school has the major the student's looking for — so the visit can be devoted to more pertinent questions.
Be sure to ask about admissions, areas of special interest and financial-aid options. "Sit down with your college counselor for questions to ask," Mau said.
Take notes. During or immediately after each visit, students should write down their impressions. "Try not to visit more than two a day," Kaneshiro advised.
Parents should not dominate the visit. Keep your child's interest in mind, not your own, Feldhaus said.
Kaneshiro suggests students get as much personal contact as possible with college students and professors, perhaps at a lounge area or campus center.
"Go by yourself and roam around," she said. "See if people are friendly, and check out the diversity on campus."
This can be done while parents are speaking with a financial-aid official, or they can arrange to meet you at a designated area.
Keep communication open before, during and after each visit. Openly discuss what the child is looking for and how each prospective school fits in with those needs, Feldhaus said.
"A lot of times parents don't do that, and I think the kids need to know where the parents are coming from and vice versa," he said. "That interchange can help make the visits more valuable and meaningful."
Reach Zenaida Serrano Espanol at zespanol@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8174.
