A virtual open day guide for a great school visit

The best part about visiting schools and campuses is getting a feel for the place. Virtual Open Days and visits may be a little more challenging, but they can still give you a great opportunity to get to know the school better. Here are our 4 top tips for a seamless visit:

1. Like most things in life, preparation is key. Here’s a handy checklist for everything you may need before your visit:
   • Confirm dates and time (double-check time zones – any doubts, here’s a useful converter, and keep an eye out for dates shifts if you’re in another hemisphere)
   • Is this a virtual group visit with other families or a one-on-one? Confirm who you’ll be meeting with. Don’t hesitate to look up their Linkedin profile to see how long they’ve been with the school. (Bonus points to the school if they have matched you with an advisor who shares similarities with your profile).
   • It’s important that everyone attending can get the most out of the visit. Will you need a translator, and if so, can the school help in organising one? 
   • Check the tech specs – Zoom, Skype, Teams? Make sure you’ve created a free account and test your internet connection, microphone and camera ahead of time. 

Protip: Test out the connection one week before on the same day and time as your planned meeting – with more people working from home, network capacity has created added virtual traffic and you’ll want to make sure that you won’t be struggling to communicate at peak times. 

2. Sign up to several open days/visits – kissing a few frogs is the best way to get a feel for each school. You may only be interested in having a virtual visit with your preferred school, and yes they can take up valuable time, but exploring other schools will help you make the best decision. Keep an eye out for the following:
   • How well organised is it?
   • Keep in mind that the standard of presentations will be directly correlated to the standard of lectures/classes.
   • Is there a Q&A scheduled window?

How well organised is the pre/post visit communication? 

3. Questions, questions, and more questions. If you don’t ask, you probably won’t receive. Hopefully most of your questions will already be answered before you need to ask them, but here are a few key suggestions to keep in mind:
   • Is the school accredited and by who? Is that accreditation membership-based or awarded on merit? (Some membership affiliations are subscription memberships).
   • Is there a strong alumni network? Ask for examples of recent events, and ways former students can stay in touch. For example, is there a facebook group? A dedicated app? Is there a dedicated alumni member of staff/admin? If you’re a parent of a younger student, is there a strong parent network? 
   • Which areas has the school invested in over the past 5 years? What are the investment plans for the next 5? (This will indirectly show you the improved weak points and the current ones being addressed.)
   • How many new members of staff/teachers/lecturers join each year? (A certain number of new lecturer intakes encourages fresh input/too many and there may be a bigger issue in the background)  

4. Moving beyond the razzle-dazzle. Beautiful campuses, canapes and free drinks make it much easier to create a winning impression. A virtual visit strips a school back to the essentials – the ethos of the school, the quality of the teaching, educational and recreational opportunities, as well as student body data. You will possibly be spending some of your time learning virtually and some of it on campus and this is a great way to ensure that both experiences will be valuable. 

Finally, if it didn’t live up to your expectations, try giving the school your feedback. They may be able to reassure your doubts before you make your final decision. If you would like more advice on choosing between schools, our team is happy to help – good luck!