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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

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Original poster

How many universities are you visiting?

44 replies

228agreenend · 24/06/2017 12:33

Just saw a post on facebook from a friend commenting from the latest uni they have visited. They went to a different one yesterday, and another one last week. We haven't even been to any yet, and are only planning a few. Now I'm panicking we should be going to more.

OP posts:

Decorhate · 24/06/2017 12:58

I think dd looked at 7 or 8 when she was applying but we are not British & had never visited some of the cities she was thinking of applying to before.

Some she went to by herself or with friends.

BubblesBuddy · 24/06/2017 13:18

Five for DD1 and three for DD2 who wanted a specialist course. One of the five was an informal visit because there was only so much time she could have away from school. Most of her friends did between two and five. Some were very sure where they wanted to go, others looked at quite a variety. Some went with parents, others did not.

It is useful to think about the course, type of university and whether you want town, campus or large city university. Where do you feel comfortable? Is the course likely to be highly competitive or less so? Is there anything you need to know about the admissions procedure you cannot find out from the web site? You have to try and shortlist the universities and courses that are aspirational and possible insurance choices, so visiting several gives you a feel for where your DC is likely to get in because some are a lot more choosy than others.

Open days are happening now so you may be too late for a formal one, but you can still visit the cities and have a look around a university and see what you think. Some will be happy for you to visit informally to look at accommodation and chat to an admissions tutor. Ring/email and ask. There will be further open days in the autumn, so get booking if you want a formal one.

CrewsInn · 24/06/2017 14:13

DC's sixth form college did a few coach trips which they went on. Others they took the train or I drove them.
They preferred to go in the summer term rather than autumn.
DS1 went to 4 and DS2 went to about 20 7 I think.

Lucysky2017 · 24/06/2017 14:35

My sons had a school trip to one (although it is not on their list - it was a whole class trip, a kind of - this is a university day) and then one went to an offer holders' day but no others.

BubblesBuddy · 24/06/2017 14:44

I think it is a risk not looking around and a school trip cannot look at courses and get a feel of the university. It is just a snapshot for people who may not have considered university. My DN was bowled over by one of her local unis bit she is clever so she should aim higher. I find it odd that schools don't have info in their 6th form booklets about university choice and how to find the right course and place. There is a reason why some universities have high drop out rates.

ThroughThickAndThin01 · 24/06/2017 14:46

We plan on looking at 5. One down so far.

OhYouBadBadKitten · 24/06/2017 14:50

dd has some with college and some she is doing herself. I think it's 8 she is looking at.

Ocies · 24/06/2017 15:06

Dd went to 3 open days, 2 interview days at universities not previously visited and then, because she had a change of plan, one campus tour. So six altogether.

lcj68 · 24/06/2017 16:30

We are in same boat as in not been on any yet, and going to one next week, and possibly another 1 or 2 in the autumn. My Dd is not keen on going at all so am pressurising her to go to at least one to get an idea of uni but she hasn't been interested, it's been me that's suggested it. Also we are only going to one within 2hrs distance, people seem to be driving up and down the country

Original poster

228agreenend · 24/06/2017 16:40

Inspired by my own thread, DS is researching more.

We've just discovered the Which Uni website. It a couple of useful tools.

Firstly, you can put in your A-level subjects and it suggests subjects.

You can also search uni courses by expected a-lelvel grades, UCAS points etc. I've encouraged DS to look at some 'insurance' choices, as well as the higher options ones he seems to like.

In my day, visiting uni meant a day bunking off schools with your friends, and going up by train. Parents never went, unless they drove you there (and then left you to your own devices).

OP posts:

RedHelenB · 24/06/2017 16:57

My dd visited 5 and put down 4 of them for dentistry. When she went with College they delayed starting the journey home until 'she'd finished her dental school your.

Icouldbeknitting · 24/06/2017 17:00

DS has now done four and has another in September. Two will have been in college time, the rest will all have been Saturdays. I don't know if there will be others or whether he'll settle at that.

AtiaoftheJulii · 25/06/2017 00:09

Dd1 went to 4 (two in the summer, two in the autumn) and applied to all of them, dd2 went to 6 I think (one in the autumn of y12 with dd1, the others in the summer) and ruled out 3 after visiting.

Ds is going into y12 in September and I'm thinking of trying to get him to do one this autumn, just to start getting his head round it all.

BubblesBuddy · 25/06/2017 13:24

I think if a DC is not interested in visiting, are they really interested in going to university? Are they being dragged along? I might revisit my expectations if this was the case.

OhYouBadBadKitten · 25/06/2017 13:29

sometimes it's not that they aren't interested, it's that it seems such a long way ahead and they are struggling to think about the future at all in any sort of terms.

Laniakea · 25/06/2017 13:29

dd (just about to go into y12) has booked one for September she might to another one this year, there are only 4-5 places that offer the course she's interested in so she won't be doing masses. The one's she's visiting this are only an hour or two from home so she's going on her own, the next one is way up north/overnight stay so one of us will probably go with her.

Original poster

228agreenend · 25/06/2017 13:30

Dc is interested in visiting them. I think I was concerned that he wasn't planning to visit enough, to gauge what he would like. Ie. Campus or city, city or smaller,town. I did ask him this, and he said he'd be happy anywhere.

OP posts:

latedecember1963 · 25/06/2017 15:59

last summer our DS looked at quite a wide range of places to gauge whether he would prefer a city, a town, campus etc. it's also really important that they go to the subject sessions and speak to the staff/current students of their proposed subject. DS had a list of questions that were common to all institutions and also specific questions for the place he was visiting. As well as subject queries he also checked out the music society and ultimate frisbee society as these are important to him.
DH & I provided transport to some of the places but once we had arrived tended to go off & do our own thing while he did the looking round although we did sit in on some of the sessions if space was available and some places seemed quite keen to include parents.
Once he'd got his shortlist, he made his own way to interviews and offer holder days.
It can seem a faff and time consuming but I both our sons would recommend visiting before applying. DS1 was convinced that Bath was the only place for him. He and DH made the long car journey to the open day (we're in the north west) and after less than an hour had decided Bath was not the place for him after all!

If you can't get to the open days before the summer break, most institutions have them in Sept/Oct.

Iamastonished · 25/06/2017 16:48

We looked at one yesterday, will look at two next weekend and one the weekend after. I think we will look at 3 or 4 in the autumn as a lot of open days clash with each other.

I feel that DD's school could have done more to remind students and parents about open days as most of her friends don't seem to have booked open days. We booked open days because I use mumsnet and wouldn't have had a clue otherwise.

They went to a UCAS fair last Friday and DD told me that it should have been earlier as no-one knew that there were open days at some universities last weekend.

RedHelenB · 25/06/2017 19:13

Most unis have a few different dates and usually you can just turn up. Just some talks that may need to be booked.

boys3 · 25/06/2017 19:30

Ds1 went to four in total, although he had a very clear view of his preferences at the outset and would probably have quite happily stopped after his top two preferences.

Ds2, just ending year 12, is off to one with school this Friday, and another, this time with DH and I, the Friday after that. He is giving quite a bit of thought to a gap year however so the pressure is perhaps a bit less, along with not yet having a convincing view of what he might want to study at Uni

OhYouBadBadKitten · 25/06/2017 19:49

We've found it frustrating that some universities have put open days on the same day as AS exams. While they are running a day in September, it's too close to when college want their oxbridge applicants to hand in everything.

RedHelenB · 25/06/2017 20:15

Ohyoubadkitten _ you can add unis on after the October deadline so you can still do the Sept dates.

forgottenusername · 25/06/2017 20:19

We've done three so far and have another 4 to go

Of course none of them as the same ones I went to with dd1 last year, when we did a different 6.

None of these 10 are the 4 that I went to when i was looking myself 26 years ago. I've got 4 dc, I'm beginning to think I'll have seen all of them by the time I'm done!

OhYouBadBadKitten · 25/06/2017 21:06

That's good to know RedHelen, thanks.

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