How to Make the Most of Your Business School Campus Visit

Visiting the campuses of your top-choice business schools can be an eye-opening experience. While on campus, you will gain a better understanding of how you would fit in this particular program. To make the most of your business school campus visits, ask strategic questions and incorporate what you learned during your visit into your applications. You can also learn more tips below.

Properly prepare for your business school campus visit

Do your research before arriving on campus. Plan your travel so that you’re early for your appointment, and come dressed in business attire. Research the admissions officers, student leaders, and professors who you’ll be meeting with. This way, you can familiarize yourself with who they are before you speak to them. Also practice your 30-second elevator pitch on who you are, what you do, and why you wish to attend business school. You will be answering these questions often during your application process, so prepare for them now.

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Ask strategic questions during your business school campus visit

During your business school campus visit, pay attention to all of the information provided to you, but specifically focus on the areas of the program you are most interested in and would like to know more about. For example:

  • If you want to go into investment banking after graduation, ask your tour guide which financial firms regularly recruit on campus.

  • If you’re interested in international business, inquire about study abroad programs and internship opportunities in other countries that the school has facilitated for students.

Show that you have done your homework on the program by requesting specific information that relates to your needs, as opposed to general facts about the school that you could have learned from their website.

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Send a thank you note to each person you spoke with during your business school campus visit

Write a handwritten note to every person who helped you during your b-school campus visit, and send these within a few days of your visit. This includes your tour guide, the admissions officers, the professors, and any other helpful individuals you encountered while at the school. Note how the advice or information that each person shared specifically helped you learn more about the program.

Talk about your business school campus visit in your application

Business schools want to know why you are applying to their program, as well as what efforts you have made to decide that their program is the best one for you. Include details in your essays about people you met, clubs you learned about, or classes you visited on your tour that influenced your decision to apply to this school. Elaborate on what you learned during your visit that confirmed how this particular program could help you achieve your goals, and clearly state what those goals are. Additionally, share why you would be an asset to the program. Demonstrate that you are ready to contribute your talents to your future class and to the school as a whole.

Your business school campus visits can provide essential information for your MBA application process. These visits allow you to learn more about your schools and your schools to learn more about you. While on your visit, take a moment to explore the campus and the surrounding area. Use the visit to your full advantage so that you know as much as possible about the environment where you will spend the next years of your academic life.

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