Campus visits provide an excellent opportunity to promote the college, such as small class sizes, great food and campus resources. However, these so-called promotions are not the reality of the campus experience. Campus visits do not give prospective students an accurate view of life at Augustana. 

College tours are not an accurate depiction of what life on campus is like. One aspect is the food served at the dining hall. It is less than desirable some days, especially around campus breaks with limited hours. 

I have used meal swipes for CSL, but I eat only a few bites of something because there are few options that I like. I do not consider myself a picky eater, but sometimes the options are very slim when you go toward the later times of the day.

College visit days do not provide real-life college experiences. These visits promote campus resources, but my experience did not match the publicity. 

Junior Izzy Sansom relates to this issue.

“I will say I’ve noticed how hard it is to find the right study,” Sansom said.

Many First-Year advisors are useful for committed students who know what major they want to pursue, but they are not trained enough to help undecided students.

I know of many students who were uncertain about their undergraduate studies who took classes that did not benefit them. 

“Switching around majors can be very inconvenient, especially with all the perspectives that the school requires. The school heavily emphasizes four years and done, but it can be very limiting with wanting to try new fields and courses,” Sansom said.

While the perspectives offer a wide variety of learning, there is a limited amount of time to complete degrees within four years, and some students aim to get ahead on major requirements to graduate with more than one major.

The claim of small class sizes benefitting the Augustana campus experience is something that I did not believe during my campus visits. Different types of classes may or may not agree with the small professor-to-student ratio depending on the department.

Students in need of major requirements or their Perspective on the Natural World (PN) fill biology and chemistry classes rather quickly on class selection days, but other departments, like languages, struggle to get enough students to fulfill the minimum requirement.

As part of the French and Spanish departments, I have recently been affected by limited classes offered because of reduced program interest. Small class sizes were being promoted, yet there is a limit to how small the classes can be.

Another aspect that is not talked about during campus visits is the safety of the area.

“The dangerous surrounding campus environment was not something I was told about. I was told on my visit the Quad Cities was a really nice and beautiful area, but the Rock Island crime rate is fairly high,” Sansom said. 

Tour guides often let parents know that the Quad Cities are known for car security issues, but other potential events are unpredictable.

Despite the differences between expectations versus the reality of Augustana through campus tours, it is important to visit the potential place that students could call home. The atmosphere, scenery, and all-around community that make up Augustana captivated me when I was committing, an experience I wouldn’t have had without visiting. 

Even though visits don’t provide you with a full college experience, they help you learn more about the campus and may impact your college decision-making. College visits are worth participating in, despite the drawback of not learning everything about campus. Augustana was the last college I visited, yet it was the easiest yes I have ever said.