April 17th, 2022 by Mike Getman
There are several ways to visit colleges when you are trying to find the college with the right fit for you.
The most comprehensive way to visit a college is during an “Official Visit”. But Official Visits must be set up through the soccer program and coaches will only bring in their top recruits. An official visit may occur anytime after August 1 of your Junior year. During an official visit, the college or soccer program may cover some or all of your expenses. You can only take 5 “official visits” and no more than one per college. Official Visits must last no more than 48 hours.
During an Official Visit you will spend time with some of the players, meet with the coaches, tour campus, and usually meet with some of the academic support staff. There is no better way to learn about the college and soccer program.
You can also arrange for an “Unofficial Visit” with the soccer coach. This type of visit will allow you to learn about the Soccer Program and will give insight into how you might fit into the team. You will need to contact the coach and ask if you can arrange a visit. This type of visit can be done any time after August 1 of your Junior year but the college cannot cover any of your expenses. These visits can last 10 minutes or all day.
You can always call Admissions and arrange a campus tour. Almost every admissions office hosts prospective students, gives tours of campus, and answers general academic questions. While this type of visit will not give you much info about the soccer program, it will allow you to see the campus and figure out if it is a good fit for you outside of soccer.
Visiting a college campus is an important part of figuring out what school is the best fit for you. Most players will start to make visits during their Junior year so they can have plenty of time to see and learn about all of their potential choices. Start by visiting schools that are close by and as you learn more about what colleges have to offer, you can also figure out more about what is important to you. Once you have this base knowledge, you can really start to research different Universities and expand your search.