Around campus, there are now unexpected pockets of delicious, free food, and the upperclassmen know what that means—don’t we, guys? The admitted students are arriving one by one to check out Rochester and to see if they should write their deposit check, buy their parents a car decal, and change their Facebook status to “University of Rochester, Class of 2016.” If there were ever a fool-proof way to woo clientele, it would be to draw them in with these pockets of delicious, free food.
When I visited Rochester as an admitted student for Spring Open Campus (now called “The 2016 Experience”), the crowning moment was when the tour ended in the Welles-Brown Room in Rush Rhees Library and we admitted students were invited to gorge ourselves on chocolate-covered strawberries, little one-bite quiches, a variety of crackers and savory spreads, fruit, and punch.
But, let’s just get one thing straight—one thing no one told me before I came here: Every time you walk into the Welles-Brown Room, there will not be an array of mouth-watering morsels waiting for you. Instead, you will enter the room with a backpack that weighs 2/3 of what you weigh, you will attempt to tackle the 50 hours’ worth of homework you have, but you will instead proceed to fall asleep in your textbook or on your laptop, only to wake up locked in the Welles-Brown Room overnight with the shape of computer keys imprinted on the side of your face (true story; this happened to my friend).
I’m kind of joking. I’m pretty sure she’s the only person ever to get locked in the library overnight (twice). But the point is, accepting free food is awesome, and you should eat as much of it as you can while it’s being offered to you, but also make sure that you don’t get blindsided by the fanfare that many colleges whip out to try and reel in admitted students. Be aware of what you’re truly seeing around you—take some time to stray away from the official tours and receptions and just go sit in a dining hall or in the student union to observe how the students actually interact with each other, and what kind of food they’re really eating. (I actually like the food here most of the time, but it certainly isn’t anything like the spread I had in the Welles-Brown Room as an admitted student.)
It’s good to get swept up a little in the excitement of college acceptance events—you deserve it; applying to colleges is a hard and emotional process—but don’t make any hasty decisions, and don’t be afraid to second-guess yourself a little. You might actually find that when it comes down to a real decision, you feel more at home at the college that was your third choice, not your first choice, and that’s okay. Remember how stressful it was sitting around and waiting for colleges to make decisions about you? Well, the decision is now entirely yours, so take advantage of that power!
I can’t speak for other schools, but I can speak for Rochester when I say that admitted students can walk up to just about any student on campus and strike up a conversation to try and get to know the school better. Students here are really friendly, love prospective freshmen, and love, love, love to talk about Rochester, so don’t be afraid to really put yourself out there in the name of one of the biggest life decisions you will ever have to make. And if you get a free muffin or two in the process, then I would call it a successful campus visit.
PS: I would just like to give a little shout-out to Matt Lerner and Olivia Garber from Needham, MA, who recognized me from the blog and somehow spotted me at an ice cream store when I was home for spring break, and then had the guts to come over to my table and say hi. It was really cool meeting you guys, and I can’t wait to show you around when you’re here for The 2016 Experience! Thanks for making me feel famous. 🙂