Nadia is a recent graduate in Children’s Nursing, who enjoys getting lost in a book.
A university open day is a day or multiple days throughout the year in which universities invite prospective students onto their campus to take a look around the facilities, meet staff and current students, and find out more information on the different academic programmes, and extra-curricular activities the university has to offer.
As you all know choosing a university that is the right fit for you can be overwhelming, so open days are a great way to alleviate this type of pressure.
When I was looking to go to university I felt as if there were so many things I needed to consider and after attending multiple open days I felt more reassured and confident in my decisions.
I learnt what to look for at open days, what types of questions I needed to ask, and what kind of facilities are available outside of the academic lifestyle that is portrayed in conventional prospectuses. Open days are fantastic opportunities to network, gain answers to your questions but they can also be intimidating in some sense, so here are my top tips to help you make the most of them. I hope you enjoy them.
Being prepared and organised ahead of an open day leads to a successful open day whether it be in person or a virtual one. Here are my top tips to make the most of univeristy open days. I hope you enjoy them.
1. Get prepared
This is super important! Being prepared and organised ahead of an open day leads to a successful open day whether it be in person or a virtual one. Get a feel for the layout of the campus by looking on the university’s website beforehand (you can find City’s campus map) and downloading an offline version for you to familiarise yourself with, so it doesn’t seem so daunting when you’re there.
2. Make a rough plan of the day
There is nothing worse than the feeling of forgetting something, so making a plan of what you need for the day can really help. This can include transport to and from the university, getting in touch with the university if you have any special requirements or disabilities so they can accommodate you.
3. Ask yourself: ‘Do I see myself thriving here?’
When you’re at the open day take a minute to stop, think and look around and ask yourself that vital question; ‘Would I be happy here?’ Try to visualise yourself as a potential student at the university and see if it is the place for you.
4. Talk to others
At open days, there are so many people on the campus ranging from student ambassadors who are currently studying here, lecturers, and staff members, making it easy to steal away for a quick chat.
The best people in my opinion to grab a word with are the student ambassadors, as they will give you an honest opinion, and probably have the best answers for any burning questions you may have.
5. Write a list of questions
It’s safe to say when someone asks you ‘do you have any questions?’ you go blank. Trust me it happens to everyone, so preparing a list of questions beforehand will be super helpful as you can get the answers you want, which can help you make up your mind about what university may be for you.
And last but not least, this is your future. Find out what you want on these open days, they’re for you!
You can read Nadia’s suggested questions to ask and more of her tips on what to expect at univeristy open days.
At City, we run open days, open evenings, virtual tours and online chats to give you the opportunity to meet us and get a real taste of what it’s like to be part of City. Find out more about City’s open events and fairs.
