Find the university that suits you can be done in different stage. First, national and global university rankings will certainly give you an excellent overview of the academic level of each, although each institution does not amount to simple criteria sometimes unrepresentative of reality.
The website of a university, its programs, its philosophy, the profile of students who join already give you a more realistic idea of what you can expect. But again, hard to imagine in the establishment! But how to project in a university abroad? Simply by browsing campus! Even if you cannot get there directly, it is possible to have an excellent overview of what it can you offer through different tools.
Where to start your virtual tour of your foreign university?
Once you have selected a short list of establishments that attracted your attention, you can start browsing the web portal of each of them. The tabs dedicated to “Prospective students” and “admissions requirements” generally give excellent overview of the proposed programs, and hosting set up for international. Some is even often dedicated to them, with all the specifics of your stay as an international student.
Associations, infrastructure and events on campus
To get a better picture of life on campus, nothing better than watching the various events organized by associations on site. The welcome international students, evenings, visits, trips, sports events … Life in a foreign university is punctuated by numerous projects and events.
However, from one university to another, their quality and size can vary greatly. To you to browse through different portals associations to get a glimpse of what was done the previous year, allocated budgets, the number of participants, etc …
Virtual Tours, the holy grail of international student
Internet saw an incredibly useful tool emerged: virtual tours. Increasingly widespread in universities, they can browse through your campus computer screen. Better yet, some are equipped with camera to see in real time what is taking place within the university. So nice to have a glimpse of what awaits you, and the size of the campus.
Google Maps also allows you usually see around the university, to learn more about the opportunities available to you after class. It is also an opportunity to learn about university housing, to determine whether it is worthwhile or not to live on campus against the possible activities in the area.
Social networks, important sources of information
Institutions of higher education have all now a Facebook page or a Twitter account. This is often a very important source of photos showing campus and events that are held there. You will receive regular information on the projects implemented through their current file, while the published pictures will give you an excellent overview of the overall ambiance!
Beware of brochures and official documents!
After sending your application or a request for information, it is not uncommon that you will receive many brochures with the university. If institutions compete for creativity to produce ever more beautiful and well-designed brochures, they can however be misleading . It is not uncommon that some play on perspectives to highlight or exaggerated aspects of student life on campus. Rarely a major problem, it is nevertheless possible that it gives you an idea slightly biased of what awaits you.
Finally, the possibilities are endless! With you to take time to go through these different sources to make your choice. Some students will travel all the documentation they can find, while others prefer to let the surprise discovery at the arrival. Each approach is important is to make the most of the opportunities that will be offered throughout the year!
