Issue Date: October 19, 2003
Save gas: Tour campuses online
Now that you've sweated through the SATs and composed a moving personal essay on your life's purpose, the search is on for all you college-bound students to find the perfect school. But before you fill up the tank on your last dime, it might be smart to tour the Internet and make sure a campus visit is worth the long haul in that jalopy.
In the age of digital diplomas, a growing number of colleges are offering sophisticated online windows into their campuses. These virtual tours vary in quality as much as the institutions themselves, so take some notes.
At admissions.utk.edu/virtualtour, you can take a five-minute "automated tour" of the grounds of the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, led by two virtual guides. Download a free iPIX plug-in (it's quick), then pan for 360-degree views of a dorm room, one of the cafeterias or a seat inside the nation's "second largest college stadium."
The University of Wyoming also ranks high, thanks to its 8-minute narrated movie (Real Player required). It's more promotional video than campus tour, but you'll still get a good impression of the Laramie campus and the surrounding area. From uwadmnweb.uwyo.edu/Tour, click on "Video: Visit UW."
Bucknell in Pennsylvania offers a slide show, but it's fast-paced. Type in www.departments.bucknell.edu/admissions/tour and choose your bandwidth.
Visually, Harvard is at the top of the class. At www.hno.harvard.edu/tour, a guided tour and QuickTime panoramas let you easily scroll outside and inside the storied Ivy League halls. Pick your starting points from drop-down menus or the overview map, then navigate.
If you don't get accepted, at least you'll know what you're missing.
-- David Andrukonis
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