This fall, Grayslake North hosted visits with representatives from colleges and universities all over the US, providing students with general information about the application process, college life, and specific information about each school. A wide range of colleges visited North, from the University of Chicago to Louisiana State to CLC.

“You get a deeper understanding of colleges, you get more of a feel for the community and the type of environment you’re going to get at college,” said junior Yazmin Robles after attending a visit from the University of Chicago. She also attended visits from College of Lake Forest and University of Illinois. “You have a more in-depth understanding of how their education works, how their admissions work and all that.”

College representatives spent their visits giving students a general overview of the college, the admissions process and the benefits of attending their particular university. They spoke about the specific programs and majors their university offered. They also took the time to answer questions.

“I enjoyed that they talked a lot about campus life and what it actually is like to be a student in that college,” said junior Anahi Tenorio, a prospective Ivy League student who hopes to major in biochemistry. She attended college visits from Northwestern, University of Chicago, and the University of Illinois. “They also give you some good tips, from the same people that admit people to those colleges. That’s helpful.”

Both Robles and Tenorio heard about the visits through Schoology posts from the College and Career Resource Center, a key source of information for students who plan to attend college.

Christine Applehans, the College and Career Resource Center coordinator, is in charge of managing the Schoology posts as well as scheduling visits.

“We use RepVisits, through Naviance, which allows any visit coordinator to create a calendar with their own times and days of availability for reps to schedule. The reps then have their own access to schedule their visits. Depending on the college visiting, there might be anywhere from two to six. For popular schools like U of I, there might be 20,” Applehans said.

While North does offer visits from out-of-state colleges, CLC is the most popular college for North seniors seeking higher education. Jenny Landman, a College and Career Navigator from CLC, visited Grayslake North to aid seniors in the application process. CLC visits every public Lake County high school to recruit students and offer advice for their first semesters.

“I think what’s really helpful is by us coming in, you know we exist. And then it just kind of gets you thinking about college, getting you started down that path, telling you about all of your options. Like you don’t necessarily have to go to a four year University right away,” Landman said.

College visits provided a solid starting place for students who were just starting to look at different schools and those who were already going through the process of applying. It was also helpful for students who plan to be the first in their families to attend college.

“It’s beneficial because there are a lot of students that are first generation. They don’t really have anything to go off of,” Tenorio said. “There’s so much to do, and you don’t know where to start. And they provide some information that can really help.”