Campus Tours in 2025: The Top Questions Every Prospective Student Should Ask

Three New Questions to ask on Campus Visits

I've always had a go-to list of questions to ask tour guides during college visits. The three below have long been my must-asks to get at the true student experience beyond what is readily available on a college website: 1. How many students are in each of your classes this term? This is much more helpful for understanding the classroom experience than the easily googled student:faculty ratio. 2. What are the most popular student groups and activities on campus? You can find the full list of student organizations on most college websites, but it’s more telling to understand which draw the biggest crowds, whether football games, a capella performances, or the community service club. 3. What one thing would you change about this school if you could? This often generates honest feedback among otherwise scripted responses from trained student tour guides. While I still encourage asking tour guides the above, I’ve recently added three new questions to ask on campus given the rapidly evolving higher education landscape: 1. Are you seeing a reduction in research funding or undergraduate research opportunities? Many students we work with prioritize research as an important part of their college learning experience. Asking about continued access not only to research across disciplines but also funding for research, often granted through an Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP), can help you assess academic fit. Impacts to research funding have not been felt evenly across all college campuses, so ask about what each institution you are considering is experiencing. 2. Are you expecting a reduction or consolidation of academic departments? Breaking news about Indiana eliminating or consolidating 400 academic departments across six public institutions prompted this important question. For those considering college in the Indiana public system, the full list of impacted departments is available here: HEA1001 Voluntary Early Actions and Commitments Summary_V3 (7.1.25).xlsx.  But Indiana is not alone as we’ve seen departmental and full college eliminations within university systems across the country. Directly asking your schools of interest about any plans to reduce departments and how they will support students when programs are downsized or eliminated will help you understand if your dream major will still be possible upon enrolling. 3. Has support or resources for student cultural or religious programs changed over the past year?  Many universities have made changes to diversity and inclusion programming based on changing state and federal actions. For a better sense of whether a campus will provide the sense of belonging you may be seeking, ask students directly about how they are experiencing the campus climate, read the campus newspaper opinions section, and reach out to student groups that share aspects of your identity to gain additional perspective. One big caveat here: Today’s answer may no longer be accurate tomorrow, but it never hurts to try and glean real-time intel about how opportunities on campus may be impacted as the higher education landscape evolves.