5 Things To Look For On A Campus Visit at York College of Pennsylvania

Choosing the right college can be tricky. The first step is finding out what it is that you truly want to study. A great many freshmen start college as “undecided” and later decide how they’d like to chart the rest of their careers. At the age of 18, this isn’t exactly a small decision. Here are a few helpful things that you should look for during a campus visit if you are considering York College of Pennsylvania.

1.) Know Your Internal Clock.

Everyone has a different sleep schedule; some are early risers, and some can’t bring themselves to wake up before noon. While I’ve heard some early birds say that night owls are simply lazy or irresponsible, there have been many studies showing that we all have different circadian clocks. This means that it is biologically natural for early birds to rise early, and in turn they’re not able to cope with late nights. It is also natural for night owls to stay up late and sleep into the afternoon. I cannot stress enough that students learn their natural sleep schedules organically, and prospective students should look into whether the college of interest has classes, library hours, and dining hours that will accommodate them. Luckily, for all students who fall under either category, YCP has a virtually 24-hour library, food options open both early and late, and the option of early morning, midday, or evening classes. While there are no classes that can be taken online, the class times are moderately diverse.

2.) This also relates to time and sleeping habits.

If a student is the type who will travel around campus primarily at night, make sure to check schools’ security levels. This matters especially for colleges like YCP, which is in a fairly unsafe city. On this subject, make sure to ask about security cameras, on-campus medical sites, campus safety or police, and dorm security. For example, YCP has its own campus police, but also has city police nearby. There are also cameras all around campus, and most buildings (including dorms) are inaccessible without a student card.

3.) Class and School Size.

Think back to high school. Did mandatory gatherings, speeches, or large classes make you nervous? Did you thrive when there was a multitude of other students and teachers to lead discussion? These are important questions to answer before you ask about class size during a college visit. YCP is medium-sized in student head count and thus has medium/small class sizes with a standard cap on the number of students per class. This is, in part, because it is considered a private school. (Community colleges or state colleges tend to be larger in size, and therefore have larger class sizes.) This is also something that needs to be considered when applying for student housing, as YCP has residence halls that vary in students per room and per building.

4.) Transportation Needs.

Many schools have some sort of campus-wide transportation or bus system to aid students in traveling between campuses or even neighborhoods. Would you prefer a compact campus, or one spread over a city? Do classes offered in your major require travel beyond the primary campus where you would reside? If so, is transportation something that you would need? Lastly, how important is it that the school provides transportation to off-campus destinations like the grocery store or the movies? YCP has a West Campus and Main Campus. While the two are within walking distance, there is a campus shuttle provided at all hours of the day, and it occasionally provides transportation into the city.

5.) Specific Buildings for Specific Areas of Study.

The last thing I consider an important question is whether or not the school you are looking at has a building or area designated for your major. At YCP, multiple buildings (or entire halves of buildings) are dedicated almost exclusively to the art, music, business, engineering, writing, sports, ecology, math, and science majors. General classes that are taken by non-majors in those subjects are also held here. This dedication helps students feel like they have a space shared with like-minded people where they can always find assistance and tools that are relevant to the area in which they are studying.

Jamie Lyn Sawczyszyn graduated from York College of Pennsylvania in 2013 with a Bachelor’s in Professional Writing. She is currently planning to move to Philadelphia to expand on her education while teaching ballroom dancing in her spare time.