Apr 28, 2010

Virginia Private College Week Offers the Opportunity to ‘Tour Schools and Save’


Mark your calendars. The Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia (CICV) announced that Virginia Private College Week is scheduled to run this summer from July 26 to 31 and will once again offer college-bound students the opportunity to tour schools and save.

Thanks to some creative thinking, CICV launched an incentive program designed to bring high school students and their families to Virginia’s private college campuses by giving away application fee waivers. Literally hundreds of students take advantage of the offer each year as groups of families drive from campus to campus on summer vacations that double as traditional college tours.

It works this way:

1. Decide which schools you want to visit. There are 25 from which to choose, and they are located in virtually every corner of scenic Virginia.
2. Register for tours at each of the schools you plan to visit. Yes, register. It’s not required, but it really helps the schools plan for materials and tour guides.
3. Pick up a passport at the first college. It’s cute—a little like Disney’s EPCOT.
4. At the conclusion of your tour, get the passport stamped.
5. Once you accumulate at least three stamps, mail the passport to CICV, 118 East Main Street, Bedford, VA 24523.

Bingo! You’ve won three application fee waivers for any of the Virginia private colleges, and not necessarily the ones you visited. If you have questions, you can call 540.586.0606 or visit the Virginia Private College Week website.

By the way, Virginia’s private institutions often get overshadowed by our strong public colleges and universities. I encourage you to take a closer look, as these schools offer wonderful opportunities for students with a variety of college criteria and interests. Much more information, including a very useful listing of colleges by majors, may be found on the CICV website.

Finally, I want to remind Virginia residents about the Tuition Assistance Grant (TAG). This amazing program offers financial awards to students attending any of Virginia’s private colleges or universities. The sole eligibility requirement is that you live in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It’s really pretty sweet.


No comments:

Post a Comment