Although visiting colleges might not sound quite as glamorous as a vacation to the beach or the streets of Europe, many juniors spent time over spring break traveling near and far to potential schools.

Junior Sonya Das was one of those students. She visited Northwestern University and the University of Chicago, because “they’re two of the top colleges on my list to look at,” she said. A tennis player, Das took advantage of the trip to the University of Chicago to talk to the tennis coach there. She also learned much about the structure of the school year in both schools. Das was especially interested in how Northwestern had “six different schools that focused on different majors,” she said.

Another student who visited Northwestern this spring break, junior Bilal Askari, also visited the University of Wisconsin-Madison. There, he added information sessions and went on a tour to see the campus, “so that I have some background information to consider while applying,” Askari said. He wanted to “just kind of get to know what kind of college options I have.”

Because she is considering to stay in state for college, junior Ria Guest visited Carleton College. “It was more of my dad’s idea,” she said. After her visit, Guest has a more in depth idea of what life at Carleton might be like. “If you like small towns, it’s a lot like SPA,” she said.