Video: You-are-there campus tours
Go Deeper.
Create an account or log in to save stories.
Like this?
Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.
As a 1980s-era student who waded through college brochures instead of slick online presentations, the idea of a college tour videos still seems like a Jetsons-age luxury.
That said, I've seen a few that were so slick they left little impression of the campus or of student life at the school. (And this University Business writer has had a similar experience with some of the older ones.)
So when she wrote about this first-person video recently produced by Fairfield University in Connecticut, I had to give it a look.
It's a trip. The university has you choose whether you want the experience of students David or Sarah, and then let's you spend a day with them.
Turn Up Your Support
MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all.
I chose David. The day started with his alarm clock going off in his dorm room, and from there it took me through his morning routine, classes, a trip into town and the beach, a ball game, studying and a campus dance. I got a good look at his dormitory (including bathroom), the campus, classrooms and community. The presentation is smooth, though the shaky camera adds a certain amateur YouTube flavor.
Experiencing everything through his eyes -- and yes, he interacts with the people around him -- did give me an I-am-there feel that's missing in most campus videos I've seen.
That said, I was a little impatient with the time spent taking in some of the mundane details of life campus. But I'm not a prospective student, and that type of viewer just might eat it up.