Going to an open day is essential, actually go to as many as possible. I actually attended 10 open days at 8 universities. I came to Staffordshire University three times for open days and each time I came back it felt like home which is how I knew it was the right choice for me.
There are an array of different talks which occur during open days but the most essential one is your subject talk. Mine was obviously psychology and it was so helpful in understanding lots about the course at Staffs University. The talk explained what the course would cover, a little bit about the lecturers, the accreditation (accreditation from the BPS is essential if you want to undertake further studies in psychology), university life, support available and so much more. They also cover what facilities are available to student on the course which I found particularly interesting as these are the facilities that I will be relying on in my third year projects so I asked lots of questions about them.
If you have any outstanding questions or just want to have a chat with the lecturers then all subjects have a stand in the information hub, where there will be at least one member of the staff who can talk you through anything you want to know. I asked a huge number of questions and all the staff I spoke to were so helpful and took the time to go through it with me. Usually around the same area as the subject’s stands there are other stands such as admissions and careers which can answer other queries. Admissions is particularly helpful if you are considering a course but not sure if your course will get you in or what grades you need.
My next stop was campus and accommodation tours as I wanted to see where I would be living and working. Take this opportunity to talk to the student ambassadors who lead the tours as they have been through exactly what you will be going through and they will be only too happy to answer questions and queries.
There are also welcome talks, library tours, and student finance and personal statement videos which play continuously throughout the day if you want to go to anything extra. An open day really is worth it if you can make it because you get a feeling when it is the right place for you. It is not easy to explain what that feeling is but you will know when you get there.
So my advice is go to as many talks and tours as you can, talk to as many students and staff as you can and soak up the atmosphere and surroundings and see if it is the right place for you.
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