Albeit rather short this year, spring break is a prime opportunity for juniors to visit colleges. The break from school gives them the chance to visit prospective universities and take campus tours. Weather-permitting, students get their first chance to walk around the campus and tour the buildings.

Many juniors are traveling near and far to check out potential colleges. Since applications are merely months away, some are attempting to get a head start by visiting the schools that they are considering applying to.

Luckily for students, there is a plethora of schools nearby; one doesn’t have to go far from home to see several college campuses. Colleges in the area include schools like University of Maryland, George Washington University and Georgetown University.

Junior Emily Crites is traveling to Pittsburgh to look at Carnegie Mellon University. She is looking forward to the school partially due to her family’s history with it.

“I’m excited to go visit Carnegie Mellon because that’s where my mom and brother went and it would be super cool to keep the trend going,” Crites said.

Crites is planning on heading up for the weekend to visit other schools in the area as well. Since many students across the country have spring break at the same time, college tours get filled up quickly, so families need to plan their trips ahead of time to ensure that they can get a spot.

Some students have the opportunity to stay on campus to get a better feel for the school and a sense of campus life. Junior Robby Neisser is traveling up the east coast to visit one of his top schools, Brown University.

“I’m staying with my friends at Yale, but I’m also visiting Brown. I’m nervous because I think Brown is my top choice but I’m not sure what the on-campus vibe is like,” Neisser said. “I’m also taking an upperclassmen dance class which is pretty scary.”

Spring break gives students the opportunity to participate in events at the colleges, whether it be just tours or more extensive events, such as the dance class in which Neisser will participate.

As previously stated, since there are so many colleges located in the DMV, students don’t have to travel very far to see a variety of different campuses. Some students are planning on visiting colleges closer to home, such as junior Leah Bregman.

“I’m going to John Hopkins’ University, Towson, UMBC and UPenn. I’m really excited just to see different college campuses and to get an idea of what kind of campus I like,” Bregman said.

Every school is different and the campuses vary from the vast greens of Penn State University to the bustling city campus of NYU. Spring break is the perfect time for juniors to find where they fit in before beginning their applications in fall.