Junior Grace Wolgemuth felt excited hearing about the opportunity to talk to a representative from Northwestern University, having always dreamed of attending a school in Chicago.

“I really like the (Chicago) area and Northwestern is known to be a very good academic school and is a D1 and I like to watch sports,” Wolgemuth said.

According to office assistant and coordinator of the college representative visits Cheryl Broady, college rep visits provide students with the ability to converse directly with representatives from a variety of schools across the U.S.

“We have to have probably 100 plus reps that come and visit,” said Broady. “They are here to meet the students and to sell their school, and if you do apply they are the people that are going to read your application and look at your transcript and make that decision.”

Broady said speakers from different colleges and universities gather with a group of students to provide information about their college during a class period in the day.

“They give you an overview of their school, the numbers, their popular programs, they try to sell the campus life because that is always appealing for the kids and then they open it up to a question and answer,” Broady said.

Wolgemuth said the visits provide a free way to educate students on a college they are interested in.

“You got a lot of the same information without even having to travel to the college itselfs and it’s free so it is pretty beneficial,” Wolgemuth said.

According to Broady, the visit system has expanded over the years as Park has attracted schools from across the country.

“It has really grown. When I first started it was primarily the midwest reps that we get but now I think with the IB program it has caught the attention of the schools on the coast,” Broady said.

Broady said the influx of speaking representatives changes throughout the year, depending on where students are in their college process.

“Mid-September to end of October is really heavy, and then there is going to be a big lag until February, where I start to get calls for spring visits and state and community colleges because most kids have made their decision before the holidays,” said Broady.

Wolgemuth said she recommends attending these visits for other students in the college process or beginning to explore different colleges.

“I would recommend it for other students because it helps kind of learn about other colleges and what they are about and their mission,” Wolgemuth said.

According to Broady, students can sign up for college representative visit on the bulletin board outside of the counseling office in the B2 hallway.