As a junior, the conversation of which colleges I want to apply to and later attend is upcoming. So, over spring break, I visited five different schools: Bradley University, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, University of Tennessee-Knoxville, University of Kentucky and Indiana University of Indianapolis. Out of all of these schools, only one truly felt like home to me: the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

The tour began with an informational session in their visiting center led by a graduate student. Compared to the first two schools I visited, the presentation was engaging and the speaker shared personal stories while mixing in facts that made the school look good. This helped to show that the statistics of their success weren’t just numbers, but a reality for attending students. I really enjoyed this method of presenting as I didn’t feel bored sitting in the room and listening to someone talk about why I should go to their school. At the end of the presentation, the room went silent for a moment before all of the tour guides ran in yelling, “Go Vols.” This moment really showed to me how much spirit and energy the students had.

My tour guides were just as engaging as the presenter during the informational session with jokes built into their talking points. One aspect I really enjoyed about the tour was that the guides weren’t talking about the school while they walked; instead, they used the time in between each stop to get to know every student in the group.

Another moment of the day that stuck with me was when we visited the Volunteer Statue in front of Neyland Stadium. As we all watched the bronze torchbearer holding a real flame, one of the tour guides told us, “You can never be a Florida Gator, Kentucky Wildcat or a Bama Crimson Tide, but you can be a Tennessee Volunteer every day of your life.” This was really inspirational and I felt like it showed the school’s purpose is to truly make an impact to their student’s lives.

Another thing I really appreciated about the tour was that we were reminded throughout multiple points during the day that it was okay if we didn’t like the school, as that would help narrow our search for the perfect college for us. This differed greatly from other tours I took and helped it feel less promotional and more genuine.

The tour mainly focused on student life, traditions and history. Though it was extremely enjoyable and fascinating, I do wish we took more time looking at the academic buildings as we never even stepped into a classroom. Overall, I really enjoyed the school and the campus was gorgeous. Outside of being a good school academically, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville has a solid community.