How to make the most of a virtual university fair

Virtual university fairs are online events where several institutions come together to offer prospective students the chance to learn more about their university through talks, workshops, sample seminars and one-to-one chats with admissions and academic staff.

These online offerings became the norm during Covid-19 but have remained popular because of the ease they allow prospective students to chat to multiple institutions in one go, compared with traditional on-campus open days.

So how do you make the most of a virtual university fair? What should you do to prepare and what kinds of questions should you ask?

See below for experts’ tips on preparing for a virtual university fair.

Swaraj Nandan, Director of UnivAssist

To make the most of a virtual university fair, you need to have a game plan ready so that you don’t feel overwhelmed.

Prepare a list of questions that you want to ask each university. This will help you objectively compare your options when it comes to the tough process of narrowing down your choices when you come to apply. It’s also important to save admissions representatives’ contact information, so you can connect with them after the fair if you have more questions.

For universities that you really liked, send the representative a thank-you email to keep the line of communication open.  Remember, building this relationship with an admissions officer may help your application later since they will remember you during the application review process.

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Brittany Wright, director of graduate enrolment at George Washington University

Two great things to ask about at a virtual university fair are what the student experience is like and what the career outcomes are for graduates of the course you’re interested in, because these can often be hard to gauge just from checking university websites.

You should also try to engage with university representatives as you would at an in-person event. If you have the ability to do a video chat, I strongly recommend requesting one. It’s not often you have the chance to speak in real time to university representatives and current students, so make the most of that opportunity. If a chat box is the only way you can interact with the university rep, try to provide as much detail and context as you can in your questions and responses and be patient. Sometimes a university representative is juggling numerous chats at once so you may have to wait for a response, but don’t give up.

If your question or situation is very specific, ask how you can connect with the university representative after the event so you can have ample time to meet with them without any other student interruptions.

Jennie Long, senior international officer, Imperial College London

My first tip would be to make sure that by the time you attend a virtual university fair, you have already looked up the universities you’re interested in speaking to. By doing research on a university’s website about courses offered, entry requirements, degree structure, facilities, extracurricular activities and other basics, you will be able to use your time at the virtual fair to ask more in-depth questions specific to your interests and requirements. 

At virtual fairs, universities often have current students helping in the booth, so this is a good time to get a true insight into what studying at the university is actually like. Don’t waste the limited time you have at a virtual university fair getting information that could easily be found online.

Second, while it’s good to check all the events going on and plan out your day so you don’t miss anything, do allow a little time to browse other university booths if possible. You may find that a university you haven’t considered before actually offers the perfect course for you, so be open to new ideas and make the most of any time between the talks you’ve selected to chat to different institutions.