What is an open day?
A university open day is a taster day for potential students. These are a chance for you to see the university's facilities, ask any questions and to meet lecturers and potentially other students.
Open days can be a great way for you to experience the local culture as well. You can get an idea of your surroundings, the transport and see what the area has to offer.
What should I bring to a university open day?
We recommend bringing a pen and a pad for your open day. If you prefer to use the Notes app on your phone, then that will work too.
You won't need much more than that as the university will likely have a lot of literature and resources to take away with you.
How long are university open days?
This typically depends on the university and how long you stay. Some students decide to stay all day at the university to see everything, whereas others may come for a campus tour and then leave. Generally, open days don’t tend to exceed longer than 6 hours.
When should you go to a university open day?
This is up to you. There is no right or wrong answer, some choose to go in October, others may choose to go in January.
Universities tend to hold a lot of open days, so you shouldn't struggle to find an open day at a time that suits you.
How many open days should I attend?
This is up to you. Open days are a great way to filter out your options. Some students are sold on a university until they visit it, so visiting as many as you like is a good way to separate the ones you like from the ones you don't.
What questions should I ask at an open day?
Ask the questions that you want to know the answers to. Many websites will tell you to ask things such as “What grades do I need?” but this will already be detailed to you before you even apply.
You should ask questions that are going to help you in your choices, such as:
- What does the course cover?
- How many hours-a-week am I timetabled to be in?
- What is the tutorial and self-study split like?
- How am I assessed?
- What are the facilities like?
- Are there any other course costs?
- How big are the tutorial groups?
There will also be alumni and present students at the open day who will be able to give you more insight on university life.
What is a virtual open day?
A virtual open day takes place online, rather than in-person. From here, you can access curated content, attend information sessions, webinars and you can speak to teachers and students via a live chat function.
What is a campus tour?
A campus tour is a tour of the university. Campus tours are almost always carried about by current students at the university and will allow you to see the facilities, different buildings and the accommodation.
Some universities have been known to allow students to sit-in on lectures. This will depend on the university and depend on when you are attending your campus tour.
What is a Clearing open day?
These are open days set up for students who are going through the Clearing process. If you find yourself going through Clearing, then it is better if you have visited one of these universities,s o you know what they are like.
Clearing open days work the same as normal open days, but on a slightly smaller scale. If your Clearing option does not have one, you can call the university and request a Clearing open day.
Why open days are so important
Uni open days are a lot more important than you think. How else will you learn about a campus, it's facilities, what the different departments are like and how good the facilities and accommodation are?
Whether you're attending an open evening or a general opening day, any taster you can get of what your university is like will be invaluable to you and will give you the chance to make a much more informed choice about which university is best for you.
