As the school year nears its end and juniors get ready to become seniors, students were offered an opportunity to prepare for the next step in their academic journeys. The opportunity was College Night, an on-campus event that was held on Mar. 28. At College Night, students were able to learn about some of the state universities in Florida that they might consider applying for during their senior year. 

The function consisted of two main events. The evening started with a meet and greet that took place in the Patriot Pointe cafeteria, where representatives from different universities set up displays at tables for students to stop by and look at. After an hour and half of mingling, the event moved into the auditorium, where the university representatives took time on stage to speak to the attendees about what to expect from the college admission process and the various ways they can prepare for it. 

“Tonight’s event is a great opportunity for students to connect with all twelve state universities and have direct access to their directors and Deans of Admission to get information and questions answered to help them prepare for college applications,” Florida Polytechnic University admissions director Michelle Powell said.

With the on-campus location, the accessibility of the event proved helpful for students and eased the process of learning about what they will need to get into different schools. 

“I have never gotten so much information about the different schools,” junior Kassandra Soto said. “They’re giving me the scores I need, the GPA, and a couple other things to keep in mind when I’m applying, like when to apply and stuff like that with early admissions.”

There was a lot of variety among the schools represented at the event, with everything from class sizes to campus scenery and course offerings differing between the schools. Because of this, students were able to see the full scope of their options for college education.

“The event is giving me an insider perspective into the college admissions process,” junior Jacob Beekman said. “I’ve been able to consult many Deans of Admissions one-on-one and ask them personal hypothetical questions, or more broad ones. There’s a really diverse array of schools. It’s a wide range for all sorts of people from all sorts of backgrounds looking for all sorts of things.”