For those who might be interested, I will take the time to share a little bit of my Creighton story. I’ll share my experiences visiting Creighton and how I decided that Creighton was the place I wanted to spend my college career.By the fall of my senior year of high school I had narrowed my college search to a short list consisting of 7 schools including Creighton. During October of my senior year my dad and I took a trip to the west coast to look at schools in Washington, Oregon and California. Upon my return home, I didn't have a strong feeling or desire to attend any of the schools I had looked at. There were things that impressed me about a few of the institutions but nothing had jumped out at me. Following this trip, apart from the Colorado schools on my list which I had the opportunity to visit on spare weekends, Creighton was the only school which I had yet to visit. I told my parents that I didn't plan on looking because if nothing could impress me about schools in California, what in the world would a school in Omaha, Nebraska have to offer me? Even though Creighton was on my list and had met my criteria for college selection, I refused to give it a chance because of its geographic location. I remained insistent that this was what I wanted throughout the remainder of that fall semester. It wasn’t until one day in late December that I realized that there was no way I would know if Creighton was right for me unless I saw the campus for myself. Since I am a lot more like my dad than I will admit at times, I wanted to see ALL of my options before I made my final decision. With my change of mind, my dad and I booked tickets to Omaha for a weekend in January. This weekend wasn't any special admitted students’ day for Creighton but we knew that a weekend trip would give us the chance to meet with the administration and view the campus.
We arrived on campus on one of the coldest days of winter I have ever experienced. Exiting our hotel downtown, I knew that I hadn’t dressed warmly enough and was resenting touring campus in the freezing cold.
Despite the weather and my feelings towards the day, I felt an instantaneous connection to the campus from the moment I stepped across 24th street. We had arranged to meet with TJ McDougal in admissions and were immediately impressed by his warm welcome and helpful information. TJ was the fist individual I had the opportunity to connect with on campus and to this day am still connected as he works closely with my family back in Colorado to promote Creighton Admissions.
Following my meeting with TJ, my dad and I were provided a tour of the campus. Despite the weather and the state of the campus in the winter, we were both very much impressed with the facilities particularly the recently built Hixon-Lied science building.
When our tour came to an end, my dad and I met up with a Creighton freshman who had graduated from my high school the year previously in the Student Center. It was really comforting for me to see a familiar face and to make a connection between home and the campus I might be residing on in the next year. Meeting with a student gave us a true look into what college life at Creighton really was like.
As our visit was short, the final thing I experienced before returning back to Colorado was attendance at St. John’s 10 pm candlelight student mass. This experience is what truly convinced me that Creighton was the right place for me. Although I felt a bit uncomfortable to begin with when we joined the students on the altar in the second half of the mass, this experience also helped me to grasp the reality of the amazing community that the students of Creighton University form. I was amazed at how at home I felt in a place I had only been in for ~24 hours.
In spite of the cold and the informal visit to Creighton, I left Omaha so grateful that I had given the university a chance. Without visiting the university, I never would have felt the instantaneous community or experienced the kindness of the people that would help me decide in just a few short weeks that Creighton was the only college for me.
I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to meet with TJ and other individuals on campus during my visit. I didn’t feel disadvantaged in the least that I didn’t choose to visit Creighton during one of their more organized student days. I felt that my informal visit allowed me to get out of my visit only that which I needed to make my decision. This wasn’t hard, as the minute I stepped on campus, I felt at home and knew that I could find happiness, even in Nebraska, (ha) by making Creighton my home for the next four years.
As a am applying to graduate schools this fall, more than anything else in the process I am looking forward to visiting the campuses as I felt that this was the most important experience I had in choosing the undergraduate institution that was right for me. It’s hard to find words to explain how important visiting a school can be as it really was just a feeling I got while on campus that convinced me that Creighton was right. A university is so much more than what can be expressed on a webpage. I truly believe that the only way to make the best decision on a school is to see it for yourself.
I am so happy that I visited Creighton and can’t believe that I am already enjoying my fourth year on campus as a senior. Wow!
Please feel free to comment or ask questions if you have any regarding my experiences.