Fifty students and three chaperones will visit 11 colleges located in the Midwest during the first Midwest College Tour. Sophomores and juniors will depart on Sunday, March 27, to Detroit, Mich., and will return Saturday, April 2.
The group will visit the University of Wisconsin; University of Notre Dame; University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; Michigan State University; Holy Cross College; Marquette University; Purdue University; Indiana University, Bloomington; Loyola University Chicago; Northwestern University; and the University of Chicago. At each college visit, college admissions representatives will give students a tour followed by a presentation about the facts and figures of the admissions process.
According to Counselor Daryl Crowley, who organized the trip, the group will also meet with Loyola alumni who attend or recently graduated from the respective college. “We hope this meeting will allow students to ask questions freely and learn more about the college from a fellow Cub,” Crowley said.
Sophomore Brendan Mackel said, “These schools all have a lot to offer, and I hope this trip will help me find the college that is right for me.”
The Midwest region is one of the most applied to regions in the country by Loyola students. Crowley said, “Last year, out of a class of 300 students, 72 applied to the University of Michigan alone. Every year, more and more Loyola students are looking at colleges in the Midwest.”
Seniors Will Minck and Finn Veje created a list of schools and drew a roadmap that could be toured in a week’s time. Crowley took their ideas and pitched them to Loyola’s Board of Directors. “I’m very glad that Loyola students will be able to see the great colleges that the Midwest has to offer, for I will find myself attending one next year,” said Minck.
Crowley said, “Finn and Will were instrumental in the creation of the Midwest College Tour. The dedication and hardwork they put into the planning of the tour, including measuring the mileage and the time between each campus, is what turned it from an idea into a reality.”