Students woke up early and met at Cerritos College to attend a Cal State University tour on March 1. The tour included going to San Diego State University followed by Cal State University San Marcos.
Those who attended the tour had to previously secure their spot with a $5 refundable deposit, which they received back when they got on the bus in the morning.
The bus headed out around 7:30 a.m. and arrived at SDSU around 9:40 a.m. where the group waited to meet with their tour guide.
The group was split in half, both tour guides showed and explained the ins and outs of the campus and what San Diego State had to offer.
Greeted by nature, students walked alongside multiple buildings surrounded by plants and greenery.
One of the first things that was shown on the tour was Hepner Hall, which is what the school is most recognized for.
Students were taken to see many other spots on campus such as The Aztec Recreation Center, Viejas Arena and on-campus housing.
After about an hour of being shown around by the tour guide, students were then allowed to roam and explore the campus on their own.
Around noon the bus showed up to pick up the group and take them to their next destination, which was CSUSM.
People used the 40-minute drive to rest up as a lot of walking was being done and there was more to come with the next school emerging.
The bus arrived and the group of students didn’t wait long to meet with their second tour guide of the day, this time visiting the Cal State San Marcos campus.
Kellogg Library was where the tour started and where the San Marcos tour guide gave general information about what was to expect from the university.
Although this campus is smaller compared to SDSU, useful resources and knowledge of important buildings for CSUSM were provided to the students.
The tour guide took the Cerritos College students throughout the campus and stopped in the biggest lecture class on campus to answer questions the group had.
The tour went on and concluded near the Cougar Chronicle office which is CSUSM’s school newspaper.
A few steps away was a statue of the school’s mascot which is a cougar. The group was then allowed to go off on their own to explore again.
Many students used this time to venture off, use the bathroom and grab a bite to eat at CSUSM’s University Hall.
Lucia Orgez, a child development major, took advantage of this refundable low-cost opportunity as this wasn’t the first tour she went on.
“I don’t think I would’ve ever came here if it wasn’t for the [Cerritos] college,” Orgez said, “It was fun getting to come all the way over here cause the Fullerton-Biola tour was more local so I kinda knew what was around there but here [SDSU and CSUSM], it was nice to be here.”
Nayeli Dueñas, counseling department success coach, feels these campus tours are beneficial to students because it exposes them to the different possibilities, majors and overall environment of the universities.
Dueñas said, “I think it’s really important that students, before they transfer, actually attend the college that they’re interested in.”
She explained that she’s seen many students change their minds about where to transfer to after attending a campus tour.
