Open Days: What Parents Miss (and Wish They’d Known)

Wherever you are in the journey, you’ll almost certainly end up at university open days and offer holder days.

They’re an important part of the process, but they can also feel overwhelming, especially if you’re not quite sure what you’re meant to be looking for.

Parents often ask the same questions.
Should I go? What actually happens? How long will it take? What should we be looking for?

Because while students are choosing where to study, parents are often trying to understand what that choice really means in practice.

Most people go expecting to gather information.

And they do.

But that’s not usually what makes the decision clearer.

But many leave still unsure how to actually compare one university to another.

Having been through this process more than once as a parent, I have seen how different these experiences can feel in practice.

But in reality, the most useful insights often come from what is not in the prospectus.

In the UK, open days tend to take place between late spring and early autumn, often at weekends, and are usually aimed at students in Year 12 who are starting to explore their options.

Offer holder days come later, typically between February and April, and are designed to help students in Year 13 make a final decision once they have received offers.

They also tend to be more subject-specific, giving students a closer look at how their course is taught and what studying it day to day might involve.

There are other opportunities to visit too, such as subject taster days or events around results day. Clearing events in August tend to be much more fast-paced, as students are making decisions in a very short space of time after receiving their results.

Most families will attend a mix of open days and offer holder days at some point in the process.

The timing of these events can have an impact on what you experience, particularly in terms of how busy the campus feels and whether students are around.

A few simple things can make the day run more smoothly.

Comfort matters more than appearance.
People often ask what to wear. Most wear something casual or smart casual, but comfortable shoes are the most important thing as you will likely be doing a lot of walking.

If you are driving, allow more time than you think you will need. Parking is often further away than expected, and some universities operate park and ride or shuttle systems, which are worth checking in advance.

It also helps to understand the type of university you are visiting.

A campus university tends to have most facilities in one place, which can make it easier to navigate and get a feel for things in a single day.

A city or collegiate university is often more spread out, with buildings across the town or city. This can make the experience feel quite different and can also affect how much you are able to see during your visit.

If it is an option, staying overnight can be useful. It gives you the chance to focus on the university itself one day, and then get more of a feel for the surrounding area the next.

It is also worth being aware that open days do not always fall neatly on separate dates. Universities often schedule them on the same weekends, which can make it difficult to visit everything you would like to see.

In those situations, a self-guided visit can be a useful alternative.

Most campuses are open environments, so you can usually walk around, explore key areas and get a general feel for the place at a time that suits you.

One of the most useful ways to approach the day is to think of it in two parts. What you are being shown, and what you need to find out for yourselves.

Think beyond the official tour.
The structured parts of the day such as subject talks, tours and presentations are important. They give you a clear overview of the course and facilities.

But some of the most valuable insights sit around that.

The risk is that you leave knowing what the university wanted to show you, but not what you actually needed to find out.

Speaking to students outside of the formal setting can be particularly helpful. A simple question like “What is the one thing you wish you had known before you came here?” often gives a more honest picture than anything in a presentation.

Spending time in places where students naturally gather such as the canteen, a café or the student union can give a better sense of what day to day life actually feels like.

Even small practical checks can be revealing. Walking between accommodation and teaching buildings, or looking at what is nearby in terms of shops and transport, can highlight things that are not obvious on a map.

A few simple things to do on the day:

Open day talks are often led by senior academics, which is helpful, but they do not always reflect the day to day teaching experience.

Much of the teaching in many universities is delivered by a wider team, including lecturers and postgraduate tutors.

This is where expectations often do not match reality.

It is worth asking how the course works in practice.

How many contact hours are there each week?
What is the balance between exams and coursework?
What happens if a student is struggling and needs support?

University websites often refer to a mix of coursework and exams, but that can mean very different things depending on how the course is structured.

Exams may be in person, open book or completed remotely within a set time window, and not all formats suit everyone.

Another area that can vary more than expected is the number of contact hours.

I have seen this first-hand, with one of my children having a fairly structured timetable across most of the week, while another had far fewer scheduled hours and more independent study.

In that case, much more of the learning was expected to be done through individual reading and self-directed study outside of timetabled sessions.

Many parents are surprised by this, and it can sometimes lead to concern that students are not getting value for money.

This can also come as a surprise at home, particularly if expectations are shaped by the structure of school or college.

A full-time degree is generally expected to take up around 30 to 40 hours a week in total.

Only part of that spent in scheduled teaching.

The rest is made up of independent study.

Neither approach is better or worse, but they do suit different types of learners.

Accommodation is another area where a closer look can make a big difference.

The rooms shown on tours are often the newest or most recently refurbished, which is understandable, but they may not reflect what the majority of students are living in.

If possible, try to understand the range of accommodation available, not just the premium options.

Accommodation tours can also get very busy, particularly later in the day. If it is something you are keen to see, it can be worth heading there earlier.

Things like location, condition and what is included can vary more than people expect, and these are often the details that make the biggest difference day to day.

One of the hardest things to judge is the overall feel of a university.

Open days are often busy and well organised, usually on weekends, and can give the impression of a lively, social environment.

But that is not always the full picture.

At some universities, particularly those with a higher number of local or commuter students, the atmosphere can feel quite different at other times.

It is worth asking or observing what happens at weekends. Do most students stay, or do many go home?

Timing can also make a difference.

I once attended an open day during the holidays, and the campus felt quite empty, with many students having gone home. We visited again during term time, and the difference was striking. The campus was busy, social and had a completely different feel.

It is also worth not underestimating the impact of something as simple as the weather.

I remember visiting one university on a day of relentless rain, and it made the whole place feel grey and slightly uninviting.

It is a small thing, but it can influence your overall impression more than you might expect.

Open days do not need to be perfect to be useful.

Even if you cannot attend everything, or have to visit at a different time, simply being on campus, walking around, observing and asking a few thoughtful questions can give you far more insight than you might expect.

This is one of those areas where the detail matters more than people expect, and where a bit of clarity early on can make the whole process feel much more manageable.

And often, it is those small observations that make the biggest difference when it comes to choosing the right place.

If you’re going through this process, I’ll be sharing more on different aspects of the university journey over time.

If there are particular questions you’d find helpful, feel free to let me know.

And if you’d like these insights as I share them, you’re very welcome to subscribe.