UNC campus tours adjust to increasing demand

Jackson Hall is becoming a more popular place on campus year after year.

Visitors to campus increased by almost 16,000 in 2010, and administrators said that trend is ongoing. Staff in the admissions office attribute the spike to a general boost in UNC’s popularity.

“The effect is circular. We are receiving more applications with the Common Application, which means more students are visiting,” said Stephen Farmer, vice provost for enrollment and undergraduate admissions.

The number of visitors in 2009 was 32,320. That number jumped to 47,953 visitors in 2010.

Though statistics have not yet been calculated for 2011, officials said last year, which is when the Common Application was adopted, the trend continued.

The Admissions Ambassadors program, the student-run organization that gives tours to prospective students and families, said it has made adjustments to accommodate growth.

“We’ve hired 10 more ambassadors overall,” said Ashley Memory, assistant director of admissions.

All tours are free, and ambassadors, who volunteer their time, are only paid for tours during breaks.

Memory said the program is dedicated to keeping tour sizes between 15 and 20 visitors.

“We’ve increased the amount of ambassadors so tour sizes won’t have to grow,” said Nestor Ramirez, a senior psychology major and student ambassador.

Memory said tours always stay virtually the same size so that visitors can get an up-close and personal look at UNC.

“The students especially have made more commitment to the organization,” Farmer said.

“We work hard to make sure we don’t turn people away,” he said. “It’s like a traveler coming to your door. We have to be prepared to take them in.”

Though the tours themselves haven’t been affected by increases, the sessions before and after have.

Ramirez said the check-in process before a tour has become hectic and harder to coordinate.

The information sessions after the tours also had to switch locations to larger rooms, such as the bottom of the Student Union, Memory said.

She said the increases were also caused by offering speciality tours specifically for professional schools in 2010.

Memory said the admissions staff feels excitement, not stress, with more visitors.

“It’s great. We’re excited we’re able to accommodate them and show them the magic of Carolina,” Memory said.

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