By Ariana Chiu

Dearest Prefrosh,

It’s almost Visitas: the weekend you’ve been looking forward to since you were blessed by the admissions gods, the only chance you have to find your friends for life (or meet that kid you’ve been crushing on from the Class of 2023 group chat), and the only opportunity you will have to experience Harvard before attending (because, duh, of course you’re gonna choose Harvard). But alas, your parents are forcing you to attend your cousin’s wedding, and now life at Harvard as you know it is ruined. Except that it’s not, because we’re here to tell you that Visitas is not that deep.

We’ll admit, the events that take place during the weekend of Visitas do have their appeal. We love tons of free food just as much as the next person does. Luckily for you, though, the perks of Harvard’s overflowing wallet don’t end at Visitas. Harvard will continue to flex its ability to keep you well-fed during the next four years … Add this to the list of reasons to choose Harvard! We can’t guarantee that other schools have the same selection of boba or mozzarella sticks.

Besides missing out on free t-shirts, you may be worried you’re missing an opportunity to get to know Harvard’s campus. This is understandable, especially since the last time you toured the campus you were too distracted by the impending doom that was college applications. Don’t worry, though — there are plenty of other ways to get familiarized with campus. From online tours to Dean of the College Rakesh Khurana’s legendary Instagram, you can learn a ton about campus while avoiding the cost of the trip. Suddenly, your cousin’s wedding isn’t looking so bad after all.

We didn’t forget about the 72-hour bonding experience you were hoping to have. After all, anytime you ask about what makes Harvard special, the response is “the people.” While Visitas can be a way to hit it off with fellow prefrosh, missing Visitas will not make or break your college social life. Everyone will arrive in the fall with the same excitement. Plus, considering most of us can’t remember what we ate for breakfast, we suspect most people will not remember, or will at least branch out, from their Visitas besties. Plus, there’s something about forced socialization in a sea of parents that may not lend itself to the creation of lifelong friendships.

Don’t get us wrong, Visitas can be a great opportunity to get a feel for Harvard, especially if you’re deciding between schools (but screw the California weather, we have Veritaffles). We’re just here to reassure those who can’t make it: Visitas is not that deep.

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Click here to read more of the Flyby Guide to Visitas!