PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Prospective students who want to check out Brown’s campus can now explore it remotely though the University’s newly launched virtual tour, an immersive online experience that offers visitors 360-degree views of multiple locations on campus as well as information about Brown history, academics, student life and more.
“We know that prospective students are curious about what our campus looks and feels like,” said Logan Powell, dean of admission. “With this virtual tour, they can get a sense of Brown’s distinctive academic and cultural experience — as well as the history and beauty of campus — early in the admissions process, even before they visit us in person.”
The tour, created with New York-based YouVisit, takes visitors on a walk through campus hosted and narrated by two virtual guides — real-life Brown students Chelse-Amoy Steele and Max Kozlov. The guides stop at 12 points of interest along the way, from community gathering spots like the College Green and the Campus Center to academic buildings like the Granoff Center and Barus and Holley.
Powell said the tour is an engaging way for all prospective students to get a feel for life on Brown’s campus, particularly for students who won’t be able to visit campus before applying, due to their geographic distance or financial circumstances.
“We think that all prospective students will find value in our new tour — and even current students and alumni will enjoy virtually wandering around current and old haunts,” Powell said. “But we are particularly excited to offer students who can’t physically travel to campus a way to ‘visit’ and get a better sense of what Brown is all about.”
To film their narration of the virtual experience, Steele and Kozlov traveled to YouVisit’s video studio in Salt Lake City. Steele, a senior and this year’s president of the Brown’s Undergraduate Student Council, said she even learned a few new things about Brown during the filming — Brown’s work with NASA, for example — and she thinks the final product will appeal to prospective Brunonians.
“Back when I was looking at schools, the first thing I wanted to get a sense of was what the campus was like," Steele said. "I remember going through pictures on the internet for hours to try and put a mental picture together of what each school was like and what it would be like if I could go there. The virtual tour has so much information about Brown — not only the buildings, but the culture and impact. You're able to understand not only the doors a Brown education will open academic-wise, but also in research, athletics and community.”