MARYSVILLE — Marysville-Pilchuck High School once again hosted the annual Marysville School District College Fair Oct. 14, albeit with a few changes this year.

M-PHS College and Career Counselor David Carpenter noted that this marked the first college fair since the opening of the Marysville Getchell High School campus. He added that this year’s college fair was the first to be conducted in the evening, since the school district’s previous college fairs had taken place during the school day.

“You had classes getting herded through here,” Carpenter said in the M-PHS cafeteria, where representatives of 28 Washington state, out-of-state and private universities had set up information booths and were speaking with students and parents about their possible college choices. “Now, they have more quality time to sit down and ask serious questions of the schools.”

Carpenter was pleased to hear a number of students making sure they were exploring their scholarship and financial aid options to help pay for their schooling. He also appreciated the degree of interest that many of the students had expressed in local learning institutions such as Everett Community College.

“It might be in part because of the economy, but a lot of them are realizing that they can get a good education right here in their own backyard,” Carpenter said. “One girl came in with a list of questions already drawn up.”

In addition to checking out the booths at the college fair, Carpenter has also urged students to schedule campus visitations, to get an even better feel for their prospective schools.

“Every Friday, Western Washington University has openings for students to sit in on classes in their lecture halls and drop by their dorms,” Carpenter said. “With all these half-day Fridays we’ve got coming up, that’d be a really good use of their time. Actually going to the school in person and seeing its size, especially if it’s a four-year university, might help some students make up their minds, especially if they’re a bit introverted, so that they aren’t hit with a culture-shock right when they start their classes at the school.”

Carpenter encourages students to look for a school that can serve their goals and matches up well with their personalities.

“Talk to the students who attend those schools,” Carpenter said. “Ask them what life is like there. Visit more than one school. Go exploring.”

During the fair, Truman Walker spoke with Laura Boboth, an admissions counselor for Pacific University in Oregon, about his interests in science and art programs. Brittany Pellerin, who;s interested in “a lot of different areas of study,” used that time to speak with Matt Stokes an admission representation for Western Washington University who also happens to be a 2006 alumnus of M-PHS.

“I attended this fair myself as a student,” Stokes said. “I was very lucky. I’m happy to see so many schools here. I’d tell any student to work hard during your senior year, be passionate about what you love, and find a school that supports everything you do.”