Horizons Fall 2016

17 NSU HORIZONS F or many students—and their families—an in-person visit to a campus is the deciding factor in choosing a university. But sometimes travel expense, time, and distance limit the number of universities a student can visit. NSU is now making it easier for prospective students with its virtual tours of three NSU locations—the Fort Lauderdale/Davie Campus, the Halmos College of Natural Sciences on the Oceanographic Campus, and the NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale. The virtual tour is available online, in virtual reality, and as an app through Google Play and Apple’s app store. For a more immersive experi- ence, visitors can use an Oculus Rift, Google Cardboard, or any similar virtual reality reader. Google Cardboard VR headsets also are being used by recruiters who can take them on the road to share the tour with students at colleges and high schools. The 360-degree panoramic tours feature a synchronized audio tour guide who takes viewers to the interior and exterior of various NSU sites—providing background information on events and programs as well as location photos and videos. Viewers can schedule a visit, apply online, and learn more about NSU. The tour includes 20 stops and 30 panoramic images. New locations, including the College of Dental Medicine Simulation Lab, the NSU Center for Collaborative Research, and the Arena at the Don Taft University Center, are scheduled to be added. “It’s always great to have students visiting our university, but with a geographically diverse student population, the virtual tour can allow students on the other side of the globe the chance to see what NSU has to offer,” said Brandon L. Hensler, M.S., APR, NSU’s executive director of Public Relations and Marketing Communications. “We know, once they see us with their own eyes, they will come.” Richard Jay Simon, who earned his M.B.A. in entrepre- neurship, with honors, in 2016, agreed the tour is a solid recruiting tool for NSU. “The benefit would seem to be for folks who have not yet seen the campus—attracting them to enroll, or at least plan a visit. As a marketing vehicle, it has value,” said Simon, now a managing partner at SBL Partnership in Miami. Students are using the tour. As a sophomore at the NSU Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography, Charlotte Henderson found the virtual tour helpful in navigating the Fort Lauderdale/Davie Campus, especially when she has a class in an unfamiliar building. “Through the tour, I was able to figure out how to make my way to the Parker Building from the center of campus. The virtual tour is an amazing idea and will help many students,” said Henderson, whose goal is to enroll in the physical therapy program at the College of Health Care Sciences. “Sometimes, photos just don’t paint as vivid a picture as a 360-degree panoramic image does, or as seeing it in a virtual reality,” said Kimberly Cohane, online marketing and social media manager for NSU’s Division of Public Relations and Marketing Communications. Henderson has been forwarding the virtual tour to her friends, including an international student who was unable to attend the orientation dates. “The virtual tour is a lifesaver,” she added. “It will truly help many Sharks find their way.” To take a tour online, visit nova.edu/tour. n Visit BY STAFF REPORTERS AND OLINE H. COGDILL