SHAWNEE—Oklahoma Baptist University (OBU) hosted a Virtual Preview Day experience Saturday, April 18. The event took place of a previously scheduled on-campus Preview Day, which was altered due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The virtual event allowed students from all over the country and around the world to get a peek at what life is like on Bison Hill.
Prospective students watched a livestream video on OBU’s website, including a highlight overview of OBU, a special message from OBU President Heath A. Thomas, and a virtual campus tour of some of the main buildings and locations, including the Oval, Bailey Business Center, Geiger Center, Recreation and Wellness Center, Agee Residence Center, WMU Residence Center and Raley Chapel. Students then selected their preferred major from a dropdown menu, where they then joined Zoom room chats with faculty members who talked with them and answered questions.
Students who attended the event will receive a free OBU t-shirt as they would at an in-person Preview Day, and one lucky student won a pair of Apple AirPods.
Thomas spoke to prospective students about OBU’s mission.
“At OBU, we are looking very seriously into how Jesus’ lordship is exercised in all of our academic disciplines,” Thomas said. “That is what we mean when we say we want to integrate faith with all areas of knowledge.”
He urged students to consider the transformative experiences students have at OBU.
“If you come and be a part of OBU, your life will be forever transformed. You won’t just leave OBU and get a job, you will be able to go into your world and make a difference.”
Kalyn Fullbright, assistant director of admissions for prospective student experience, reported that at least 200 visitors took part in OBU’s livestream.
“Virtual Preview Day opened the door for students to connect with Bison Hill from all over the world,” she said. “While we had plenty of visitors from right here in Oklahoma, others joined us from Alaska, Texas, Kansas—and even one from Thailand!”
Fullbright was pleased with the outcome of OBU’s first Virtual Preview Day and was excited for future virtual events.
“We understand this is a difficult time, but for our prospective students, this decision may not be able to wait. So, we’ve had to explore creative ways to share OBU with people who can’t make it to campus. Now that we have established an effective way to engage with students virtually, I’m excited for us to continue to use this creativity in the future for more virtual visit events.”
To learn more about connecting with an admissions counselor and virtual campus visits, go to www.okbu.edu/admissions/virtual-visit. For more information about OBU, visit www.okbu.edu.
