How to Make the Right College Choice
Congratulations, the schools you thought would be a good fit for you have accepted you. Now you are faced with the challenge of deciding which one of those “good fit” colleges is actually the right college choice for you.
I wish there was a simple formula you could use to help you make that college choice, but there’s not. However, there are a few things you can do to help you narrow the field and make the best choice possible.
1. Visit the campus. Even if you’ve visited before, do it again. I especially encourage you to attend events specifically for admitted students, if at all possible. While you’re there, be sure you sit in on a class or two. Pay close attention to how the faculty and students interact with each other, as well as how engaged the students are in the material being covered. Pay attention to your feelings while you’re on campus, even write them down so you can remember them later.
2. Once you’ve visited the campus, ask yourself:
- Did I feel comfortable with the students I interacted with or did I feel out of place?
- Would I enjoy being in class and living in a residence hall with the other prospective students I met?
- Can I picture myself on that campus four years from now?
- Did I feel safe on the campus and the surrounding neighborhood?
- Was there anything that made me feel uncomfortable or uneasy?
Your honest answers to these questions can be a good indicator of just how comfortable you will be on campus. That’s important because the more comfortable you are, the more likely you will be to do well academically as well as socially.
3. Compare each school’s programs and opportunities in the academic area(s) you are considering.
While many schools offer the same areas of study, their programs can be vastly different. For example, while one school’s program may emphasize hands-on learning, another may focus more on theoretical studies. Planning on doing an internship? Be sure to check out where, and how many students have done them in recent years. If there’s something you know you definitely want to do while you’re in college (i.e. study abroad), be sure you gather as much information as possible about it before you make your choice.
4. Consider your personal needs and circumstances.
As much as you might like to choose a college far from home, there can be many reasons why that may not be the best choice. From being near a beloved grandparent to the cost of airfare, students have many valid reasons to consider the location of the college when making their final choice. Another thing students may need to consider is climate. If you hate snow or get depressed when it rains, you need to take that into account. A student who is miserable because of the weather, rarely thrives in school. Every student’s circumstances are unique, so don’t be afraid to stand out from the crowd as you make your decision.
5. Weigh the final cost.
While this shouldn’t necessarily be the first factor you consider when you make your college choice, for most people, it shouldn’t be ignored either. Graduating from a school with a huge debt, when you could have received a comparable education elsewhere and incurred less debt, is something you need to think about carefully. Compare your financial aid offers. You can even ask the school’s financial aid office to help you figure out what your loan payment will be by the time you finish school. Still think the school where you will incur the most debt is the right choice for you? Be sure to talk to an adult you trust about it and investigate loan forgiveness and forbearance programs that may be available to you before you make your final decision.
In the end, it comes down to trusting yourself and making the best college choice possible using the information you have.
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March 2nd, 2010 at 2:08 pm
Great article! Your fifth point about financial aid and weighing the costs are extremely important. Schools like Butler University can seem expensive but a majority of our students are on some kind of aid which, in the long run, is less expensive than a public school. I look forward to passing this along to our prospective students.
March 5th, 2010 at 1:32 am
Julie:
Thank you for your in site! This is exactly how I chose what college I decided to attend. I visited a few different colleges and noticed which ones I felt the most welcomed to. Ironically even thought I wanted a warm campus college; Initially I looked at Florida and California colleges, but I discovered that a college in MUCH colder weather fit me better and it was in, Chicago Illinois. This college offered me the best financial option, yet in the end this was the best option for me and once I set foot on the campus I Immediately felt at home. I knew that I would be comfortable, flying in over a very green landscape and being introduced to a VERY warm people made all the difference over the other places I’d considered.
I have to say this is what makes me call Chicago home even to this day, over 15 years later. I even wish I’d been born here.
So all that to say this, being comfortable with a college is just as important as making sure you have the right financial package.
Julie is so right:
* Visit
* Make sure you’re comfortable
* Be sure you’re finances are compatible
Money isn’t everything, but it’s very important!!! So as you consider your college options look at everything.
Sophie
March 15th, 2010 at 5:06 pm
For many students, money is a huge factor. A great start for helping compare colleges on all aspects is a personalized College Cost & Planning Report which is based on your academic and financial circumstances. It calculates and compares side by side your financial aid eligibility, net price, and up-front out-of-pocket expenses. It comes with detailed college profiles - all the important but difficult to find info like retention and graduation rates and how fast tuition is going up as well as demographics, test scores and distance from campus to your home.
Net price will become a big topic among parents because all colleges that provide aid - and that’s just about all post-secondary institutions - must by federal post a net price calculator on their Web sites by next October. Net price is Sticker Price minus merit and need-based aid.
The College Cost & Planning Report goes one better and also shows what students will get in work-study and loans so they’ll know the up-front, out-of-pocket costs (what they have to pull out of savings) to pay for college.
On average students receive $10,000 in aid a year so it’s worth knowing before spending time and money applying just how much aid you’ll receive to help pay for college. Once you have a good handle on which colleges will offer you the best deal, then visit and apply.