Which College Is Right For You?

Choosing the college that is right for you has a number of components. These are not limited to the few areas that I touch on below, but they are a start.

• Financial aid. Yes, it is a little mercenary, but there are worse things than looking at who will give you the most money to go to their school. Much better that they pay you than that you pay them. Because of the FAFSA schools can easily tell you approximately how much in aid you can expect from them. Will they want to tell you? Some colleges like to get you further down the admissions road before revealing too much.

• Admissions. Uh, yeah, you may want to choose a college that will also choose you. What does that look like? Well, if your grade point average is 2.3, you probably should be looking at State U. or Little-Known Private College as opposed to Harvard University. Your odds of acceptance increase dramatically.

• Major. Do they offer what you want to study? This may not be a big dealing if you are majoring in biology because most colleges offer that major. However, if your intended major is art restoration, you may need to do more searching.

• Location. Decide where you want to live. Many people like the South, many people like the Northeast, but if neither appeal to you, you may want to cross Emory and NYU off your list.

• Housing. This can be the deal-breaker. Some parts of the country are just too expensive for the average student and the lack of dorm space compounds the problem. You will want to discuss housing up-front with the admissions representative, but, also and importantly, with the housing office on campus as well. Here's a hint: they have different goals. Admissions folks need to get bodies. Housing offices need to fill rooms, but many colleges have no trouble doing so. Housing will usually tell you if dorms are impacted and it is difficult to get in. Here's another piece of information: some colleges give priority for dorm space to freshmen. However, you are then out for the second year. Find out how it works at your intended schools.

• Access to faculty. There are some colleges that provide little access to faculty for undergraduates. If you do not wish to have a relationship with your professors, that is fine. However, if part of your learning process is to create real relationships and mentoring possibilities, you need to choose a school that offers that as a possibility.

Article Source: http://www.content.onlypunjab.com

Thomas Nixon is the author of Complete Guide to Online High Schools. In it, he details how to earn a high school diploma online. The companion website, BestOnlineHighSchools.com, is the premier source of information on online high schools. Tom is also the manager of the college support website, CollegeAdvocates.com. His website is ThomasNixon.com.

Please Rate this Article

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5 

Not yet Rated