Choosing the Right Colleges to Send Applications

Choosing the right colleges to apply to can be overwhelming to say the least. Start this process early if at all possible! When I say early, I mean in your junior year in high school. Trust me, the process goes so much more smoothly if you aren't rushed. Let's say you are in your senior year of high school now. No need to worry, it isn't too late. The important part is to start now. Each person has a different set of criteria for colleges. Perhaps you'd love to go to a college in a certain area, or maybe you want to go to the college of your favorite sports team. Maybe you're concerned about the price of college and just want to go somewhere affordable. Whatever you're looking for, there is a college for you. Now you just have to go out and find it!

Applying to college can be costly (and time consuming)! With each application you send, you will also be sending $25-100 in application fees. You want to be sure you aren't applying to just random places. Who wants to blow their money like that?

Let's look at a few websites that can help us narrow down our choices.

• www.collegeboard.com This site isn't just for registering for the SATs. They have a great college search engine that allows you to specify your wants and needs from a college from what state you want to attend college in, to what majors are offered, all the way to what Greek life is available on campus. It then returns the colleges that fit the bill. Sometimes the information on collegeboard is out of date or just plain incorrect (you have to forgive a site that's keeping track of every college in the US!) When you find a few colleges you're interested in check their websites to double check all information.

• www.theU.com This site is great. There are videos of campuses and reviews of colleges by students. Remember this.... BY STUDENTS. People are motivated to write reviews because they are either having a great time at their college or a horrible time. Reviews can be biased so take them lightly.

www.Youtube.com Once you've got an initial idea of what colleges you're interested in, really take an interest! Look up some videos on youtube. Most colleges have a team of students who cover events and do campus videos, just to put them on youtube and advertise their campus. I'm part of this video team for my campus. Perhaps if you're using facebook or myspace you can look up students at the college you wish to attend and politely ask them what their experience has been like. Get a decent feel for what the college is like and visit if possible.

Visiting the colleges you are really serious about is so important. Some campuses are very secluded to their own area, with classes in one place, dorms in another and very short walks between. Others are spread over entire cities and it takes buses to get from class to class. You need to find out which environment is most comfortable for you, and you'll never get the full idea from videos and pictures on the internet.

I'd say a decent amount of colleges to apply to is about 5. I know some people who have only applied to two and I know some who have applied to nearly 10.

Take these things into consideration:

• Apply to a wide variety of colleges, as your interests in the coming year may change. Perhaps at the end of your senior year in high school the fact that your choice college has a field hockey team isn't that important to you anymore. Maybe other things will take a higher priority. Be ready for these changes.
  
• Applying to a community college in your area is something I highly recommend. If you aren't interested in a community college remember that things happen, and that it's a great option that is less expensive and usually takes up less of your time.
• Apply to a college in your area. This is another backup if your looking to get away. Again, things happen and going to school closer to home is almost always cheaper (even if you do still live in a dorm).
• Apply to a variety of colleges as far as "intellect" go. There's no nice way to put this... some colleges just have higher standards. Some people choose to go to the schools with the highest standards, even if it means classes being more of a challenge and possible lowering of their GPA, for the prestige. Others choose to go to average schools. If you go to an average school the better the chance of you "shining" or being recognized when you are above average. Your GPA will not be as hard to uphold. Consider the advantages and disadvantages of each and decide what you want.