Guide to Finding the Best College for You

Ask the Right Questions Before You Land on Campus

College is a life-changing event.

You’ll more than likely be on your own for the first time, pay bills, be responsible for your own meals, laundry and otherwise take care of yourself. A big chunk of the college prep process focuses on the admissions process and how to pay for college. But seldom do students get solid advice about how to choose a college.

For students struggling to find direction, here are some “Important Questions and Considerations You Should Ask Yourself when Searching for a College”:

Admissions

  • What is the school known for? Athletics, research, partying?
  • What are the admission requirements?
  • What qualities should prospective students have?
  • Which standardized test scores do they require?
  • What majors are offered? What’s the most popular?
  • What are the application deadlines for admission?

Financial aid

  • How much will tuition and expenses cost?
  • What financial aid options are offered?
  • When is your financial aid deadline?

Classroom

  • What is the average class size, or student to professor ratio?
  • How accessible are professors outside of class?
  • When must you choose a major?
  • What student services are offered (tutoring, career counseling, study workshops)?
  • How up-to-date are the libraries, computer labs?

Housing

  • What type of housing is available? On-campus, off-campus, apartments, dorms, co-op living?
  • Is student housing guaranteed for four years?
  • Would you have a roommate or live alone?
  • What is the cost of renting apartments near the campus?

Student life

  • What special interest groups, activities, fraternities/sororities are available?
  • What’s it like on campus on the weekends?
  • Are any programs offered to help students adjust to the college life?
  • Are intramural, club, and varsity sports offered?
  • Are meal plans available?

Choose a College Major

While not a necessity, the notion of a major field of study can help you narrow down the college you’d like to attend. Many colleges and universities have strengths in particular fields, such as engineering or medicine, computer science or English.

Determine Your Preferences

Once you’ve considered the type of school and a major field of study, you can begin carving away at the details of where you envision your campus life:

  • Local or far away from home?
  • Large university or small college?
  • Rural or urban campus?
  • Elite school or affordable alternative?
  • Party school or academic school?
  • Near ski resorts or close to the beach?

These are just some of the questions to need to be thinking about when selecting potential colleges.

Make Your College List: Pros and Cons

Once you’ve figured out what’s absolutely essential to you in a college, start compiling a list of possibilities. Organize them from your first choice to your last choice. Jot notes to yourself about each college’s pros and cons.

With this list in hand, you are set to officially request more information from these colleges. You can often request these materials online, or even browse the campus website to find out all the information you need. If something seems very unappealing to you, check that campus off of your list and move on. The key is to narrow the list down to a manageable amount. Try to get the list under 10 colleges, if you can.

Campus Visits Make a Difference

You can plunder through all the college websites and glossy brochures you’d like, but unless you make a physical campus visit you could be missing the real deal. Websites and brochures are marketing materials, professionally prepared advertisements developed to push schools to potential students.

Most college advisors recommend students schedule a campus visit. While there make it a point to see:

  • Dining halls
  • Classrooms
  • Athletic facilities
  • Dorm rooms
  • Student union
  • Notice bulletin boards that may have fliers that indicate social, political, and cultural events on and around campus.

You will probably be in a small group of people interested in attending the college and get to see the major sights on the campus and even meet with students. This is the time to ask questions and really get a good look around. You may even get to sit in on a class and stay overnight in a dorm room. That would really be the best way to get a sense of what the campus is like and what your home would be like for the next four years.

Give yourself some time following campus visits to consider your choices. Delete schools from your list as soon as feel they are not a good fit. Make every effort to pare your list down to 5 or less schools. Too many and you’ll pay dearly in application fees and too few may not be the best bet.

Invest the time and energy to consider the type of campus on which you’d like to spend four years. You’ll remember it for the rest of your life.