Choosing A College: Making Your List and Checking It Twice

Dr. R. Fred Zuker is a featured monthly columnist in the Education section of The Jackson Sun

Choosing a College: Making Your List and Checking It Twice

As summer winds down high school seniors are preparing to do battle with college applications, standardized tests, application essays and all those deadlines. The best way to ensure that the process runs smoothly is to be systematic and do your research carefully before choosing the colleges to which you make an application.

Before that selection process takes place the college-bound student must know what they want from the college experience. Too many college applicants will only apply to the college closest to their home, or the college attended by their parents or other relatives, or the college that is the choice of their high school crew. These choices may be good ones for the student but not necessarily. It is much better to think about what you want in an “ideal” college before you make a list of potential colleges. Only then can you select a group of colleges that will be the right “fit.”

Critical Self-Evaluation

The first step is to critically examine your academic record, your courses, grades and standardized tests (ACT and SATI) to determine what level of academic challenge is right for you. If your grades and scores are good (above average on national norms) you may apply to virtually any college and be competitive. If your grades and scores are lower there will still be plenty of good options including the many fine community colleges.

At this stage it isn’t necessary to spend time worrying about your intended major in college. Unless you are considering a professional program like engineering, architecture or nursing, most comprehensive colleges will offer attractive alternatives from which to choose.

Once you have done the evaluation you can consider the other factors that will influence your life in college. Here are some of the factors to consider in putting your list together:

• Size: Do you want a small liberal arts college where most students live on campus or would you prefer the large research university that offers remarkable diversity of courses and activities but where the number of students may be daunting?
• Location: Do you want to live close to home or as far away from home as possible? This may change as you move closer to the day of departure. Are you prepared for extreme weather conditions unlike those at home?
• Urban or rural: Would you prefer to attend college in a rural, small town setting or at an urban campus in or near a large metropolitan area? Both alternatives have advantages and disadvantages. Where would you feel most comfortable?
• Academically challenging or easy going: If you are an excellent student you are probably leaning toward a college that will help you develop your academic inclinations. For less highly motivated students other factors may take priority.
• Extracurricular opportunities: Do you want a college that will allow you to participate in music, theater, journalism, leadership, and athletics? If these activities are important to you make sure your list of colleges offer such programs.
• Cost: Public or private institutions is a choice that often turns on cost and the availability of financial aid and scholarships. Publicly supported institutions will be less expensive but offer a different experience than the smaller, more expensive alternatives. Scholarships and financial aid will level the choice between the two so you should consider both at this point in the process.
• Name recognition/prestige: Many students and parents fixate on the institution that everyone knows. That may or may not be a good choice for the student. Such factors have virtually nothing to do with the experience of the student.
• Other factors: There may be other considerations such as church affiliation, special physical or learning needs or academic specialties that are important to the student.

All these factors should go on a list that can be used to determine if a potential college offers most if not all of the elements that make for a close fit between the prospective student and the college.

Avoid the Hype:

Colleges and universities are competing for good students and use a variety of techniques to reach their target audience. Prospective college students and their parents should remember this when the read the brochures, visit the web sites and visit college campuses. If you know what you want in a college you can ask informed, pertinent questions and form your opinion as to the advantages of one institution over another. College admission guidebooks and publications that rank colleges can be useful but are no substitute for doing the thorough research that matches what is unique about you and what the colleges offer that you are considering.

If parents and students are systematic and thoughtful about this process it will unfold with much less stress and much greater likelihood of finding that all important match between student and institution.