Since I just finished the college search process, I have been looking back on my search over the past couple of weeks. Therefore, I thought that this would be a good time to share some tips and thoughts about the process. These tips are good for anyone, but I hope all of the Juniors out there are especially listening with the process about to intensify for them.
1. Start early, start early, START EARLY- I can’t say this enough. I am not ashamed to admit that I started at the beginning of the second semester of my sophomore year. Starting your college search early, even as early as sophomore year, isn’t a bad idea in my opinion. This is especially the case if you are starting the search from scratch like I did because you have no idea what type of a college you are looking for or what location you want the college to be in. This doesn’t mean that during your sophomore year you have to spend money on a college search counselor or start spending money visiting dozens of schools. It simply means that you should start thinking about the characteristics you want in your ideal college. Every college has a website and one way to start is by spending a little time exploring the academic programs at schools you know of. Another option is to spend a little money on a college guide book. I found the “telephone” college listings books to be overwhelming, so I purchased the Princeton Review’s Best 368 colleges book. (The latest addition is now called the Princeton Reviews Best 373 Colleges book.) The quotes from students in the book and the focus on all the different aspects of college life – from academics to social life – made me think about what kind of school I wanted to attend and also helped me find some potential schools that might be good fits.
2. Work on “The Essay” During the summer before Senior Year- Yes, it’s hot outside and the weather is beautiful (hopefully). However, by working on your college essay during the summer you will thank yourself later when you have a lot less stress in October trying to make November 1st application deadlines while trying to complete senior course work and other outside of school activities. The month of October is a month where some Senior teachers give their students some of the hardest work of the year because there aren’t many days off and because they are trying to save the year’s less stressful work for the second semester. You don’t necessarily have to finish the essay over the summer, but I would suggest doing a couple of drafts. That way come the fall all you have to do is polish your essay.
3. When visiting a college campus make sure to pick up a copy of a recent addition of the college’s newspaper- No, I am not just saying this because I have an affinity for student media or because I am the Co-Editor of this paper. A college’s newspaper or other student publications can tell you a lot about the day-to-day life at the school. Many times there are items and stories that the tour guides simply don’t have the time to or won’t tell you about. For example, you can find out in the paper that there has been a recent string of burgularies of the freshmen dorms. It isn’t always bad news, though, that the paper will tell you. The paper might tell you about a new recreation center that is about to be built on campus or a recent survey of the student bodies favorite places to hang out. Either way, reading one or two copies of the student paper can tell you about the school’s character and personality; one of the biggest factors in your college decision. If for some reason you don’t pick up a copy of the paper, then go online and google the paper’s name. They likely have an online edition. (Turns out our paper isn’t the only one who likes the internet!)
4. Have Fun!- Sure, there are many stressful moments in this process. However, make sure you’re enjoying the search as well. This process is an opportunity to think about your future and what that future will look like. From receiving lots of colorful booklets and pamphlets in the mail about many different schools to actually seeing college campuses, the college search is exciting. Maybe the most fun part in my opinion is after you have been accepted to a few schools. At that point try to attend the accepted student days if you can because not only is it cool to have the schools try to “win you over” by giving you free lunches, exciting speeches, and tours but they provide a ton of information as well.
If there is one thing I learned from the college process, its that there are many awesome schools all across the country. It’s hard to go to a bad school. Rather, the question is which school is best for you. I wish anyone about to start or in the middle of the college search the best best luck!
