The Ultimate Guide for Choosing the Right College: Key Factors to Consider for Students
I was the first child in my family to go to college, so the college search process was new for my parents and myself. I knew deciding on a college was important, but I didn’t really know what I was looking for in a college, what I wanted to do, or any other criteria for picking a college, let alone finding the perfect college.
Do you want to know what wound up being my selling points on choosing the college that I did?
1. Good food in the cafeteria
2. Dorms that didn’t look like prison cells
3. A school that was less than an hour away from my home (even though I was going to live on campus).
Yup, that was it. Looking back on it, those were probably not the best criteria to have when picking a college. For the record I wound up at Seton Hall which is a great school so at least I got lucky.
Don’t worry though, the advice I’m going to be giving on how to choose a college won’t put any of those criteria too high up on the importance list (even though they will make the list). We’ll be diving into tips that are actually going to help in your search.
Before we do that though, if you haven’t yet decided on a major and are 100% positive you’re going to college, you should read this article first to help you decide if you’re going to be entering college with a major or not: “How To Choose A College Major: 3 Easy Steps For Students”
Okay so you’ve decided you’re going to college and your college major situation? Great let’s get into the meat and potatoes.
Key Factors You Should Consider When Choosing a College
One thing to note before we get into our list, you shouldn’t make this decision alone. Whether it’s your parents, your siblings, best friends, close family, coaches or someone else you are close with, you need to get feedback from another person or people when making your decision.
Ideally, someone that knows you best can help guide you in the decision-making process. Heck, with any big decision you probably shouldn’t make it solely on your own. So, while you read this, have that special someone read it with you. (Actually, have them read it on their own device it’ll help with the Google Analytics numbers for me 😊)
Key Factor to Consider When Choosing a college #1: The Costs
Why Is This Important: I don’t know about you, but usually when I’m spending money on something, I tend to look at the price. I wish I could be like Michael Jackson in that one VH1 documentary where he just buys everything in the store without looking at how much anything was, but I don’t have that kind of money….yet. If you are Michael Jackson rich (let’s pretend he’s still alive so this example will work) then you can ignore this first tip.
For the rest of us people who care about money, knowing how much the college you’re considering costs is probably a good idea. Now you may say, I’m going to take out a loan, so it doesn’t really matter. Well, you can pretend it doesn’t matter for 4 years, and then once you get your diploma also make sure you grab your shovel. You’ll need a shovel to dig out of the hundreds of thousands of dollars of student debt you’ll be in cause you couldn’t afford the college you picked.
The cost of the college you choose is extremely important to consider since it most likely won’t be. If you can, try and go somewhere that you can actually afford out of pocket (I know that sounds insane) or don’t have to take out a gigantic student loan.
Helpful Cost Saving Tips:
1. Choose a 2 year Community College and then transfer after 2 years to a traditional school to complete your degree
2. In-state schools are usually less expensive than out-of-state schools.
3. Living off campus -is usually more affordable than living on campus.
Key Factor to Consider When Choosing A College #2: The Location
Why It’s Important: It may seem silly, but if you’re going to be living somewhere for 7 or 8 months out of the year, make sure it’s somewhere you actually wan to be. Syracuse University is a great school, but if you’ve lived 18 years of your life in Miami, it’s going to be a shock to your system when you have to walk through 3 feet of snow to get to the cafeteria.
If you’ve never left your state or don’t feel comfortable being away from your family for long periods of time, you might want to think about a college close-by rather than a 4 or 5 hour commute. It’s going to be awfully hard for Mommy and Daddy to kiss you goodnight with a 5 hour drive.
Being homesick is a real thing believe it or not, so you should really consider where your school is located as an important part of your search. It would be a tough situation if you had to transfer to a different college after a month because you miss your mom doing your laundry and her homemade cooking.
Key Factor to Consider When Choosing A College #3: Academic Programs
Why It’s Important: The point of going to college should obviously be to party….just kidding, I wanted to make sure you were still paying attention. Now that your paying attention again, the point of college is to choose a field of study that’s going to benefit you when it comes to finding a job.
It’s important to make sure you’re choosing a college that offers programs that you are actually interested in. If you haven’t picked a major yet, don’t worry, as long as you have some idea of areas that you may be interested in, that’s all that counts.
If you want to be an executive in the business world, but aren’t sure about the specifics, it would be a good idea to pick a school that has a top-notch business school. Or if you love food and restaurants, it would be smart to maybe look at culinary schools or universities with great Restaurant Management programs.
You get the point.
Word to the Wise:
College is what you put into it. Don’t feel like you have to go to a big name school with top tier programs that cost insane amounts of money in order to get a good job. There are plenty of lesser known colleges with great programs and alumni networks that won’t leave you buried in a pile of debt.
Key Factor to Consider When Choosing a College #4: Campus Life
Why It’s Important: Now, the term “Campus Life” is going to encompass a number of different things that relate to the “college experience.”
1. Your Living Situation:
If you are someone who’s spoiled like me, the idea of community bathrooms and dorms with no central air were deal breakers. This may sound silly, but if I chose a college where I’d be showering in a community bathroom and in a dorm with no central air, I would have been looking for a new school pretty soon after my first day.
Your living conditions need to work for you. If you’re going to be paying tens of thousands of dollars a year, you better be somewhere comfortable.
*A note on this one, keep in mind, college dorms have certainly improved over the years, but don’t expect to be living at the Ritz Carlton….unless you’re rich and can afford to live at the Ritz Carlton while you’re away at school, in which case, I’d be extremely jealous.
2. The Food Situation:
Again, not to sound like a diva, but try the food at the colleges you visit. As someone who cared very deeply about food, it was an important factor for me. Not saying this should be the end all be all when picking a college, but if you’re going to be living in the dorms and spending a bunch of money each semester on food, the food should be somewhat edible.
If you’re going to be living off campus, you want to make sure there’s grocery stores nearby and places to eat in walking distance in case you aren’t allowed to have a car on campus. This might sound silly, but if you’re going to a college in Montana, South Dakota or a similar state, it could be an issue.
2. The Actual Campus Life:
Okay so we finally got to the spot where I mention about college being a big party. Just kidding again, kind of. If you are looking for a school with Greek life (that’s fraternities and sororities if you thought I was talking about just Greek people) then you might want to consider this. For example, where I went to school there were no fraternity or sorority houses on campus, but where my brother went to school, they had fraternity and sorority row. Not life altering things, but it could be important to you.
If you’re someone who likes intermural sports, college sports, clubs, etc., this is also the portion of the blog post where I’d say it could be something to consider when choosing a school. I went somewhere that didn’t have a college football program at all. I survived. But if you’re someone who can’t make it through a Saturday without watching college football and it’s going to make you miserable to not be somewhere that has your own team, you might want to look at schools with football.
The final thing I’ll note under Campus Life is you should think about if you want to go to a large campus or a smaller campus…or medium sized for that matter. If you want a more intimate feeling and a short walk to your classes, I wouldn’t suggest going to a school like Rutgers or Ohio State cause they are gigantic. The size will also affect class sizes, relationships with professors and meeting classmates.
Key Factor to Consider When Choosing a College #5: Internship Opportunities
Why It’s Important: This is really the bread and butter of the college experience. Okay that doesn’t really make sense but what I’m trying to say is, finding a college with a good internship program can help you secure a job once you graduate.
It might not be something exciting to think about when you’re a Junior or Senior in High School trying to pick a college, but you’ll realize how important it is in the second half of your college career. Internships allow you to try out different jobs, potentially get paid, and ultimately can help you on your career path. It can also help you realize that the job you thought you wanted is not right for you.
What to Do After Reading This Article
Choosing a college can feel overwhelming, there’s no doubt about it. As someone who’s picked out a college, wedding ring, wedding venue and house, I can say the college decision was much more exhausting than any of the other things. So, if you’re still feeling overwhelmed after reading this, reach out to one of our great coaches here at Your Career Strategy and we’ll help you through it.