The first step in starting to build a college list is to identify the factors that are most important to you. What should you consider? Many factors fall into four categories (academic, physical, social, and financial). Here are some things to think about:
Academic
Does the college offer your intended major or potential majors you are interested in?
Are you interested in exposure to many subjects (liberal arts) or more direct career preparation?
Is an honors college or honors program important?
Are you hoping to study abroad?
Physical
Geography: evaluate your preferences on distance from home (include travel expenses when calculating the cost of attendance)
Is weather important to your happiness?
Do you prefer a small, medium, or large college? Have you visited one of each?
Do you want to be in a big city, rural town, suburb, or college town?
What percentage of students live on campus?
Social
Consider the personality, character, or academic traits of the other students on campus.
Are fraternities/sororities important?
Do you value a big sports culture or school spirit?
What activities are you interested in? (club or intramural sports, music or performance groups, etc.)
Financial
What is your budget?
Run net price calculators for the colleges you’re considering so you can start to understand your expected family contribution.
Is it likely to receive merit aid from the colleges on your list?
We work with students to evaluate these factors and many more. Once we understand preferences and priorities, we work on building a balanced list. To read more about how we work to create a balanced list, check out this blog post.