How to Help Your Student Choose the Right College

Parents and guardians today expect a significant amount of input into their child’s college choice. Which is totally understandable given the cost. This level of parent involvement is far different from a few decades ago when my parents simply told me to “pick an in-state school.”

Did I consider that my chosen university had 40,000 students and I was an only child from a small town? Nope. Did I foresee taking classes in lecture halls with 600 students? Not a chance. When I struggled to adjust during my freshman year, I made the erroneous decision that I didn’t like college. So, I took a year off and moved home.

Were my parents worried that I’d never return to school and get my degree? You bet. Which is why choosing the right college is so important. But here’s a tip. Parents, it’s not your decision. This one is totally up to your future collegian. Your job is to provide them with the resources to make the best decision for themselves.

What You Can Afford

With college tuition ranging from $9,970 for in-state schools to $25,620 for out-of-state public schools, according to the College Board, families and students need to realistically determine which type of college they can afford. It is important to do this before you start researching schools. I’ve seen too many high school students attend a myriad of college tours, only to fall in love with a university that is not within their family’s budget. Not only is this unfair to the student, but it puts undue pressure on the parents as well. Sit down and determine your budget for college, preferably with your child present, so that everyone is on the same page when it comes to finding the right college for your student.

Size of College

One of the easiest ways to sift through the hundreds of universities in the U.S. is the size of the school. Help your student determine if they see themselves at a small private school, a large public school or something in between. Big Future, a College Board website, defines a small college as less than 2,000 students, a medium school as 2,000 – 15,000 students and a large university as more than 15,000 collegians. Despite these guidelines, be sure your high school student understands there is a big difference between a college with 15,000 students and one with 40,000 students. This will help them determine the right college for them.

Type of Campus

Another criterion to help narrow down colleges is what type of campus your student prefers. Are they looking to explore a big city by being part of an urban campus, or would they rather live on a more traditional college campus? When my twins were narrowing down their college options, my daughter gravitated to universities with lots of green space, which I deemed “enclave” campuses. This doesn’t necessarily mean rural, a term she bristled at when we visited a college in the Midwest surrounded by corn fields with a town that consisted of a couple of restaurants, a gas station, and a couple of hotels.

I define an enclave campus as one whose boundaries are clearly delineated so it has the feeling of being self-contained. What differentiates enclave campuses from rural schools is that they also have a thriving town just outside of campus. Explain to your student the difference between urban, rural and enclave campuses and then let them determine which type is right for them.

Major

If your high school student has an idea of what they would like to study, that makes choosing the right college more straightforward. However, keep in mind that the average collegian changes their major two to three times before the end of their sophomore year. So, if your student is undecided, don’t panic. Find schools that offer a diversity of majors. That way your child can declare a major after taking a variety of courses to determine their field of interest.

On the other hand, if your student knows (or thinks they know) the exact degree they wish to pursue, then seek out schools that offer that track. Just make sure that the university they choose offers a variety of other degrees as well. That way, if they do decide that their original major isn’t the path they want to pursue, they can easily find something else.

On-Campus Activities

Some soon-to-be college students already have an idea of what types of activities they are interested in while on campus. For example, if your child is a student athlete, then that helps narrow the field. Yet, even within the area of athletics, students need to consider whether a Division I, Division II or Division III program is best for them. While this can depend on recruiters who pursue your athlete, there is nothing wrong with setting up meetings with coaches at the schools of interest to your high school student. Our son ended up at an urban university with a DI swim program since both of those were his leading criteria in choosing the right college. Just make sure to follow the NCAA rules for contacting coaches.

Other areas of interest that can help narrow down the list of potential colleges are ROTC programs, sororities and fraternities, study abroad opportunities or a robust student government. While many high school juniors and seniors don’t have a strong opinion on such activities, those who do will want to consider colleges that offer the specific activities that they are hoping to pursue.

Resources to Narrow the Field

While individual college websites can provide an overview of the factors listed above, keep in mind that this is not the be-all, end-all resource for determining if a college is right for your child. Nothing beats experiencing a campus up close and personal.

College tours are a great way to experience campus life and interact with students at a university. But in a day and age where the average college student applies to ten schools, attending college tours for every school is costly and often unrealistic.

And that is where Campus Reel comes in. This innovative website, designed and created by graduates from Colgate University, offers 13,000 videos from students at over 250 college campuses. The videos are created by college students and give an in-depth, real-life view into campus life at that particular school. Not only do they show potential students (and parents) what an actual dorm room looks like, but they also include an up-close-and-personal glimpse into dining halls, classrooms, activities and yes, even the campus itself. Parents will appreciate that all video content is monitored and screened, so this truly is a resource, not a party video platform. Co-founders Rob Carroll and Nick Freud created this brainchild to help potential students truly understand the most important aspects of the college search, which is the people and the community at a school.

Admitted Student Days

When your student does start to get acceptance letters to colleges, that is the time to spend the money and visit. Most universities host Admitted Student Days, to help potential students determine if the college is a right fit for them. Offered throughout the winter, these day-long events include a college tour, the chance to see a dorm room, eat in a dining hall and the opportunity to meet with faculty in your student’s chosen major. They are also filled with lots of fanfare, emotive videos, and if you’re lucky, some swag. Most importantly, they allow your student to spend a day on campus to decide if that is the right college for them.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering if I ever did get my degree, the answer is yes. I went back to my original college and graduated with a bachelor’s degree. A few years later, I returned and got my MBA from the same university. The key to making the adjustment after taking a year off? I joined an organization that made the campus seem smaller. So I could find my place in it.

Photo by Ryan Jacobson on Unsplash