Here they’re rating dorms and food. But remember, these lists are just a starting point because they don’t give you the nitty-gritty details you will need to truly assess a college on various criteria.
Remember to research a college by majors, if you know what you want to study. So if you’re looking for the best programs in biology, you can use this list as a starting point.
It’s also interesting to look at feeder school lists, in case you have a “dream company” that you want to work for in the future.
An often discussed topic on CC:
What, if any, careers are sensitive to undergrad selectivity?
What careers are particularly insensitive to undergrad “name”? (e.g., CS, engineering (ABET) are often mentioned)
Finally, salary reports of university graduates are one of our favorite lists to look at. They are not comprehensive, of course, but they may be useful. The ROI on attending a #1 college versus a #10 college may be huge if you think in terms of lifetime earnings.
Remember not to take all those mailers too seriously. Students get confused because they think colleges want them to attend when they send them a flyer in the mail. But instead, a college may just be trying to appear more “selective” and get higher on the ranking lists by asking a lot of students to apply and then rejecting most of them!
Is the recommended breakout of safety/target/reach different for students chasing merit (not need) scholarships?
Also, be careful about taking your school’s software program too seriously. We have seen a lot of students rely on such programs and then create a very limited list of colleges based on where students from their high school typically tend to go to college. You don’t want to go just blindly go with the crowd when it comes to making decisions about your future!
Once you have a basic list of colleges, read about each college in the Fiske Guide. There’s a few pages per college and it’s pretty dense, but it’s considered the gold standard in the college admissions industry in providing you with the most balanced perspective on each college. They ask students about their experience at the university and don’t rely solely on what the university is telling them. The Fiske Guide has the top 300 colleges in the country. In case your college is not listed there, it does not mean it’s a bad college. However, if your college is not listed, be sure to do some extra research to make sure that it is a good college.
As you start to do qualitative research, make sure to go beyond formal tours and talk to students (especially seniors) as well as faculty, alumni, and career center representatives.
To get the real scoop about what’s going on around campus, you might have to dig a little deeper and find groups and newspapers where students speak freely.
This is especially true in today’s world–there may be a lot of censorship and conflict that a university doesn’t want you to know about.
But it may be important for you to know what’s going on the ground.
If you’re trying to reach out to alumni about their experience in the past, be sure to use Linked In as a tool for finding people who may be willing to talk with you.
Once you’ve done your research, you should create a spreadsheet with all your colleges and then decide when you want to apply.
With early action, there’s no restrictions or obligations. You just apply early, and you find out early whether you got accepted or not into that college. It helps to relieve the anxiety of not knowing where you’re going, because once you get into at least one good university, you can relax. You may or may not have a higher acceptance rate with early action, and the only way to know is by doing an internet search for that college to find out. The good thing about early action is you can compare financial aid letters in April, and then make your final decision by May 1st.
With early decision, you’re legally bound to attend that university if you get accepted, and you have to withdraw your other applications immediately. You cannot compare financial aid letters. You can apply early to other public schools but you may not apply early to another early decision program. Check the exact requirements listed in fine print for the college where you are planning to apply early decision, as they may have additional restrictions.
I’m happy to start answering questions now, so ask away!
@CCBootcamp_Aug2024, we are now opening the Q&A portion of this session. Make sure to ask your questions by commenting below!
what should you do if your list is over 20 and the common ap limit is 20? should you apply to the school directly? or should you create another common ap account, and if so, is that even allowed?
With early decision, what happens if the financial package is not enough to cover the cost? Does the student have to take out loan to cover the rest, or can she decline due to the financial hardship?
You can have more than one hook. But there should be one hook that is focused on academics and the student’s intended major. A second hook can be non-academic.
If you have too many hooks, though, it can be distracting to the admissions reader and they may feel that the student is a “jack of all trades, master of none.”
It’s the same with the opposite extreme–if you only show one theme and that’s the only area of strength that you’re showing in the college application, the admissions officers might think the student has “tunnel vision.”
When we work with students, we make sure there’s an appropriate balance so the student is not showcasing their talents and achievements in a way that goes to either extreme. The point is to get the admission officers’ attention and impress them so they think you will be a good fit student at their university.
Hope this helps!
@IvyLeaguePotential, when students plan their application process, what’s the best time for them to create their college list? How early should they start working on it?