I knew each of my neurodiverse kids needed help with structure and timelines and ways to break down big steps into very small ones. Having the privilege of getting a college counselor that they could talk with and help them organize the steps in visiting colleges and applying to colleges was helpful to them and to us as parents. We also started early in the process of loving “likelies” and diving deep into great program interests vs brand name big $ schools… We also tested assumptions- For example: Instead of letting a comment go - I do not want to go to a small school… we pushed back and asked what could be the positives in a small school over a large school and what might be the drawbacks. As we toured schools and heard from college friends, we added to each column. A central cafeteria vs multiple places to eat became a feature not a bug. The reason is my son really liked a central place to try to meet and catch up with people. This seemed like a plus to him. Remote colleges we looked at over urban schools, tended to have more regular, full time faculty living and working better hours than some of the urban schools. Now these are 100% proven across all schools. Features/variables whatever you might call different parts to a college experience is personal to each family and based on what they can gather in research. One other key aspect we learned from our oldest to our next two kids, is how well planned and facilitated is orientation? Oldest son’s orientation was all general meet ups and nothing in small groups that helped facilitate breaking the ice and knowing names and making connections in his first week. It was a lot of meet on the quad for food trucks and music or student dance show. In hindsight, he should have gone on the reorientation trip offered to help with initial direct introductions…