<p>By way of encouragement, I would emphasize that the college search is a process and where a student lands May 1st of senior year may not be where they started. Visits, research and conversations make abstract variables more concrete and accessible. Many high schoolers don’t know exactly what will excite them about schools until they see a campus, talk to students, sit in on a class, etc. Likewise, reading a specific college’s requirements for a major can either create or extinguish interest. Being on a small campus may be more important to some students than having the widest range of courses possible; conversely someone else doesn’t care if “one professor knows their name at the end of 4 years” (quote from junior in high school). As parents, we tried to allow room for our kids to visit a range of realistic (budget and stats) options, so they could learn for themselves what factors should be at the top of their lists and gain the life skill of assessing situations. Ultimately, the school has to work for them. Applying to a various types of schools and then comparing specific options in April works for many.</p>
<p>Additional perspective: we have a recent graduate of a small, non-top 50 LAC. Our student is attending a top 5 grad school in desired field, while capable, hard-working peers gained acceptances to Duke engineering, Ivy league medical schools, etc. It does seem to be what you do with where you go- as long as you have access to the required curriculum. Seeing this unfold has been a real eye-opener for me.</p>