In my radio show this week, College Bound & Determined, I do a quick recap of where you need to be in your college search process->if you want to have the time and energy to enjoy (!) the process. Take a good look at this mindmap, figure out where you are… and your next steps.
If you want support in the process, shoot me an email or, even better, sign up for a complimentary strategy session, jill {at} majorinyou,com
A year in the life… of a high school junior/senior
As promised, on my radio show, College Bound & Determined, here are the highlights of that last crucial year in the the journey to find the colleges that are the best matches.
Every week on my show, I create the space to step back and think about the college search and selection process. Check out my savvy guests, thoughtful questions, and fresh ideas. Parents learn ways to help their teens move away from the frenzy and teens can hear new techniques for making the shift from feeling anxious, confused, and overwhelmed to confident, organized, and successful in finding the colleges that are the right fit! Listen in, here.
This week on my radio show, College Bound & Determined, we talk about choosing a major as a way into the college search adventure. I have a cautionary tale to tell…
I chose a college based on my desires to work with children with autism, (and therefore to major in psychology), and remain in the northeast. I found a school that appeared to have just what I wanted… and then discovered that psych was a good, but not a great, fit for me. So I explored other options, discovered the field of education and immediately, I felt at home. My happy ending was a double-major, in both psych and education with the result of a solid foundation in my future field of special education. I chose a school with lots of choices-and it’s fortunate I did!
I want to take this conversation one step further: to recognize that being curious, open minded, flexible, and dedicated to a vision can lead to amazing results.
Check out the timeline of my life since college… It shows how many paths I have taken-professionally and personally, stemming from a double major, further education and, I might say, an adventurous spirit. There is so much possibility!
Long and Winding Road
I’ll update this in June at the conclusion of some more amazing adventures!
7 Steps to Exploring the Colleges, Leaving a Great Impression, and Enjoying Yourself
1. Know what you want to achieve
what are you looking for, what do you need and want
~ to understand the different types of colleges
(state, private liberal arts, historically black)
~ to discover the values of the colleges that are of interest to you
~ to explore more about your areas of interest – possible majors, study abroad, campus life
2. Work out with your parent(s) in advance how you will enjoy the fair
~ Will you go on your own? With a parent(s)?
~ How will you approach the college representatives?
3. Speak for yourself
~ Introduce yourself, shake hands
4. Make a connection with the representative
~Have a conversation
5. Have your questions ready
Don’t’s
~ Where is the college?
~ Do you have… specific sport, sorority/fraternity
~ What are the average SAT scores?
(These are questions that indicate that you have not done your homework about the college… Remember you might interview with these representatives and you want to leave a good impression.)
Do’s
Here are questions that indicate you want to learn about the school and students.
~ Did you go to (the college)?
~ What did you major in?
~ What made (the college) special for you?
~ What is the college known for (for example, traditions, or the nature of student body, the political and social climate)?
~ What are the emphases of the admissions process?
By the numbers (GPA, class rank, SAT’s/ACT or more of a portfolio approach)
~ What’s the typical class size?
~ Do students talk with professors outside of class-> beyond office hours?
~ Do students talk about what they are learning outside of classes?
~ Are any special services offered for support of all students (tutoring or a writing center)? Are there accommodations for students with learning differences or physical disabilities?
~ What percentage of students graduate in 4 years? What percentage go on to graduate school?
~ What is the biggest complaint of students?
~ How does the food plan work?
~ What kinds of financial aid does your school offer?
~ Is housing guaranteed for all four years? How soon can student live off campus?
~Is the campus wireless?
Take notes after each conversation, as there are hundreds of schools at these events, and it’s easy to forget information or get confused afterward).
It might even be easier to print out your list of questions so that you can just write down the answers for each school-one sheet per school, with a place for the name of the school and even the representative on the sheet.
7. Request materials from the representative only if you are interested.
It’s October, and that means that it’s time to get organized so that you can accomplish all that’s a part of the college search AND enjoy your junior year!
It’s way too easy to get caught up in the details (test prep, testing, reviewing college websites and brochures, doing research, visiting campuses), feel overwhelmed, and begin to despair. I’d like to suggest that you take a deep breath and think of the big picture…
With the gorgeous fall weather today, I think about the look and feel of campuses. When you close your eyes and imagine… What type of campus comes to mind? Do you prefer
> traditional, ivy covered buildings or more modern architecture
> a compact campus in a city or one that’s big and sprawling in the countryside?
> a campus busy, teeming with students, or moving at a slower pace?
What feels right to you? Or, is all this talk about environment irrelevant to you?
When I went on my solo roadtrip to check out colleges throughout New England, I saw four different schools in the same number of days. By the time I got to the last school I walked from the parking lot to the admissions office, did my interview, got back in my beloved, secondhand car and headed for home. By the time I got home I decided that I wanted to apply Early Decision to the last school I visited. I gave them a call that afternoon to check that I still had time to do so. I did, and the rest is (happy) history. I have to tell you that the look and feel of the campus were not really important to me… though for some students it makes all the difference…
Figuring out what matter most to you is the key here… Take some time this weekend to get clear on who you are: your strengths, needs, challenges, and wants. As you become clear on who you are and what you want, it becomes easier to sift and sort through the wealth of information available about colleges. Know yourself first and the search becomes simpler!
Setting: FBLA* Conference in Hershey, PA, mid-April
Scene: After my workshop, Finding the College That’s Right for You
Participants: Two high school students and me
Query from students: “So how do we get into Ivy League schools?”
My response: “Well, what does ‘Ivy League schools’ mean to you? Are you thinking of Harvard, Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth or one of the other four schools? While they are all Ivies, and share reputations for academic excellence, they are very different. Each one has a distinct ‘personality’ and some departments are stronger than others even in these schools. Do you have a clear picture of who you are, and what you are looking for in a college setting; the environments in which you will feel both comfortable and challenged, where you will enjoy the classes and the social life? Knowing the answering to these questions will help you determine which schools will be the best matches for you.
Honestly, my answer would be the same for getting in the Ivies, as getting into one of the Big Ten, or the colleges/universities that are at the top of anyone’s list of choices:
- High GPA
- High SATs /ACT
- Evidence of leadership and outstanding extracurricular activities – think quality not quantity here
- Excellent college essay
- Strong letters of recommendation from teachers, counselors, and other adults who know you well
Take the most challenging courses you can while in high school-though doing well in those course is critical. ”
* Future Business Leaders of America
What are your values?
How cool is this? A guide to colleges that “gets” what’s really important-looking at all the facets of college life and determining which colleges/universities are the best fit for you.
“This is a guide to 286 U.S. colleges and universities that have demonstrated an exemplary commitment to sustainability. While it differs from our Best Colleges guidebooks in that it does not report information based on our surveys of students attending the schools, it very much embodies our philosophy that finding your “best fit” school means looking at everything from the school’s academic offerings to its extracurricular options and now, even its commitment to going green.”
www.princetonreview.com/green-guide.aspx
Regardless of whether you consider yourself “green” and what to check out the colleges listed in the report… You absolutely want to be thinking through what is important to you.
And so, what are your values? What’s important to you?
Learning & Achievement… Working hard…
- What opportunities exist for students in class and beyond the classroom?
- Does talk about school work take place after class too? Can you engage in research?
- Are there avenues for pursuing your goals and being recognized for your work?
Playing hard…
- What do you love to do during your free time?
- What kinds of extracurriculars are offered?
- What is there to do off campus and how easy is it to get there (wherever “there” is)?
Independence/Exploration
- How much freedom do you have academically and personally?
- Are you interested in study abroad? What are your options?
- What is the college administrators’ vision of the students? What are the unspoken rules of the community?
Diversity
- What the composition of the student body, professors and staffs?
- How big or small is the campus/community?
Connection/Close working relationships with peers, professors and/or local community
- What is the student to professor ratio in classes?
- Who teaches the classes-professors and/or grad students?
- What connection is there with the local community?
Trust/Honor
- What do you think of honor codes (re: academic work, tests, etc).at college? Do you want to be in an environment where that’s a paramount value?
Bottomline: What are your values? How do you see them in action at the campuses you are visiting? The college community will be your home for four years… you need to feel comfortable, stimulated, challenged, a part of it.
To continue the conversation… What do you expect and want from a college that you’re visiting? How can the college community-students, professors, administrators-demonstrate who they are and what they value so you can make an informed decision about the environment that’s right for you?
Last week, at Clark University’s Admitted Student Open House prospective students had opportunities to:
- Meet the members of the community (in this instance, the president to be, an assistant director of admissions, the student council president and another Clark administrator)
- Get their questions answered by the current students, professors, admissions’ and financial aid staffs, and alumni
- Learn/Attend session led by professors
- Eat some the cafeteria’s food (don’t laugh-don’t you want to know what it’s like?)
- Explore student clubs and organizations
- Discover special programs, study abroad options, and the college in the Worcester community
- Walk the campus, and check out the facilities… begin to feel whether Clark is the best fit for them
And, parents had time to do much of the same: they had the time to look, to listen, to learn about the environment, and attend a session just for parents.
I think there were great opportunities to understand the breadth and depth of the university. So, in thinking about and perhaps visiting the colleges that have accepted you, in your effort to make a fully conscious decision: What do you think? What do you want to know? What will you look for? These are the most important questions; I hope that you develop your answers using your head and your heart.
Last Saturday was a COLD end-of-March day. I had been hoping for warmer weather… but I have to say it really didn’t matter because it was so fantastic to be on campus and meeting prospective students and their parents. I love the feel of Clark-though that’s really not what I want to talk with you about… I want to ask seniors* who are about to make decisions about where they want to spend the next four years…
- How will you decide?
- What’s important to you?
- What are you looking and listening for on campuses as you visit-whether it’s for the first time or the last time-before you make your decision? (Or, what are you looking for on the colleges’ websites and in conversations with current students and alumni?)
You have some time to make a decision. I’d like to suggest that you choose with your head and your heart. Reflect on who you are: what you need and want in an environment so that you are both comfortable and challenged to do your best work and have a great time! Good luck!
* These are great questions for juniors too, as you begin visiting campuses.
My heart aches for the students who committed suicide, their parents, and their friends. These tragedies are one of the realities of life at college. Colleges appear to be wonderful little worlds/microcosms separated from the “real world.” In fact, savvy students don’t fall prey to the belief that life away from home, is life in a protected bubble.
Life on campus is often exciting, and challenging; it is also critical to realize that bad things happen on campuses too, whether the campus is in the middle of a city or out in rural America. As you visit college campuses over the next half year ask questions/read/learn about safety statistics at each and every college. It’s their obligation to share that information/crime statistics-and be certain to ask or learn about their services for students who experience difficulties during their years on campus.
PLEASE
Don’t
- be an ostrich about the dangers that exist on campus-alcohol and drug abuse, interpersonal violence such as dating violence and sexual violence
Do
- Ask questions about student services-you may never need them for yourself yet you may be able to support a friend
This is big, frightening stuff we’re talking about here… it’s really important. Learn all you can to make yourself and others safe.
- Be clear about your values, your strengths, your challenges, and your need for support when the going feels too difficult to do it on your own. Reach out when you need help… There is no shame in seeking assistance.
- Support friends in getting the care they need. You don’t have to have solve their problems… You can help by knowing about the resources on campus and in the community.
