<p>I just caught myself favoring a decent school with a nice campus and town vs a great school in a marginal town because of the happiness factor.</p>
<p>I can't help but think the happier school will cause less stress in DS. But what about his intellectual stimulation? Boredom cause stress as well? Not getting a good job in chosen field causes stress? </p>
<p>At what point have we battle worn parents taken this too far? These young adultsneed to learn about life. I know, I know ... Slowly but but but ...</p>
<p>I am having the same thoughts about happiness factor. We just attended an accepted students day at my daughter’s safety school. Lots of happy, friendly people in a laid back atmosphere in a beautiful town. She has many other great offers in larger cities with lots of opportunities ( internships, coops) in a more competitive atmosphere. She has worked really hard so far and we want her to have all the opportunities but stress and anxiety have been an issue in the past. I understand your concern.</p>
<p>The vibes between campus and town is something your Aspie S may be totally oblivious to. Popularity ratings like this should not be a factor in your search. The happiness factor should be focused on whether the school offers enough to ensure that your student could be happy attending - in addition to academics.</p>
<p>Here is a link to a list of criteria for selecting colleges for students with Aspergers; although all students on the spectrum have different needs, it can at least keep us parents focused on the bigger picture of finding a good fit for our own child - which would include looking at the student’s college readiness, social skills and life skills in addition to the academics - you may have the brightest kid in the world and he could still crash when he starts college if he lacks the maturity or skills to adjust to a residential college campus, and even with academics, I would look more at the program your student would be in and not so much at the school’s overall quality. These are the students, professors and staff that will probably have the most contact and influence on your student during his college years. </p>
<p>We used that checklist to evaluate Midwest LACs, CTCL book for shortlist and relied on Princeton Review’s “quality of life” rating for determining relative “happiness quotient”. I think it was a great system for narrowing school choice list. We visited all campuses, some more than once.</p>
<p>I think that neighboring community adjacent to campus does have an important impact on the overall experience, and some great Midwest LACs are in depressed rural towns with socio-economic problems to boot. Personal safety and off-campus retail/services within walking-distance were an important issue for us as parents, as was good food in cafeteria and active student life. “Not depressing environment” was key. Best wishes.</p>