<p>Next school year, starting in August, 2012, I will become a high school junior. I want to get ready for my college years by looking up colleges. </p>
<p>I have lived overseas for practically my whole entire life because of my parent's job and so I can't just go to the States whenever I want to and visit colleges. I don't even know which college to go to because I have no idea how any of the colleges in the States are like, and I feel like in order to know which college is best for myself, I should actually do some college visiting, but I probably won't go visit the States until I graduate from high school.</p>
<p>I'm just really confused right now. I know I can look up colleges online, like on the MyCollege Search website, as well as match myself up with colleges which would suit me the best, but overall, my knowledge of the number of colleges in the States isn't very plentiful.</p>
<p>I find that it’s best to start with a list of criteria that you need, and a list of criteria that you want. With these constraints it can narrow the list down from thousands of colleges to a nice handful.</p>
<p>Some starting points for you:
Size - Big, Small, or somewhere inbetween? Every size has its advantages.
Prestige - Is this important to you?
Expense - How much can you afford, and what kind of aid can you expect to get?
Programs - If you know that you want to pursue pre-med or law or what have you, you can narrow colleges based on program strength. If not, go for colleges that encourage exploration.
Location - Where do you want to go to college?
Student Body - Do you want a more liberal or conservative student body? Quirky? Intense? Competitive? Collaborative?
Religious affiliation - Is this important to you?
Urban/Suburban/Rural?
International presence - How international do you want the college to be?
Fraternities/Sororities - Do you want these?</p>
<p>Lots of things you can narrow your list with. :)</p>
<p>Also remember that you don’t have to define all of these categories. You probably won’t have a strong opinion on some, and that’s okay!</p>