As a high school Senior, there is a lot of uncertainty about next year. We have to deal with the stress of applying to colleges, then the stress of first semester grades and exams, and finally choosing a college. My goal of this thread is to get some advice from college students, or recent alums, on anything college. For example, topics could be housing situations, adjusting to independency, keeping up with the party scene, how important social life actually is, etc. As you can see, I am keeping the options of this thread open. You can tell a story and say what you learned, just give the advice, however you want to get your message across. Although, I would like that all who post are saying their year(i.e. Freshman-Senior, or Recent Alum(put your grad year)), as well as the college that you attend(ed). I believe many can benefit from this post. Also, High Schoolers feel free to leave questions or concerns about college that can hopefully be answered by our elders.
I’ll tell you what I wish I could tell my first semester senior year self - dream schools mean nothing if the money isn’t there. If your family is hard pressed in terms of savings/cash flow, financial aid will ultimately be the deciding factor of where you go to school. Try to think in terms of finances rather than prestige - student debt blows.
Finances are definitely a HUGE consideration. You can get a job with most degrees from an accredited program, so it’s not necessary to pick the most expensive school you can find. I chose the free option for me, and I am very happy with my decision. I had a girl ask me why I went to College A instead of College B (when College B has a slightly better ed program) and I told her it was cheaper. She said, “Wow, you have high standards.” Yes, darling. I would rather not be saddled by debt with a menial salary for the rest of my life. I do, in fact, have high standards. Of course I understand that everyone has different financial situations - just make sure that your college price tag isn’t outside your means.
I would also recommend choosing the colleges you apply to carefully. Perhaps if you have unlimited funds it doesn’t matter, but for me it mattered. Applications cost money, and when you apply to 15 colleges each with a $50 application fee, you spend $750. $700 will be money that you threw away. I only applied to colleges I would seriously consider attending, colleges I could afford, and colleges that I could (with minimal doubt) get into. I understand the concept of a reach, but for me it was a little different since any reaches were also out of my budget. Just don’t reach in too many directions. 
So, yeah, money advice. I probably sound like a little black rain cloud, but I feel like a lot of people don’t really do the calculations (and actually think about the implications of the numbers on their lives) until they’re half-way through a degree or starting to pay off student loans.