How do students and parents actually define “best fit”?
Based on many threads, it seems that the most common factors considered are:
I think all of the above. For S24 it is a combination of location, vibe, quality of academics - major isn’t as big a factor as he is undecided and among majors he is considering, none are impacted (Engineering/CS) and are typically offered at most colleges. Generally speaking - and outside of the rarefied world of CC - I think cost is probably the most important factor for the majority of families.
For us, non-academic factors plus price as a secondary factor ruled the day.
Prestige/selectivity ended up mattering much less after going through the process than it did in the beginning. We learned that for us (not eligible for need-based aid), prestige/selectivity came with a hefty price tag. That wasn’t enough to rule out those schools completely, but vibe, size, location, etc., sealed the deal. The extra price wasn’t worth it.
In the end, DD decided she would have similar opportunities at most large public research universities — perhaps even more at a less prestigious university because she wouldn’t be competing with as many uber-ambitious peers. It didn’t make sense, particularly considering her life/career goals, to pay more to make sure she had a chance to meet The Eminent Professor in a certain field or claw her way into a coveted research position in The Most Well-Known Department.
She was willing to pay a small amount more for a more ideal location, Honors College advantages, and similar factors.
For S23, it was a combination of student population size, location, vibe, depth and breadth of resources, and the ability to explore the humanites (he’s a STEM kid). Outsiders were surprised he didn’t apply to the well-known tech colleges given his apparent interests, but he decided early in the process that experience was not for him.
Our oldest son isn’t lazy by any stretch but he tends to play to the level of competition.
Just knowing our son we knew he would fit better and do better around higher achieving peers. He didn’t have to be a top student but he had to go somewhere he would have to push himself at least a little.
Could he have done that at many schools? Sure, but it comes back to fit and where you think they’ll thrive. Might not have been on his radar but it was high on our list.
That’s a great question.
Our son wanted a school with a good engineering reputation, that also offered the “typical college experience.” That meant diverse majors, some sort of sports, some party scene, etc. Essentially what he meant by that was that he didn’t gravitate towards extremely tech focused schools like MIT, Embry-Riddle, etc.
In addition, he targeted schools that ideally started in major, and featured some hands on learning component early. That has been shown to aid retention in the major.
He also wanted to be at a school that had access to outdoor activities like hiking, surfing or skiing, green space, etc.
We set a strict top number of $200K after merit.
After we started touring, campuses where students seemed overtly happy was a big factor too.
Ranking, selectivity and prestige played no part in the process.
Whatever “fit” actually is, cost (if it matters) will ultimately trump it, so it is probably best to consider that to be a different category.
There are people on this site who act like they are going to faint if a student considers both Dartmouth & Columbia because “THEY ARE SO DIFFERENT!!!” For many kids, the best ‘fit’ is the highest ranked/most prestigious school that will admit them…and that is fine if that makes them happy.
All applicants probably begin the process with some element of ‘fit’ in mind (wanting a big or small school, elements of sports, yes or no to Greek life, close or far from home, etc.) but we often see applicants deviate from their original vision. Why? Because the overwhelming majority of applicants are well-adjusted and malleable 17 & 18-year olds who can succeed in almost any environment, and who truly don’t even know themselves well enough yet to fully understand what is the best ‘fit.’
Affordability to me is a separate and overriding issue that should be tackled first. There is no reason to consider “fit” for schools a family cannot/are unwilling to afford.
Fit for me means how closely academic and certain non-academic elements align with the applicant’s preferences. Academic fit would include strength of programs the student is most interested in, class requirements (“open” vs “core”), class size, quality of student peers, and resources (physical plant like labs and human resources, e.g. type and quality of faculty that does the primary teaching). Nonacademic elements would include location (major city/urban/suburban/rural, NSEW, cold/warm, near/far/accessibility), size (huge, medium, small), public/private, big time sports culture or not, Greek vs non Greek importance in social life, political leanings of faculty and student body, number and types of school supported non-academic activities, diversity of student body. Probably others, but these are the biggies I am thinking about. Students and families will have different opinions of each one along with different weightings and trade-offs.
One factor that people probably don’t consider enough is probable economic return. I am not talking a precise financial calculation, but looking at historical outcomes for graduates of the schools in question. Of course, if school A is not a fit, it is likely the student will do worse than the average outcome (cheap is expensive) or School A is a great fit where the student will likely thrive (worth it to pay extra). But where school A is a “95%” fit and would cost an extra $100k or more over 4 years vs school B at an “85%” fit, a hard decision needs to be made, which could be the right decision either way depending on the family and the student.
I don’t associate any of those with fit.
Fit is about feeling and vibe. Fit is about people and campus culture. Fit is specific to an individual and often relies on intangibles.
Edit: for many students, fit is a luxury.
We only looked at schools that were good academic options for my D based in her major - and that would still offer good opportunities should she decide to change her major.
After that, it was all about “fit” which for us was where did she see herself happy living for 4 years. We also talked alot about her final choices were all good academically and would all offer her great opportunities but the question for her was at which school did she see herself most comfortable taking advantage of the opportunities?
My kid said that fit is a consideration amongst peer institutions. Fit is subjective.
For many, prestige is a fit factor as well.
Either because they’re targeting careers where the top firms still primarily recruit from a small number of “prestigious” schools; or because “prestige” serves as a proxy for academic peer quality. The latter applies not just to elite schools, but also to schools that are particularly well known for certain majors.
And yes, I fully agree that seeking fit is a luxury.
This was a big driver for my kids, also. They wanted to be at the best programs for their interests that they could - to be well-positioned to start making a living in the real world. They did not have a $ limit. This put prestigious names on the list, but not just for the sake of prestige. Of course, campus resources, career placement, activities, location, size and feel also mattered, but frankly I think ‘fit’ is not that hard to find.
We made sure that all the schools on their lists would have been places they would attend. As mentioned by a poster above, some of the schools on their lists were quite different from one another, but there were different things they liked about them. And I’m convinced they could have been happy at many places.
I recently posted something about “fit” vs finances and someone responded that it should be at the top of every post, so here goes…
“Be the student you are and find the school that loves kids like you. There are so many colleges and if you quit worrying about prestige you can make a very nice list of schools that fit you as well as your budget.”
I attribute my kids’ success at all levels of schooling to finding schools where they could thrive. Figure out what type of learner you are, what you are passionate about, and what makes you happy. What are your strengths and weaknesses? When do you feel the most “you” and alive? What are a few things you’ve always wanted to experience? What are “no-gos” for you? What types of classes were the most successful in and where did you struggle? Do you work best in groups, with frequent check-ins, with a lot of freedom? Think about these questions and then find schools where other students like you thrive.
For DS it was lots of hands-on opportunities (research), high but reachable goals, other students that will challenge him, the ability to challenge his teachers, the opportunity to learn from mistakes, interdisciplinary courses (often found in Honors programs), and tons of clubs to try without a huge time commitment (rather than continuing with varsity level sports). These are things that have contributed to his success in the past so were crucial to continue. Everything else was negotiable but he’s an easygoing, flexible kid, so it left plenty of wiggle room. His process was to find the best schools for his major, talk to professors and students in that department, and evaluate if the school would be a “fit” based on what he knew about himself.
DD needed smaller classes where she couldn’t hide in the back and teachers that reached out to get to know her, a smaller campus, more classes in her major, hands-on work to show her work ethic and what a hard worker she is even though she can be quiet in the classroom, people that reached out to let her know when she was successful, students that weren’t “snobby” and an environment that wasn’t a pressure cooker. She does best where she feels comfortable. She can get overwhelmed easily and found the perfect fit at a small state school that has exceptional programs in her major and was “one and done”.
Both of my kids had experience in their majors while still in high school so this made the search a bit easier as they had a high certainty that they would continue in those fields. For DS he thought it was important that the school offered many majors in case he wanted to switch and because he likes to “dabble” in other areas. For DD she wanted to be fully immersed in her major and not have to do too much outside of it.
I think prestige often works against fit and is not a good motivator.
For us, cost, size, location, academics, extracurriculars, campus culture and “vibe.” Compatible peers are important and a subjective factor that is hard to assess but we hung out on campus and some kids did overnights or attended classes. Dining hall, library, campus green or whatever were good places to hang out. It was also good to think about star lecturers with TA’s versus teaching prof.'s and class and department sizes.
Part of the reason for starting this thread is seeing so many chance/match me posts where the college list appears to be chosen with prestige as the primary fit factor.
When we began the process, our ideal school had to be
Once we had admits in hand, I would say career outcomes + cost + admit day experience played a greater role in the final decision.
All of the above plus the prevalent social dynamics of the schools themselves, either the schools in their entirety and/or the departments in which the student hopes to major.
After touring a number of schools, it’s easy to get a feel for differences in each especially when visiting when classes are in session. It’s more difficult but not impossible in the summer.
Here’s how I would prioritize the list:
Financial fit, for the vast majority of families who are financially constrained.
Academic fit: availability and strength of potential majors, breadth and depth in course offerings in areas of interest, abundance of academic peers, research opportunities and faculty involvement, etc.
Social fit: opportunities for in-depth interactions and networking with fellow students and faculty with potentials for developing life-long friendships, living arrangements that foster such interactions, etc.
Everything else.
@ucbalumnus prestige is absolutely featured often as a factor and then many of us respond to counter it!
The typical post asking to “chance me for the Ivies” usually gets a “why Ivies” as a response and encouragement to find a school that “fits” versus trying to “fit” a school or set of schools.