<p>I'm a junior in high school and I have no idea where to start in my search for colleges. </p>
<p>Some advice would be much appreciated. =)</p>
<p>if you have any idea on what you want to major in then start by looking at colleges with good programs of whatever it is. If your grades are good then look like at a list of top colleges and just scroll down and if you see any you recognize, get more info on it.</p>
<p>To start narrowing it down....</p>
<p>Location, urban vs rural vs suburban, size of school</p>
<p>The Princeton Review website has a Virtual Counselor. It's a long series of questions, at the end it gives you a list of schools to consider. You might start there. I believe the College Board website has something similar.</p>
<p>Hi sunyoung310,</p>
<p>I haven't been in this forum in such a long time, but I see this question all the time. It's very common, and I've answered this question many times. Unfortunately, I cannot find my old post (if I had it I could just send a link and that would solve all your problems). It's past 11:00 PM here in the West Coast, so I'll try to be short.</p>
<p>Finding the college right for you is like finding the house that's right for you. And in many ways, college will be a home. It will probably be your home for the next four years, and the students there will be those you'll spend your time with. So picking the college that's right for you is very important. You don't want to be around people you don't like!</p>
<p>This is why I'm against the rankings game. Prestigious schools won't necessarily give you what you're looking for. To find what will best suit you, you need to do some personal reflection.</p>
<p>College is a time for personal growth and exploration, but you should be doing this personal reflection now and throughout the rest of high school.</p>
<p>And on this note, I ask you this: What do you want out of life? </p>
<p>I know this will probably be difficult for you to answer, but you should try to start with the end goal in mind, and then take the steps needed to achieve that goal.</p>
<p>Why do you want to go to college? What do you want to get out of college? </p>
<p>These questions need contemplation; they demand much personal thought. They are critical.</p>
<p>What do you want to learn in college? What do you want out of college?</p>
<p>For example, in college, I want to learn everything I can in college. I want to challenge myself everyday and learn more specifically about mathematics. I want to be well educated.</p>
<p>But what does it mean to be well educated? My definition probably won't be the same as yours.</p>
<p>Do some real contemplation. What's your dream job? Will college help you with that? For instance, I want to become a college math professor, so I want to go to a school with a strong mathematics program, of course!</p>
<p>After you are confident of what you want, you need to think: What characteristics of the college will help me achieve my goals? </p>
<p>This is when you finally ask yourself about location, size, etc.</p>
<p>I won't spend forever going over the pros and cons of location, size, diversity, etc. If you go to College</a> Search - SAT Registration - College Admissions - Scholarships, you will find some helpful articles on those. </p>
<p>And once you go beyond physial factors, go into what student body you'd want to spend your four formative years with. Studious, partiers, both? Nerdy, laid-back?</p>
<p>The goal here is to develop a vision of what you'd want in a college or university, and then to seek schools that match what you're looking for.</p>
<p>Any specific majors? I'm into liberal arts schools, but I still want to go to liberal arts schools with strong math programs, because I want to become a math professor, and I can't imagine my life without math. Think of a couple majors. It's really not that hard. Just ask yourself what your favorite subjects in school are.</p>
<p>If you want to become an engineer, you should go to a school with an engineering program! </p>
<p>Your major is likely to change, and I think that that's a good thing. After all, college should expose you to all sorts of topics. Maybe at the end of high school you abhorred art and history and can't possibly imagine taking art history in college, but your professor engaged you to the topic and in college you decide that you really like it. That's good. That means you're stretching your horizons.</p>
<p>Okay, now I'm drifting...Back to picking colleges...</p>
<p>Well, really, I think I've given you a good head start. I'll leave you now with some resources that I've found very helpful in finding colleges.</p>
<p>The Complete Idiot's Guide to College Planning by Dr. O'Neal Turner. A good overview of the college process.</p>
<p>Looking Beyond the Ivy League by Loren Pope. I really like this book, even though it does have a bias toward liberal arts schools.</p>
<p>College</a> Search - SAT Registration - College Admissions - Scholarships Good, but it doesn't stress the importance of personal reflection, and it's College Match Maker isn't very good at all.</p>
<p>And on this note, it is 11:26 and I want to go to sleep, so</p>
<p>Good luck and have fun! I mean it!</p>
<p>Firstly, get on Collegeboard or PR and do their College Finder search. Use that as a springboard to identify colleges based on your desires and stats, compile a rough list, and then get back here for us to help you. :)</p>
<p>Do one of those college "fit" finders. They seem to work pretty well.</p>
<p>Ummm...swiper, what's up with you?</p>