Please read: a personal appeal from a confused high school senior.

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Salutations, fellow CCers. I'm a rising senior, and I've been lurking this forum for a few years now. I was hoping someone could help me with choosing a college. Let me tell you a little about myself:</p>

<p>-I love science and math, and I like being around others who do as well.
-I plan to study engineering in college.
-Though science is my passion, I like reading and learning about different ideas and such.
-I'm about average for this site - 34 act, 1460 sat CR + M
-I like trips to cities (DC, NYC, downtown Pittsburgh, etc.)
-I also like the outdoors (Biking, camping, hiking, etc.)
-I am fairly introverted, and while I like people, I do appreciate some "alone time".
-I don't have a TON of friends. I prefer to just have a few really close friends.
-I don't really like alcohol. Not to the extreme, just not something I'm into.
-I am open to joining a fraternity, but I don't know a whole lot about them.
-I really liked forming close relationships with my teachers in high school.</p>

<p>Am I more suited for a smaller liberal arts college, a bigger state school, or a medium tech school? Also, should I be looking at urban, rural, or suburban campuses?
Any specific recommendations are welcome but not required.
Thanks for reading and good luck!</p>

2

<p>How much can your family pay? How do they feel about you taking on some debt for your education? How much do they expect you to make in summer jobs to help pay?</p>

<p>How far are you willing to travel for an affordable education?</p>

3

<p>It is hard to recommends types of schools because it is very personal, different for each individual, and not always predictable. For example my quiet S did not like the LACs as I expected and loved the more urban schools while my outgoing D who I thought would like a mid-size or larger school fell in love with the environment of the small LACs. If at all possible, try to visit some different types of schools and see what feels right to you. And of course happymomof1 is right, talk to your family and see if there are financial/geographic restrictions as well.</p>