I’m just starting to research colleges. What is the best way? Should I buy any books like FIske guide to colleges (recommendations would be nice if you have any)?
Also, what’s the best way to find colleges to research? (This is less important to me.)
If you intend to choose a college at least partly based on selectivity, then an analysis such as “The 610 Smartest Colleges” (Business Insider) can help you find schools similar to those you are already familiar with while at the same time narrowing your choices to a manageable number. Some comparisons should be made with discretion, however. For example, many universities offer particularly excellent specialized and honors programs that would not be identifiable through general statistics.
There is no best way.
I would use a variety of tools and see what colleges keep coming up.
I would make a spreadsheet and include info like:
Net Cost
Number of Undergraduates
Faculty Student Ratio
%of students that live on campus
How big is the department for your major? If you are majoring in something that only has a couple of professors, that does not bode well.
Housing- do they offer all 4 years? freshman only?
Urban/rural/suburban
Is this a commuter school? (do students go home on weekends)
Surrounding area - what is the nearby town/amenities like?
Transportation - how would you get home
AP Credits - can you get credit for AP tests you have taken
Male/Female ration
Greek life - what % of students are in greek life
Parking
Diversity
Safety
Sports
Jobs - what happens to seniors after they graduate
Internships - depending on your major, is it easy to get internships?
…and whatever makes sense for you
You might not care about, say, greek life. but if 50% of the kids are in greek life and you don’t want to be, that is something to know. Or you may want a big time sports scene or you might not want one. Grade them from 1-5 as they make sense to you.
Then look at each of them and see which makes sense for you
A tool to help is https://colleges.niche.com/compare/default.aspx?&tab=tab-rankings
ALso use the Supermatch tool (see it over on the left here on CC).
Do you have Naviance at your school? THat is also a great idea.
Fiske guide is great because it gives you a nice summary of each college.
Do college searches. Attend college fairs.
Campus visits are a great way to get a feel for the vibe of a college. The best way to research colleges is to identify what is important to you. I don’t think you need college guide books for this, but you can get them if you want.
To research specific colleges, try the colleges’ website and the rest of the web. The internet is a wealth of information.
Hope this helped.
The old fashioned way… just doing basic research. Here are some suggestions to start with.
-Be realistic about where your stats place you.
-Be realistic about your financial needs
-Think about what you want in terms of your college experience. Anything that is important to you should be considered in this decision. Do you want any particular area of study? large/medium/small school ? urban/suburban/rural college? religious/secular school? Greek Life? big time sports? or anything else you care about…
-If your guidance counselors are helpful, take advantage of that and talk to them.
-Read up on schools – I like Fiske & Princeton Review the best. Princeton Review covers more schools I believe.
-If your school has Naviance see where you stand for schools you are considering.
-If you are applying to the top tier schools, recognize that they are reaches for everyone given their low acceptance rates.
-Visit schools if possible, preferably when schools are in session.
.
The Fiske Guide is very good- it helped me a lot. Surf the college websites, and try to talk to students who currently attend (your high school can help you with this, if they have sent people there in years past)
Once you have a particular school in mind YouTube videos about the school can tell you a lot.