What is the most impt factor in selecting a college?

<p>I’m a total nerd, so this was easy - I want to get smarter at a college, duh.</p>

<p>a school that is best in whatever course you are applying for.</p>

<p>i totally agree</p>

<p>Thank you for your knowledge! It’s good for my work!</p>

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<p>cwmalls
cwmalls.com-A B2C platform</p>

<p>I am having a problem here. I feel like I need to attend the most selective college I am admitted to simply because it provides the greatest compensation for my years of hard work in high school. Has anyone else had the same feeling? For people who chose a college “beneath” their qualifications, did this discrepancy bother you and how long did it take for you to get over it, if ever? This is excluding attending a school with a significantly cheaper price, i.e. large scholarship or in-state tuition, since I suppose ca$h is an appropriate compensation.</p>

<p>And no, intellectual growth is not a valid reward for my work in high school. If anything I feel intellectually burnt out.</p>

<p>^ We are the same person. Except for the very last part. I think the most rewarding thing will be going to college and being able to choose my field of study. I don’t think it will feel like such a pointless grind if it’s something I am genuinely interested in. I know I don’t speak for only myself when I say that high school is a means to an end. A lot of people will probably overreact to that statement and say I don’t deserve my acceptances and that I’m not a “true scholar” and what not, but I come here for advice, not opinions.</p>

<p>I would say that the majority of people attend college with the intention of pursuing a field of study they are interested in. At the same time, many pursue a college with a good reputation for their specific major because that in turn, could help them land a job.</p>

<p>However, there are many important factors that should be considered. All of the other factors listed are important. However, the strength of major should be the most paramount of all of them when it comes to searching for a college. The job market is looking bleak, so if there is a university which has a good reputation for a specific field of study, it puts job candidates ahead of the game. However, if the school lacks in other factors such as athletics, extra-curricular activities, climate, etc. it could have a negative impact on the student. If one values other factors they should see if the college applies to all of their criteria. I see that college is more of a place to get an education and hopefully land a job or pursue other fields of study after graduation. If they are not happy with the location and campus, but still have the potential to be successful with the education they are receiving, they should just go through it and try to work around it. </p>

<p>Some schools are excellent with the other factors listed and could make the atmosphere a lot better for the student. However, they may lack a foundation in certain areas of study. Remember, four years of happiness may turn into misery when they enter the job market.</p>

<p>I’m currently a senior in high school from Michigan interested in majoring in biology during college. After college I hope to become a dentist. Right now, I’m not too financially depressed where I can only attend cheaper colleges. I’m wondering what college has the best pre-dental program or placement into dental school. </p>

<p>So far I’ve gotten into:</p>

<p>Michigan State University
University of Kentucky (Honors Program pending)
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Marquette University (13k scholarship)
University of Oregon
University of Tennessee
Baylor University (54k scholarship)
University of Nebraska-Lincoln ($9680 scholarship)</p>

<p>I’m waiting to hear from</p>

<p>Wake Forest University
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
University of Miami (FL)
University of Southern California
University of Washington-Seattle</p>

<p>I’m wondering where is the best place to go overall academically considering I want to do pre-dentistry. Anything help!</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

<p>If you are selecting a college then you should about the faculties whether they are experienced enogh to guide you, see the campus environment and infrastructure,campus placements and all other relevant things.</p>

<p>For me, the most important factors are general academic excellence combined with a strong program in my area of interest, political science. Kind of secondary factors, but still potential deal-breakers, are the location a general sense of the campus community (what type of students? are people nice or super-competitive? is it too pretentious?). If the school’s brochure spends more time hyping the city the school is in than the school itself, it’s off the list. :)</p>

<p>I am not sure if academic strength is the same as academic rigor…But that one had my vote.</p>

<p>So I know that “good vibes” are a very important factor in deciding on a school, but how can you do that when you can’t afford to visit them? I live pretty far away from the schools I want to visit and my parents refuse to spend all that money on college visits and stuff. Any suggestions? :/</p>

<p>Academic strength in major, prestige, tuition, and geography are most important for me. Academic strength and tuition are pretty self-explanatory. Prestige I’m not extremely worried about, to be honest, because I’d rather be above average in a school instead of feeling like everybody is smarter than I am. I don’t want to be struggling. Geography…I’d just don’t want to go out-of-state because there’s a lot of great schools where I am.</p>

<p>I think all of that and more are really important. I started with a list of maybe 35 colleges, right off the bat I crossed of ones that had less than 1200 people or were in a really isolated location. then I went through absolutely everything else about them ( various reviews by people online were very helpful) and ended up with one perfect college, the one I had fallen in love with in the beginning. </p>

<p>To me the last and most important deciding factor was whether or not I thought I’d like the kind of people there, the whole atmosphere
Even though the second school on my list was like “the Ivy league of Art Colleges” I went with another because I kept getting the impression the people there were really arrogant and self-absorbed.</p>

<p>I had a couple safety schools but I never ended up applying because I knew I wouldn’t be happy anywhere else. ( and I was pretty confident I’d get in, which I did!)</p>

<p>This site is REALLY good for reading people’s reviews and rankings to get a better sense of the school!</p>

<p>take out the periods obviously
S.t.u.d.e.n.t.s.R.e.v.i.e.w.(.com)</p>

<p>most important factor is affiliation, reputation, feedback & Placement Record…</p>

<p>While I have difficulty choosing in this poll if a child is saddled 40k in debt all post-grad decisions will be governed by that 800 lb. gorilla.</p>

<p>In counseling students for four years, this is what they have taught me: </p>

<p>If the student is one that cannot wait to try that new thing in school, is motivated to do their best - a large school with a dazzling array of opportunities will be a great fit.
If the student has comments like " smart, knows what he/she is doing but I wish he would give us more in class…" consistently in school report cards, then a smaller college with small class sizes is the answer. </p>

<p>I have seen students from small private high schools who say that they really want the large university, anti-high school experience. These students who have parents and teachers who watch over them in High School find the first two years a challenge with no close supervision, in a large school. </p>

<p>I agree that each student is different but this is the best generalization that In can make regarding college selection in a forum like this. </p>

<p>Ravi Bala
[url=&lt;a href=“http://college.8thsq.org%5DCollegeWorkshop%5B/url”&gt;http://college.8thsq.org]CollegeWorkshop[/url</a>]</p>

<p>So, at the end of the day, you have to make a deposit by May 1 and commit. Do you take the university that is good (but not top tier) because they are paying all tuition and fees (but not room and board at 15K) or do you take the university that has the national and international reputation and will cost you about 30K each year? My son keeps saying, “Undergraduate does not matter–particularly for law school where they want grades and LSAT.” What do you all say to this?</p>

<p>Academic strength in intended major is easy for me. I’d go for a school like Drexel over a Harvard because Harvard doesn’t exactly do much for engineering.
For the rest of my order:
T-2) Prestige and tuition: Generally it will be tuition, but if there’s a school that is a bit more expensive and has more prestige, I’d go with that one.
4) Location/Close to Home: Really want to stay within a couple of hours of home.
5) Good vibes: Gonna be spending 4 years here… should probably feel comfortable.</p>