Creating a College List
Did you thrive at a high school that promoted group work, experiential learning and student involvement in curricular decisions? Or did you attend a more traditional high school and wish you had more flexibility in what you studied? Or perhaps you happily attend a more traditional high school but now want more self-directed learning opportunities?
A few weeks ago, Forbes featured an article focusing on what questions to think about before beginning a college search. The article examines the core of what a student should consider at the beginning of a college search – big picture questions — which often tend to be overlooked:
“Do you want to go to college? Why? What do you want from your educational experience?”[1]
As important as it is to dig deep into the foundational reasons for wanting to attend college, the self-reflection shouldn’t end there. Once you have determined that college is the right next step, it’s equally important to unpack the ways in which a college may or may not fit.
What is fit? Fit refers to how well a school matches the person you are and who you want to become. It refers to everything from the academics available to student organizations to location to diversity.
Summer break is just a couple of weeks away, with a new group of students as rising seniors, poised to tackle college applications head-on. The moment this happens, students begin to hear choruses of “where do you want to go to college next year?” But please remember: most students will not, and should not, have
