Michael
I don't know that I have a lot of advice. I only applied to one school and I didn't visit the campus before I went, but I love the place. But it helps to have a good idea what major you want, and then try to find a school that has a good program for it. But also look at what kind of campus it is. Ask yourself, would I feel comfortable here? Are there things to do that I like doing? Will I be able to find the academic resources I need? Do I like the size of the campus and the feel of the area where it's located? All those things are good things to consider before choosing your school.
Myles
Research your college choices, go to a school to learn not because of the name of the school in question
Andrew
My advice is to first make sure to visit the school and if they have a program to shadow a student for a day or two take the opprotunity. Also make sure you go during the season they are least known for so that you can see if you will enjoy it. Make sure you can sit in on atleast one class.
Once you get into the college make sure to take part in activities on campus. Try to find your nitch weither its a sports team or a club on campus. Getting involved makes the time at your college much more enjoyable and helps releave the stress of classes. Also do some research on the professors teaching the classes you plan on taking as just picking the times that are best for you might not give you the best learning experiance. Make sure you go to all of your classes. Unlike highschool if you slack off and miss classes you will probably never catch up again.
Robert
You need to know a few things about yourself before you find the right college. I knew I liked math and science, so I started looking at schools that had those subjects as priorities. You need to find out what you would like to do in the future, and what kind of job meets what you want to do. Once you find what you want to do, search around and ask your guidance counselors for schools that provide what you are looking for. After you find what college you want and you get in, college life can be very fun. My advice is get involved in a couple of clubs and a couple of sports. Go out and meet some new people in those clubs.
Katelyn
Study hard but make time to have a social life. College is what you make it!
Jennifer
Pick a college that is highly acknowledged in your specific field of study or career interest. Also, pick a college with a surrounding environment that you will enjoy.
Tarah
I would advise parents and/or students to visit the college campus and exploring the area at least once before deciding to attend. A college can look great on paper and offer a great program that interests you, but it is no good if you don't like the size or the city it belongs to because that is where you will be spending the majority of your time for the next four plus years. As far as making the most of the college experience, be sure to join the clubs or student organizations that interest you because if you don't you may regret it when you're sitting in your dorm room alone on a Friday night. Putting yourself out there in the first few weeks of college will help you to find your place among your school and make friends that could potentially last a lifetime.
Jennifer
After having been through the college selection process, I feel that the most important step a student can take in choosing the right campus is to spend time at all potential colleges and/or universities. Personally, I spent a week on the Michigan Technological University campus the summer prior to my senior year in high school for a summer learning program. Being able to live for a week on this campus and truly experience a little piece of this university is what sold me. I met with professors in my potential area of study, and had many of my questions answered. The next most important aspect to consider is the size of campus which will best support the student. I came from a small high school in a small country town. Thus I knew that I needed to be enrolled in a University which slightly mimicked this situation. Michigan Tech is smaller than most Universities, but the level of education greatly surpasses many schools with higher enrollments. The community in which my school is located is friendly to the students, and definitely supports a healthy college experience. These are the factors I consider most critical in choosing a college.
Benjamin
The advice I would give to parents and students is this; if student already has an idea of what they want to be then visit colleges that specialize in those areas. If the student does not know what they want to be it would be best to look into a general college which will help them get basic credits done and help them pin down what it is they want to do. Moreover, the most important thing is visiting the college you plan to attend. Get a feel for what you are getting yourself into. You will immediately recognize what colleges seems to fit and which ones do not.
Reuben
The big thing is to find a place that will allow healthy growth both academically as well as physically and mentally for the student AND all parties involved whether it be loved ones, friends, or relatives. In the first two weeks it has been shown by different studies that the actions that first year students involve themselves in will very likely be the things that will define their college career. Make sure that the enviroment is producted, constructive, and positive. If a college or dorm hall is known for excessive drug abuse (such as drinking or hazing), find another dorm hall or school to attend. A degree is usually a degree once you graduate but the importance of what you do and how you do it as you spend your four years prior to graduation is also something that should weigh heavily on the minds of those involved in the decision making process of where you want to go. Most places are better than most people with horror stories claim them to be. Just keep in mind that as a first year student, ultimately they choose their future and how it will be spent at their particular college. God Bless.
Kyle
My advice for students would be to not rush into college right out of high school like is socially expected these days. Find something that you love and want to do and really look hard at a school before you pick it. As for parents, my advice would be to make your child submit for as many scholarships as possible becayse the cost of college is rising at a phenominal rate. Also make sure you're helping your child find a great school that will be cost-effective. Also, private colleges seem great, but they aren't worth two times the money.
Making the most of your college experience is very difficult. Balancing time for homework and social living mixed in with procrastination becomes almost the hardest part about college life. Self control is key for making the right decisions at the right time. Don't hold anything back. Most importantly, question every rule that a college tells you is set in stone. YOU pay tons of money to them...sap that for as much as you can. And most importantly don't pick a school with a terrible sex ratio. Make sure there are girls/boys for you.
Ben
First, apply based only on educational interest. You're at a point in life where you should have some idea of what interests you, apply to schools which meet many of those interests. Apply to as many schools as you can. Once you've been accepted, look at the financial aid offered and weed out those schools which don't give enough. Now what's left are schools that you can go to and get an education in something which interests you. Visit those schools. What is important now is that you'll be spending a few years of your life at one of these places. Make sure it's somewhere you'll be happy with. Meet the people, particularly the professors and students in fields that interest you. Make sure they're the sort of people you would get along with. Look at the extracurriculars, see if there's anything that catches your interest. Make sure the location is somewhere you could enjoy living. Not too big, not to small, not too close, not too far away and with a climate you could live in. If you have more than one choice left after all of this, lucky you.
Kayla
Don't chose your college based on where your friends/boyfriend/girlfriend are going. Make you own decsion about what college would best suit you after you have gone and seen many different places. Going someplace new and different is scary and strange but shortly becomes amazing and well worth all of your time and effort. Once at college make sure that you work hard and keep up with classes. Many classes you take may not be related to your major at all, but there is a reason you are taking them and you should try to learn as much as possible from those courses. Remember to leave your dormroom and get out and enjoy the town and surrounding areas of the college because that is often the best way to spend the weekend.
Ben
Go to the school you most enjoy being at and that provides coursework that you're interested in.
Ben
attend a community college! go to a local community college and get the first year or two out of the way. take the freshman level courses. these are the courses that at a university would be in a lecture hall with 450 people but you will be in a class of 30. also, some universities like to use the freshman and sophmore level courses as "weeder" classes to get numbers down. these courses are usually the top level courses at your c.c. and they wont try to weed you out there. your work load will be more manageable. and besides, who wants to go off to a university when you can live at home for free and pay a third as much on tuition.
Helen
One of the most important things to do is to go to the campus. If it feels right to you then, as long as it has your major, it probably is. Michigan Tech was one of the last schools I looked at. I got a flyer in the mail and saw the snow, and that it was an engineering school and decided to look into it. I ended up at Tech and I don't regret it. The school feels right. I have never really felt out of place while on campus and in the surrounding area. If you are comfortable with an area then you are more likely to be able to study and do well in classes without having to worry about fitting in or finding friends. The friends come naturally because they too, fit into the school. Basically, if it doesn't feel right, don't go there. It doesn't matter how much money they try to give you if you don't like the school.
Lauren
Visit the campus, do your resewarch, and prepare for flaws. Every school is flawed, but you will know which one is right for you when you visit. Talk to a professor in the major that you want to be a part of and if you can spend a night in the school housing. Then the prospective student will get a good sense of what dorm life is like and how they will be able to make due. Also gives them a chance to meet more people and more to compare. Attend a sporting event and check out the Gym. Explore each campus, then make a pro/con list and decide form there. I did not need this much exposure, but it sure would have made the process more fun!
Jan
Make sure you visit as many campuses as you can. It is great to have something to compare.
Mary
Before picking a college go to visit the campuses. I worked in the admissions department and many kids made their decision after coming to visit campus. They were worried that it would be too small or just not them, but once they came to visit they realized that it was the perfect school for them. And in contrast they visited some schools that weren't very personable and they didn't like it at all after they visited.
Once they are in their perfect college though, I would tell them to get involved in something other than academics. Join a club, but make sure not to over do it. Don't join every club you are slightly interested in. Take one really seriously because it'll give you an outlet other than school work and it looks good on resumes.
Jonathan
My advise to parents and students about finding the right college is that they need to research as many colleges as possible. Try to visit as many of the colleges as you can that you are interested in. Look first to see if the college have what you want to major in. Second what size you would like in a school, look at the social environment. Ask questions about class sizes and how helpful the falcuty and staff are. Check out how much the tuition and room and board will be. My advise to students is to listen to what your parents have to say and to keep in mind that high school and college are nothing alike. Have fun but don't sacrafice your grades. My advise to parents is to let your son or daughter grow up and let then make some decision because they will have to anyway when you have gone home. Hope this helps.