Muhlenberg College Top Questions

When deciding on a College, it is important to know yourself as a student and a person. Your college experience is going to shape you. It is essential to choose a school that meets your academic and social needs. Make a list of the most important things that you are looking for in a College. The list should include some academic criteria and then some extracurriculars or things you like to do. If you love Biology and you also want to play football, find a school that offers both. They key to happiness in college is going to a school that fits your personality. You need to be happy in and out of the classroom. No one else can really make the decision for you. In the end, the choice is yours. At one of your college visits, you'll probably get a really good feeling about that specific school. LISTEN TO IT!! There must be some reason that it is standing out. Go back to the school again and again. If that good feeling is still there, then the school is probably right for you. Once you find your school, do everything you can to make yourself stand out.

Take advantage of every opportunity you are given. Dream big and hope for the best. Give as much to yourself as you do to others. With trust in yourself and your decisions you will take yourself to places you can never even imagine.

You just have to find the school that feels right and get involved as soon as you get there!

College is a once in the life time opertunity, make the right chooce and do not worry about finacal issues. Let your heart lead you to the right place that fits you the best, and dont worry about any other issues; if it is the right place for you then all the issues (i.e. distance, cost, friends, etc.) will not matter because you will be happy and enjoy your time at that school.

Be honest about what you want. For students, make sure you are going to a college or university that feels comfortable to you and, if you don't know what you want to major in, has a wide variety of choices for you to explore. For parents, listen to you child. You're not the one going back to college, they are. Listen to their wants and needs, support their choices, give them advice, not commands, and make sure to help them when they need it.

The best advice I could give parents and students regarding finding the right college is as follows: 1) Make a decision based on what feels comfortable and right, not based on prestige of the college 2) When a decision is made, do not look back and make the most of the decision made. Students can make most of the college experience by getting involved early on in their academic career in different social actitivies, taking advantage of the tremendous and valuable resources that faculty can provide (i.e. research opportunities), and just being themselves!

Visit and apply to as many colleges as you possibly can-- that way, if you decide once you've been accepted that you're looking for something new in your future college, you'll have a lot to choose from.

Relax. Parents, be aware of your natural tendency to impose or to put ideas and wants into your son's or daughter's head, and don't do it. Be there to give objective feedback, information, and emotional support. Students, be honest with yourselves. Be really honest. Someone (a guy named Walter Anderson) once said that "the first and most difficult risk we can take is to be honest with ourselves," and I think he's right -- at least, that's been true for me. Try to clear your mind of all your worries and concerns about the future, especially those concerning what everyone else may think of your decisions, your lifestyle, and your guiding philosophy -- clear your mind of all this, and ask yourself: "What do I love?" The first thing that popped into your head just now when you read that, go for it. Make it your central and even your sole criterion in your college decision-making process, and in your life decision-making process as well. Have fun.

Look at every school with an open mind. You'll know when you found the right school. It will feel like the place you want to be. Don't let your parents make the decision. Parents just need to be supportive and act like a resource. YOU MUST VISIT THE SCHOOL!!!

Make sure that you take into consideration EVERYTHING the college has to offer: like academics, housing, campus size, proximity to home, availability of off campus resources, campus dining, athletic facilities, etc. All of these factors are extremely important because college is not only a place for you to get an education, it is your home away from home for at least four years. If a college does not allow freshman to have cars on campus, make sure there is some kind of transportation available to take you to the grocery store, out to eat, or to different social events. Finally, before your choose which school to attend, carefully reflect on how far away you actually want to be from home. The transition to college can be difficult and most students underestimate how much they will actually miss home when they come to college. Its okay to want to be near home. Just make sure that is part of your criteria when choosing a school. Perhaps most importantly, when you arrive at college, be sociable, make new friends, and don't be afraid to try new things if you've always wanted to do them. That's what college is for.