Princeton University Top Questions

When entering the college application process, keep an open mind. It doesn't matter where your parents went or where they want you to go; it's your life and should ultimately be your decision. Obviously cost can be an issue, but it should never be the most important factor; your education is priceless. Once those letters of acceptance arrive in the mail, it's time to pick your college of choice. If you find yourself broken between schools, visiting the campus can be the best way to make a decision. Pre-freshman programs are your best friend in helping the decisions because you get to really interact with core of the school: the students and the faculty. As for making the most of the college experience, treat it like a whole new world and throw out your preconcieved notions developed in high school. Take a pamphlet from every station at the activities fair; get out and get to know your school community. DO NOT sit in your dorm all day long doing work. Of course school work is important but college offers much much more academics so be sure to take advantage of that.

Everyone tries to convince you that finding the right college is like choosing the perfect meal: it must taste right without breaking the bank. When ordering dinner at a restaurant, the primary concerns for most people are taste and price. The ideal entree satisfies hunger without leaving a dent in your wallet. Likewise, the most pressing concerns for prospective college students are ?fit,? and cost. It is important to find a school that meshes well with your ambitions and personality, but it would stupid to throw money away by going to a school with a big price tag, no matter how great it is. Or so they tell you. While it is important to live within your means, when it comes to what you?ll be ?eating? for the next four years, the size of the check at the end of the meal should never be the most important factor. It is far better to be happy at an expensive school than to be miserable somewhere while you save a buck. After all, you can always go back to a restaurant to try a different dish, but choosing a college is a once in a lifetime decision.

When you walk onto campus, it should feel like home. When you experience that, you've found THE place for you.

Don't expect your admissions process to be logical or predictable. College admissions brochures may not be totally honest, but by seeing which features colleges play up, you know what features are importatnt to them. Email students (you can find them via student group websites) to find out the real story of what's going on at the college. Get involved in extracurriculars, and always make sure you don't take on so much that classes become secondary.

Choosing a college is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. Students, follow your heart. Parents, stay out of your kids' way. Did I know the financial burden I would face by choosing the school I did? Aboslutely! Did I know how hard classes would be, and how difficult it would be to also play a varsity sport? Absolutely! However, I knew the second I set foot on that campus my senior year of high school that I was home. Everything I had dreamed of about college growing up, playing a varsity sport and going to school on the east coast, culminated in a school that also satisfied my new found desire for learning and spiritual growth. At that moment, when I stepped foot on campus, I knew that I couldn't let anything prevent me from going there, not even the almighty dollar. Don't pick the school with the best academic record, or the prettiest campus, or the one that is most affordable for you. There is money available for motivated students, you just have to find it. You'll know which school is right for you, because being there will be like going home.

Make sure to visit everywhere you go - you CANNOT decide just by reading about a school or looking at pictures. Also, don't base where you go SOLELY on financial situation-if you need help, there are ways to get it. Also, it seems to all fall together. Once in college, make sure to relax sometimes--for many, this is the last 4 years of "childhood"; enjoy it, but try hard-you are shaping your future.

Parents, welcome to High School, where students compete in America's most vicious sport: Getting In to College. Forget about your fond memories of Senior Prom and Cheerleading. Today's kids have been groomed since birth with club sports and SAT tutoring. Fascinated by the insanity surrounding college admissions, I wrote a comedy , "Getting In, the Musical", and produced it at my high school. Because the main character was the 'College Admission Officer from Hell', my parents did not want me to include this play with my admissions packet. Actually, they were furious that I dropped Varsity Water Polo, "my ticket to college", in order to write this musical. LESSON ONE: LET YOUR CHILDREN FOLLOW THEIR PASSION Not only did I discover my passion for writing with 'Getting In', but I also know that my Early Admission Acceptance to Princeton was due, in large part, to that writing sample. Princeton's Creative Writing Department is amazing and turned out to be the perfect school for me. LESSON TWO: LET YOU CHILDREN FOLLOW THEIR INSTINCTS IN SELECTING A COLLEGE. Their first impressions of a school are usually correct. COLLEGE IS AMAZING: BE BRAVE, BE OPEN TO NEW EXPERIENCES ACADEMICALLY AND SOCIALLY.

The most important part of the college search is the visit and talking candidly to real students. There is no other way to get the true "feel" of a university or college.

Don't let the college process get to you: it's overwhelming and overrated. Take your time, try not to stress, and listen to what your heart tells you when you step onto the "right" college campus. But to be honest, there is more than one "right" college for each person. Also, to parents -- putting pressure on your child is not going to help them in any way to make what seems like the hardest decision in their life thus far. Instead, try to give them space and support whatever decision they make. And students -- once you finally do start college, take advantage of every second because it will be over before you know it. Make a million friends, have fun, meet your professors and maximize how much you can learn from them. Pick a major that you truly love, not what your parents have been dreaming about their whole lives, but whatever subject makes your heart beat just a little faster and whatever classes make you spring out of bed just a little sooner. But truly just remember to enjoy yourself!

The college process is a very personal one; I would therefore encourage parents and students alike to branch out from pre-conceptions of one college versus another and visit as many schools as possible in order to make their own decisions about what FEELS right to them. I would likewise encourage students to apply to all of the schools that they really love (REGARDLESS of the "reach"), while all the while keeping an open mind to options that they may not have thuroughly explored. In my opinion, the best way to go about doing this is to look at the list of schools to which you will apply as a WHOLE as opposed to focusing on a single school; make sure there's some variation of your own percieved culture and feel as well as level of selectivity among the schools on your list, and be sure to inlude some schools that might somewhat extend outside your general "comfort zone." Once a list like this is constructed, you can sit back, relax, and leave it up to the admissions process to highlight only those schools where you will truly thrive!