University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Top Questions

when you find the perfect college for you, you know it in your heart. find that one place you can call "home" when you are back in your hometown/parent's house. you know you have found the right place when you can picture yourself there and enjoying every minute/experience. make sure you understand the distance between you and home because it is important depending on how often you want to return home. also make sure the weather is in your comfort zone. especially if you dont like snow for example. check out extracurricular activities on campus that might interest you besides sports such as Greek life iand organizations. understand the finances needed to attend that college to make sure it is in your range and please know about financial aid and its availability--very key! be open to new people/ideas because college will introduce you to much of both. set goals and be determined/focused to do the best you can to achieve greatness socially and academically. be observant and know your surrondings. College grants you three people who will prove to be your best of friends for life-also enjoy every part of it!

Visit: visit classes, tour the campus, and speak to current students.

The most valuable thing I have experienced in my time at Carolina is the quality of relationships I have established outside of my academic pursuits. It is important to take academics seriously and work hard, however many people get lost in pursuing a career and success and allow books and theories to become their only meaningful interactions in the process. Extra-curricular activities are a great way to get to know people who share common interests and values with yourself and build lasting relationships. Also, if you decide to pursue an academic direction midway through college that the location you are at does not have a strong program in, do not be afraid to transfer to a place that does. College is what you make of it. You have the option of going the party route and killing as many braincells as possible in the name of education, or you can really have the best of both worlds by pushing yourself academically and intellectually while building life-long friendships that in many ways you are likely to find more valuable than whatever intellectual pursuits you strive for.

Parents: you have to let your child decide what types of opportunities are right for them. Choosing and matriculating at a school is a very personal process and only the individual can truly know which school will offer the most to them. Students: while knowing what you want to study and getting good grades is very important, do not let "requirements" limit you in terms of the classes you choose or the major you choose. It is your school. Eat up everything it has to offer you.

My best advice on finding the right college would be to listen to yourself. Within the college selection process, it is easy to get swept away with everyone else's opinion on different schools. For example, during my college selection process, I felt myself saying, "Well, Dad went here and Mom likes the campus, so this could be the one." However, I learned that i needed to listen to which schools were the best fit for me, not just for my family. I began to look at schools at how they best suited my academic, athletic, and social goals. In doing so, the right school seemesd to fall right into my lap and I couldn't be happier! It is most vital that you let your own opinion be the most important one. Go to a school that you love and couldn't live without. Go to a school where you could see yourself fitting in and flourishing. Ultimately, this will be your school and your future, so make your voice heard!

Visit all of the colleges that you are interested in, if possible. Take the tours, stay a night in a dorm if you are able to, visit the surrounding town. While the education that you will get is the most important aspect of the university you choose, without a great community surrounding it with exciting things to do, college won't live up to its potential and you won't be able to handle the workload.

Don't be scared to take a risk. Weigh your options and find the best fit for you! Go for it! Once your there, dive in head first and take advantage of every opportunity!

pick some where cheap for undergrad. pick somewhere that has the same values that you do. pick somewhere that is as close to your level of intelligence as possible. do not pick somewhere just because they have your intended major. do not pick somewhere you know will be too challenging.

Know what you want to be when you grow up before you even apply

Any college can be the right college if you make the most of it. Of course it's easier to find the right college if you have an idea of what you want to do. Money can be another factor when deciding too whether it's choosing one that you can afford or not. For the parents you might want to look at the surrounding areas and look into the safety of the school. There's no way you can choose your college until you have visited them. Sometimes you know what college is the right one for you by being there physically, walking through the campus. Basically just go with your gut, nothing is final and you're bound to have a good time where ever you go.