University of St Thomas-Saint Paul Top Questions

I would tell future students that it is very important to do your research before selecting a school. It is extremely important to find a school that you feel comfortable at because you will have to be there for the next four years of your life! Take time to visit the schools you think you will like, talk to some of the professors, take a tour and ask the tour guide about specific aspects of the school that you know will be important to you. Make sure the school has a great program for the major of your choice. I would tell parents that the most important thing to offer child is support throughout their years in college. This doesn't just mean financial support. Whenever your child needs you, make sure you are there without being judgmental or overbearing. Even though it is difficult to maintain a close relationshipt with your child once they start college, they still need your guidance more than they would ever admit. Also, even though a school may seem to be out of your price range, dont let that hold you back. There are grants, scholarships, and financial aid that will help you out!

Never choose a school to get away from your home, family or friends. I come from a small town and attend school in a large one, and while I have many more opportunities, I realise now why I had the friends that I did.

Don't go to an expensive college unless you know what you want to do in life/what major you will pick.

Make sure you visit the schools and get a good feel of the school before deciding on it. Stick to your morals and who you are, and don't compromise just because of your peers

Find something that fits for you, not your parents, high school teachers, or expectations set by others. when you fin the right college, you will know it. Think ahead of what you want to do and where you want to be after you graduate. Look ahead. remember, if you don't like the college you choose, TRANSFER. it does not mean you're a failure, it just means you foun soemthing better. Finally, short on cash? Don't know what you want to be? Go to community college for a couple or years to complete your gen eds. then find the right college for you to finish your major.

First of all, do not let the listed tuition prices deter you from applying to certain schools. Many schools offer financial aid which may make up for their high tuition costs. Second, keep in mind each college's location. Is the location comfortable for you and your parents? How far away from home are you willing or capable of traveling? Thirdly, take a tour and get a feel for the campus climate before you commit to a school. The last thing you want is to commit to a school, move into your dorm, then realize that you have nothing in common with your floormates.

As corny as it sounds, you'll just know when you find the right college. As for me, I went to my college my first visit thinking I was going to hate it, and instead fell in love with it. I really suggest you go to a couple and go to some that you may think you have no interest in. You may be surprised what some have to offer other then what their stereotype makes them out to be. College is about discovering who you are as a person, not who you thought you were in high school, or what you think your parents what you to be. Find the place that will make you happy, because you're going to be spending the next four years there. Make sure you love your college and they will be the best four years of your life.

I don't think anyone ever told me that picking a college is more of a crap shoot than anything else. In my mind the goal is to find a place that after close examination would minimize your unhappiness, not find the ONE place that is the PERFECT place in EVERY way. People put so much pressure on finding the perfect place, people should just know there might not be a perfect place.

This transition is not one to take lightly and is also not one to loose sleep over. Advice I would give to parents is to be very involved in the process but do not, by any means, try and cram certain schools down your son or daughters throat. Coming from a student who had little to practically no help, this process is more that capable of sending one to the psych ward. You should discuss financial implications of schools along with what majors or subject your student loves or enjoys. Do your best at trying to get the real answer from your child and not just what you think your child wants you to hear. So, in other words if your child tells you they want to study exactly what you want them to, you might want to investigate further upon your results. Ultimately what school you want to go to depends upon a.) What you one get into b.) How much money one can afford to dish out and c.) What concentration of major your student wants to embark upon. Make sure they are doing what they love making themselves happy not you. Trust my words through experience.

I would tell parents and students to go and experience the college on your own and attend a class. Look around during a typical weekday and see if you can picture yourself as the students you see around you. Eat at the dining halls, read in the library, play frisbee outside. Do what a normal college student would do and ask yourself if you feel comfortable doing those things there. Also, find out everything there is to know about each college you're applying for. Make sure you have some sort of checklist of everything you want in a college and each college matches that as much as possible. As for making the most out of your college experience, step out of your comfort zone! You are not in high school anymore. Your friends are not wherever you are. You have to go out and do things on your own. If you do that, you will learn who you truly are and be more comfortable making decisions about your future. Just be confident and make sure what you get involved with is a good portrayal of you, because college is where people set the foundation for who they will be.