After you've been accepted, what is the best way to choose the college you are going to?

Question

I'm a senior in high school this year and have been applying to colleges. I live in Oregon (UofO, OSU,SOU,Portland state, Pacific, and Cal State) so i applied to alot of state school and some private. My problem is that i got accepted to every school i applied to. I don't know which school to go to at all. I want to get a international studies degree with a degree in crimnalogy. Could you help me think of ways to choose the best school for me?

Answer 1

Which schools offer the programs you want? Will you learn from a professor, or a teaching assistant?

Visit the schools. Where do you fit the best? Are the students you meet intellectually curious? Or looking for a party? Are they rich snobs (probably not at state schools, but some private schools cater to that) who will make you feel like a poor relation for four years? Are athletics over-emphasized?

Do you feel safe on campus and in the neighborhoods near campus? What do the crime stats say?

What kind of scholarships/grants/work study are they offering you? Look at the financial bottom-line. Don't consider loan offers in making your decision; you can always get loans. What will this cost you/your parents? Is school A worth $5,000/year more than school B? Why?

How close are the schools to your home? How important is it to be able to return home on the weekends or holidays? What are weekends like on campus? Even if you want to stay at school on the weekends, if everyone else goes home, you'll be stuck in a ghost town with nothing to do. Ask kids which night is party night - if they say Thursday, you know it's a commuter school.

Which schools offer the best opportunities for internships off campus? Here, the city schools are probably best because of the number of corporate offices. How important are internships to your future plans?

What are the schools' programs for study aboard and language training? Every international studies major should plan on spending junior year abroad at a non-English university. Does one of the schools have a study abroad program in international crime, or something similar that is directly related to your interests?

Talk to alumni of the schools. What do they tell you about the schools?

Relax. You don't have to decide until spring. Visit the schools while they're in session. Go to a class or two. Spend a night in the dorms. Eat the campus chow. Check out the campus atmosphere. If you can only visit a couple of campuses, ask lots of questions of the admissions people before you decide which ones to visit. Write to professors in your planned major and ask them about the programs.

Answer 2

Congratulations on your success in the admissions process! My suggestion would be that if you haven't yet spent time at the colleges you are considering, you go there and check them out. Most schools have some kind of weekend for admitted students (we call ours Preview Day) to give them an opportunity to take one more look and ask their remaining questions. Take another look at what your real wants and needs are too. That pretty school which doesn't offer your major might be nice to dream about, but you are in college to learn, and it will be very frustrating if you can't study what you had hoped to. On the other hand, you want a school which will offer more than just your major, because there is always the chance that your interests will shift while you are in college. Think about what you want to do after college. If you plan to stay local, a local degree would be fine. If you might want to move to some other part of the country (or other country), then the scope of the school's reputation will matter more when it comes to getting a job. Everyone realizes that the U of O is a good school; going to a place like Pacific or SOU might limit you.

I would also recommend that you don't panic over this. Everyone tries to pick the best school, but every year, many students realize that what they thought would be best, turns out not to be, and with a good record coming out of high school, you can always transfer (and it is easier to transfer down than to transfer up in quality). I wish you a good experience, but if it isn't, realize that you are not stuck and you can always reconsider your decision.

Answer 3

when it come to studies, the final piece of degree should be secondary because it is just a door openner for your career.

But, most important is the education system and the environment of the university / college.

first, check up the college population. See how many people are there. This will give u an idea on it's popularity.

Choose 3-5 enough. Make a visit trip there, see the students there, talk to the college/uni rep, let them explain to you about their plan to train their students.

At the same time, when you take a look at their places, make you see their most important study facilities like library, computer labs, experimental labs and etc.

From there, you see what you like more, you will know what suit you best.

p/s: alwasys decide after you see all the campuses, visit and visit again will be very helpful too!

Answer 4

Of course, you want the school with the best program in your area of study. Visit campuses that you can to see what they are like. Consider living facilities along with study and classroom facilities. Would you live in a dorm or an apartment or?And, you want to figure in living expenses with your other costs. Scholarships, and it sounds like you should be getting your share, usually don't cover living expenses.

Speaking of scholarships, I hope you've applied for a ton of them. Millions of scholarship dollars per year go unclaimed because students just don't apply. You may have to write an essay. So, write it and tweak it a bit for every scholarship that requires one. If it takes you two hours to write and you get $10,000, that's $5000 an hour and that's good pay anywhere but pro sports.

I won't wish you luck because it sounds as though you won't need it. Instead, I'll wish you a good college experience.

Answer 5

You need to find out which one has the best success rate for the major you are going into. Or which school has the better program for your major and choose that college.

Answer 6

first you should narrow them down by making sure each college has all the courses you NEED then get QUOTES about the CLASSES and TEACHERS if you can. GO VISIT AFTER YOU NARROW TH EM DOWN TO 3 OR LESS

Answer 7

Just follow your heart on that decision. Just let your heart lead you to the best choice ever. Goodluck!! I wish you the best of luck for your future.

Answer 8

Is family important to you. think about how close you want to be in communication with your family. which one is a better school? Which area is better?